The role of the key worker: A case study from Essex County Council - Social Work in Disasters Open Forums
Welcome to the first in a new series of sessions from the BASW England Social Work in Disasters group. We have created these forums with the following aims:
1. To promote the role of social workers in disasters
2. To share examples of learning and good practice of social working in disasters
3. To empower social workers to develop disaster working skills
4. To provide peer support for social workers in disasters
The first session will focus on a case study: how Essex County Council adopted BASW/ADASS’s national recommendations and recruited/trained its keyworkers
Essex has had a multi-agency support service for people affected by emergencies since 2004 called the Crisis Support Team for Essex. It comprised a team of trained volunteers from many partner agencies called crisis support workers who would be deployed in the first few days, hours and weeks to support survivors and families of those missing, injured or killed. For various reasons, this capability was brought in-house by Essex County Council during 2023. Social care leaders agreed to include the new role of social care keyworker, recommended in the joint statement by BASW and ADASS. The Local Authority has been working hard to embed the capability in its emergency planning and response arrangements, plans, and social care systems. A Spring recruitment drive this year increased the team by 50, 25 of which will fulfil the role of a keyworker in an emergency.
Representatives from Essex County Council’s Crisis Support Team for Essex will provide information about their crisis support team and how they recruit, train, and support their keyworkers. You will get the opportunity to hear learning about the Council’s recent recruitment drive and planning, and speak with representatives from their team.
There will also be an opportunity for reflection and discussion with others interested in disaster working and emergency planning.
If you have any queries about this event, please contact us via the form below.