Part of my remit is to act as the Chair of the National ASP Learning and Development Network. The Members are honestly some of the most helpful colleagues I have ever come across – so willing to share information and resources. The only stipulation for Membership is that part of your role must include developing and/or delivering training in relation to Adult Support and Protection. The current Work Plan includes actions such as continuing to organise the ASPire (Adult Support and Protection innovation and reflection event) sessions. The most substantive piece of work the Network will be involved in this year, will be to develop a National Adult Support and Protection Learning and Development Framework. Our colleagues from Child Protection (CP) worked on a similar Framework for those involved in Learning and Development concerning Child Protection – publishing earlier this year. We are trying to ensure that the two documents will have a similar look and feel, so are starting with the CP Framework as the basis for our ASP Framework. There will of course, be necessary differences between the two documents. It is hoped that the new ASP Learning and Development Framework will provide helpful multi-agency guidance across all levels of staff (and volunteers) to promote improved national consistency in the way we support staff in relation to discharging their ASP responsibilities. That in turn, should ensure that we are all better, across Scotland, at identifying and supporting and protection those adults who meet the criteria within the Adult Support and Protection (Scotland) Act 2007 – for a short introduction to the act – see the following link: https://www.gov.scot/publications/adult-support-protection-scotland-act-2007-short-introduction-part-1-act/
Anyone wishing to know more about the National ASP L&D Network and/or the development of the ASP L&D Framework can email me at: brenda.walker@iriss.org.uk
Speaking of learning about ASP and access to ASP resources, including specific learning resources, I want to flag that Iriss are just about to launch their new ASP Resource Hub over the next few weeks – see the Iriss Website: https://www.iriss.org.uk for up to date information on the Hub. You will be able to explore specific categories as well as search for specific documents and there will be regular blogs and a Resource of the Month etc. This feels very exciting and I am really looking forward to a short presentation which Iriss have arranged for later this month. I will provide more information on the Hub as it evolves. Meantime, contact by email if you want further information on this.