NAAS

The aim of the National Assessment and Accreditation system (NAAS) will raise the professional status of child and family social workers, providing a clear career path as well as ensuring they have the knowledge and skills they need to practice effectively. The NAAS will create a culture in social work where not only are practitioners highly skilled and confident but where they also have supportive supervision and leadership.

The system forms a key part of the government’s reforms to children’s social work to ensure every child receives expert support and protection. The NAAS is a key part of this work to strengthen the skills and professional status of child and family social workers so they can provide this vital support to children who need it.

The system itself is a process of assessing the knowledge and skills of each social worker using different methods to get the best out of them and provide opportunity for them to demonstrate what they can do. The assessment aligns with the post qualifying standard Knowledge and Skill Statements (KSS).

Our vision is to build a Trust that provides excellent social work and family support for and with the city’s most vulnerable children, young people and families.

Taking part in the accreditation allows our social workers to demonstrate their specialist knowledge and skills they use in their practice and be recognised for the good work that we do.

Gaining accreditation is something to be proud of and provides opportunity for professional growth and development in their careers.

Here in Birmingham Children's Trust our career progression pathway and learning and development offer includes NAAS, to monitor and support development for our social work workforce and value their hard work.

We recognised the importance of slowing down practice and taking time to reflect on our CPD as a part of valuing our staff and allowing the time and space to develop. Our NAAS programme offers a range of methods to support you prepare and take your NAAS assessment;

  • Study days with access to NAAS Accredited Practice supervisors to answer your questions and be there to support you
  • Learning workshops based on the PQS KSS that can be tailored to your individual learning needs
  • Refreshers around theory and reflective practice
  • Practice Academy SPed