The Real Toolkit For

The Workforce

Looking to learn more about relational practice? Browse these pages to find advice on how to improve your practice and achieve cultural change.

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Supporting young people from minority backgrounds

You cannot be a relational practitioner, without adapting your practice to the realities and experiences of the young person in front of you. For many young people of colour their experiences are shaped by their ethnicity, race and/or religion. This Guide is a short introduction to how young people who are Black, Asian or part of other ethnic minorities.

The Workforce |
Rights And Justice

Why housing and relationships cannot be separated

Housing and relationships are connected in many ways. Understanding that link can help you provide better support to young people living in different settings.

The Workforce |
Homes And Housing

An introduction to relational policies and procedures

We cannot write the perfect policies. However, we can make recommendations of the principles that policies should follow. Principles are the guidelines organisations should stick to.

The Workforce |
Building Relationships

Supporting young people with care experience in their job

Getting a job is a major achievement for a young person, let’s make sure they succeed in it. Here you will find information on some ways you can support young people with care experience in their job.

The Workforce |
Work And Employment

How shifts and work patterns influence the relationships with young people

One of the first things you learn when you start your job is when you need to arrive and when you need to leave. Have you ever considered that the pattern of your work affects the relationships you are building?

The Workforce |
Building Relationships

Being a relational residential worker

Looking for ways to be more relational in residential care? This guide will offer you an insight and suggest some first steps into the direction of becoming a relational residential worker.

The Workforce |
Residential Care

Even the best can be better – how to create relational training for staff

It is important to keep learning and growing. Recognise your staff’s value and expertise by developing internal training and discussion sessions. Enable staff to learn and train more. Training should not be a tick-box exercise but a place for growth and reflection.

The Workforce |
Building Relationships

How to build relationships with young people

All relationships take time and effort to build and develop relationships with young people with care experience is no exception, perhaps being even more difficult due to their backgrounds however with the right understanding and approach you could develop a strong and positive connection which will benefit both you and your young person.

The Workforce |
Building Relationships

Rights of young people in care

Looking to better understand the rights of young people with care experience? Here you will find information and links.

The Workforce |
Rights And Justice

Why relationships matter

Relationships are essential to all parts of life and encompass both our professional and personal lives. They are a vital part of the support networks for our young people and the stronger the relationship the better we can all do our jobs, perhaps making them feel less like a job and more like a vocation. And perhaps more importantly, the stronger the relationship the more important a young person might feel.

The Workforce |
Building Relationships

Practical steps for your own mental health as a professional

If you want to get started on improving your own wellbeing immediately, you might find some helpful advice in this guide.

The Workforce |
Mental And Physical Health

What is throughcare and aftercare?

Throughcare and aftercare are important parts of support for young people. The terms itself though are a bit more complicated than they should be. This guide can give you a new or updated understanding of what support during transitions should look like.

The Workforce |
Through And Aftercare

Supportive relationships in continuing care

Continuing care is very important that adults in a young person’s life know about it early on, so that they can support the young person with the right decision.

The Workforce |
Continuing Care

The role of supervision in a relational organisation

As is often said, hurt people hurt people – it is even more important to consider the flipside: supported people support people. Working with young people and caring for them can be a demanding role, especially in under-resourced and stressful environments. A truly relational organisation also invests in the relationships between managers and staff, creating a positive environment for everyone.

The Workforce |
Building Relationships

How physical spaces shape relationships

Physical spaces can mirror, amplify, and direct our emotions. So, creating a relational space on the outside can positively affect the relationships we build in that space.

The Workforce |
Building Relationships

Ways of taking care of your mental health for Professional workers

Mental health – everyone has it and we all need to take care of it. There is a more over-all awareness nowadays regarding our mental health and how to look after this, through many different information outlets and resources available; however, despite this, poor mental health issues are continually increasing. Mental health problems can affect around 1 in 4 people currently in a given year. Poor mental health can happen to all kinds of people from all different walks of life and there can be many contributing factors. You may be looking for some pointers and guidance to improve your mental health or need advice on how to access professional help. This guide will offer you some mental health advice and support links which we hope you find helpful.

The Workforce |
Mental And Physical Health

An introduction to trauma-informed practice

Early life experiences shape our mind and body in ways that we are understanding more and more, especially when these experiences are traumatic. Trauma-informed practice takes this knowledge and creates a holistic framework for practitioners and organisations to create healing and safe spaces and ways of working.

The Workforce |
Building Relationships

Supporting young people in education

Whether you are a social worker, teacher or any other adult supporting a young person in education; you should know how you can improve their outcomes by providing relational support.

The Workforce |
Education And Training

Using technology to your advantage when building relationships

What do IT systems and relationships have in common? Both usually run in the background and are easily taken for granted. Perhaps surprisingly, IT systems can have a big influence on the quality of relationships and relational practice in general.

The Workforce |
Building Relationships

What is relationship-based practice

Relationships are an important part of everyone’s life. For example, everything we learn as children depends on others teaching us. But did you know that good relationships also have an influence on our physical and mental health (Griffith, 2017)? Relationship-based practice combines what we know about childhood development, trauma, resilience, and relationships to promote the best for children and adolescents.

The Workforce |
Building Relationships

Building relationships in secure care

Looking for ways to build and maintain relationships in secure care? Here you find some information for doing just that.

The Workforce |
Secure Care

How to time an introduction and referral

First introductions matter. It matters when, how and where they happen. Many young people speak about transitions are often the most difficult times. In this Guide we explore how transitions can be done from the lens of relational practice.

The Workforce |
Building Relationships

Exploring opportunities with young people

Looking to explore options for young people you work with or support? Here you will find some information and advice on what options are out there.

The Workforce |
Education And Training

Setting the values of your organisation and why it matters

Organisational values influence the working culture. They can inspire workers to follow the organisation's mission. However, for them to have an impact they need to be developed with staff and young people.

The Workforce |
Building Relationships

Keeping staff – why relationships do not work without retention

Consistency is key to relationships. It is more than stressful for young people to have to a changing system of support around them. Retention of staff is therefore key for good relational practice.

The Workforce |
Building Relationships

How to be a relational foster carer

Looking for ways to be more relational as a foster carer? Here you will find some information on how to create relational foster care.

The Workforce |
Foster Care

How to create relational education

Looking for ways to create relational education for young people? Here you will find some tips and advice on how to be relational in an education setting.

The Workforce |
Education And Training

Creating a relational performance management system

When you know your goal you do whatever you need to do to reach it. But what if you defined the goal in the wrong way? In this Guide we explore how the goal affects your actions and how you can make sure that you are measuring your success in the right way. Are you meeting an outcome or are you filling a need?

The Workforce |
Building Relationships

Supporting a young person as a kinship carer

Are you a kinship carer looking for how to best support the young person(s) you care for? Here you will find some advice and practical information to support young people in kinship care.

The Workforce |
Kinship Care

Supported staff, support others – how to improve the structures in your organisation

Only those that feel supported can support others. Here we will explore what support can feel and look like.

The Workforce |
Building Relationships

Creating a recruitment process that promotes relationships

Relationships do not just depend on one person, but rather on a network of people and the culture of an organisation. Sometimes one person who simple ‘doesn’t get it’ can put barriers in the way for an entire team to become less relational. So, it’s easy to see why recruiting the right people is so important to create and maintain a relational organisation.

The Workforce |
Building Relationships