The information below is relevant to all NQSWs and will help you meet your CPL requirements. A small number are involved in the early implementation of a supported year. NQSWs in the supported year will record their CPL in a different way. If you are not sure whether you are part of the supported year please ask your supervisor or local NQSW support lead to confirm.
How do I meet my registration requirements?
Within the first 12 months of registration, or 18 months if you work part-time, as a newly qualified social worker (NQSW) you are required to undertake 24 days (144 hrs) training and learning.
At least five days (30 hours) of this activity should focus on working effectively with colleagues and other professionals to identify, assess and manage risk to vulnerable groups. This is to ensure they can meet their primary responsibility of protecting children and adults from harm regardless of setting.
You can achieve this in several different ways including formal and informal learning. It is important to achieve a balance between formal learning, work experience, shadowing, research, self-directed learning, supervision and experiential learning when evidencing the stated requirements.
Learning and development activities might include:
- induction activities, shadowing colleagues, team meetings, supervision
- completing specific formal and informal training courses
- professional discussions with colleagues, other professionals and people who use services
- self-directed learning including reading, independent study, online research/study
- experiential, action or enquiry-based learning
- leading or engaging in practitioner enquiry/action research.
Have a look at some of the resources to help you evidence how social workers learn in the workplace.
When recording your learning reflect on the impact of your learning experience.
Think about how it has helped to consolidate your social work knowledge, skills and values, including managing any ethical dilemmas and use of self.
This is how you will most effectively demonstrate the requirements and provide a useful record of your progress during the NQSW period to refer to later.
The presentation below provides lots of information about meeting your CPL requirements.
How do I record my training and learning?
[The information below is relevant to most NQSWs and will help you meet your CPL requirements. A small number are involved in the early implementation of a supported year and will record their CPL in a different way. If you are not sure whether you are part of the supported year please ask your supervisor or local NQSW lead to confirm]
You can record your learning directly onto the NQSW Record of Achievement form, use the MyLearning app or a combination of the two.
We will write to you at the end of the first 12 or 18 month period to ask you to submit your signed record of achievement form.
We recommend that you record your learning as you go along rather than waiting to the end, this will make it more authentic to your learning journey.
Before you begin to record your CPL please become familiar with the following:
- guidance for NQSW on consolidating and continuing to develop social work knowledge, skills and values
- guidance on how to add MyLearning journals or OpenBadge portfolios to the Record of Achievement form and associated ‘How to’ guide
- these examples of completed Record of Achievement declaration forms
If you have any further questions about your CPL please use the web form on our Contact us page.
New standards for NQSWs in Scotland
New Standards for NQSW have been developed and set out what NQSWs should meet within their first year in social work practice as registered social workers.
They describe core characteristics of professional social work practice and in the early implementation areas are the framework used to plan and review the knowledge, skills, values and ethical practice to be consolidated and developed during the NQSW period.
The Standards can be used by any NQSW to frame their CPL and we have included learning resources across all the areas of the standards on this website.