Working with Adults who are Difficult to Engage (Wales)

Course Outline:

The course aims to arm social workers working with difficult to engage adults, with the skills to identify what leads to a lack of engagement, and to define and recognise difficult to engage behaviour. This includes: ambivalence, avoidance, confrontation, and violence. The course will also explore what is meant by professional curiosity and respectful challenge.

Delegates will consider relevant legislation for intervention to include the Human Rights Act 1998, the Social Services and Well-being Act 2014 and the Mental Capacity Act 2005, along with statutory guidance and best practice guidance around Making Safeguarding Personal. Delegates will also explore how the appropriate and timely sharing of information and a multi-agency approach is vital to safeguard adults and professionals where adults are not willing to engage or cooperate directly or indirectly.

Key Learning Outcomes:

Define who are “difficult to engage adults”
Explain what leads to a lack of engagement with some adults
Describe types of uncooperative behaviour to include ambivalence, avoidance, resistance, intimidation, confrontation and violence
Explore what is meant by “professional curiosity”
Explore the relevant legal framework from Human Rights through to policy and procedures
Prioritise the adult’s needs by applying Making Safeguarding Personal
Assess the effectiveness of multi-agency working and sharing of information to safeguard adults and professionals
Recognise the importance of creating and collecting factual evidence that builds a holistic picture around the adult
Recognise the importance of risk assessments and the production of well-crafted action plans which identify how risks can be managed or reduced
Evaluate if there is adequate support and supervision of staff to enable staff to respond appropriately to risky or hostile behaviour
Identify the key learning from some of the adult safeguarding reviews