To effectively implement the Signs of Safety approach within a statutory child protection agency, the organisation needs to align its policies, procedures, learning, supervisory, measurement and recording systems with the practice approach.
The Signs of Safety IT Solution has been designed by experienced Signs of Safety practitioners, trainers and consultants to allow case practice and statutory compliance to work together.
IT that aligns with the practice
Case recording and other compliance measures are necessities, but when those systems don’t align with an organisation’s practice model it can be a serious block to a holistic and successful implementation. For this reason, incorporating a Signs of Safety aligned recording system within the agency’s IT system is mission critical.
All the elements of Signs of Safety
Mappings, Words and Pictures explanations, naturally connected networks, My Three Houses™ drawings, safety plans, the harm matrix, collaborative case audits, danger statements, safety goals and safety scales are all key elements of Signs of Safety, and are all seamlessly integrated into the system in a logical flow that makes sense to practitioners.
More time with families; less time recording
The flow between the forms and pathways reduces time spent at the computer and helps practitioners to spend more time with families, building deeper relationships with them to facilitate change. More clearly recorded practice through user-friendly outputs are easier for families to understand and help them through the process of change.
Move seamlessly between case pathways
One of the key strengths of Signs of Safety is the ability to use the same approach to do different types of work — in child protection, where it’s Signs of Safety; early intervention, where you’re looking for Signs of Wellbeing; or in the case of looked-after children, Signs of Success. The solution adjusts the language in the forms for each of these scenarios, and even allows for a case to change from one to the other as it progresses. This helps practitioners follow the flow of cases through the Signs of Safety IT Solution, and helps families understand the interventions as they progress.
Like Signs of Safety: always evolving
As front-line workers across the globe test and learn from what actually works for children and their families, our licensed Trainers and Consultants feed this back to the rest of the community so that Signs of Safety can continuously improve. In parallel, Elia works with the licensed IT suppliers to incorporate these learnings into the solution.
Tools for engagement
Forward facing software transforms smartphones and tablets into tools that practitioners directly utilise in their work with parents, children and members of the safety network. The software guides and records the professional and family’s shared work in applying each of the Signs of Safety practice methods (mapping, My Three Houses, safety planning etc) and automatically provides a record of the work directly to the family members as well as into the agency’s recording system.
Dashboards
Live dashboards are a critical part of creating a learning organisation, and are built to integrate and pull live data directly from the system. They enable every member of the team to get real-time feedback about their progress in every case, as well as that of their team, and can track the metrics of how Signs of Safety is being used across an organisation and the impact it is having on the outcomes for children.
Using group supervision and Appreciative Inquiry, team leaders and managers can lead learning about which cases are closing faster with better outcomes and more positive service recipient feedback. The Signs of Safety IT Solution helps you to become a learning organisation by using this information to identify which interventions are working well and hence where energies should be focused to really make a difference for children and families.
Keen to move this forward?
By using the Signs of Safety IT Solution from one of our licensed partners, agencies benefit from the shared knowledge and experience of other implementing agencies all around the world, and will be up-to-date with the latest Signs of Safety thinking and philosophy — now and into the future.
Wherever you are in your case recording journey, we would love to talk to you about how we can support you to realise the benefits of aligning the Signs of Safety practice in your organisation with your recording tools.
If you want to know more or to discuss your particular situation please contact our team at itsolutions@signsofsafety.net or speak to your implementation consultant.
Software development partners
Additional development partners will be added here as products are released.
Diona – diona.com
Liquidlogic – liquidlogic.co.uk
Signs of Safety Health Check
A case recording solution is a critical system that seeks to systematise and document complex children’s services work in an environment where requirements are constantly changing. Even the best designed IT solution needs to be regularly reviewed for its effectiveness, focusing particularly on the extent to which it is meeting the needs of users.
How does it work?
A Signs of Safety Health Check is an opportunity for all stakeholders within the local authority to be involved in reviewing the use and impact of the Signs of Safety IT Solution. The health check is led by an experienced Signs of Safety IT Specialist, either in-person or remotely over two days. The health check will include focus groups, structured interviews and a system and processes review, followed by a detailed report that sets out the findings and a suggested action plan. Access to a test version of the authority’s case management system will need to be facilitated.
What is included?
- User experience
- Forms and workflow across Early Help and Social Care
- Participation of families and network
- Collaboration with partners
- Reporting and Meaningful Measures
- Practice guidance
- Training and support
We will also include any priority areas that the local authority has identified.
What do our customers say?
“The health check worked really well from the preparation to the delivery, to the feedback. We had focus groups from different areas of our service; they felt they could be honest with their feedback. It helped us look at the findings and prioritise the areas we need to focus on; we knew about these things but the health check report formalised it in writing and gave us a focus for the next 12 months.”