Children’s Workforce Strategy Action Plan?                                                                                   (formerly known as 'Refresh')

(Old - but interesting article)

Do you know that people who work with children and young people in Health, Education, Social Care, Voluntary and Community contexts are the Children’s Workforce, and that the Early Years Workforce is just one part of the Children’s Workforce? 

Have you heard about the Children's Workforce Strategy? Do you know that the Children’s Workforce Strategy is being updated, or ‘refreshed’, and the government have been asking for our opinions as to how best to do this? Our contributions will be incorporated in to a plan of action and published for the whole Children’s Workforce to follow over the next 12 months; this is why taking part is consultation is so important. The publication is due out in Autumn 2007; it was to be called Children's Workforce Strategy Refresh but the name has been changed to Strategy Action Plan. 

Do you know why Children’s Workforce Strategy Refresh has been renamed to Children’s Workforce Strategy Action Plan? It is because we, the Children’s Workforce were unhappy with the title. 

Have you heard that almost 100 people participated in the 'Refresh of the Children's Workforce Strategy Conference organised by the Children’s Workforce Network in June 2007 – and they had a LOT to say! 

Did you go to the conference? For the rest of us, here are some of the issues discussed on the day: 

• Encouraging professional bodies to develop networks. 
• Guidance - Success stories. 
• Practice and principles. 
• One workforce for children and young people. 
• The place of the youth workforce 
• Common core. 
• Emotional challenges of working with marginalised children. 
• Evidencing benefits of multidisciplinary working in achieving the 5 Every Child Matters. 
• Terms, pay and conditions. 
• Simplification of systems and structures. 
• Common language. 
• Keeping knowledge and experience within the children’s and young people’s workforce 
• Raising awareness in the workforce of the Children’s Centre agenda
• Children and young people’s voice. 

See the Children's Workforce Website for more information.