Understanding & Supporting Stepfamilies
This training course to help social workers better understand the trials and tribulations of stepfamilies. The course is aimed at exploring the key differences, thinking about how and why stepchildren are harmed and what social workers can do to support these families. Offering insights into spotting early warning signs to prevent abuse, neglect and child deaths.
Course Outline -
Stepfamilies are arguably the most complicated set of family systems. Yet in professional practice, and in my role as a Social Worker, it appears to be the least recognised and understood. It is widely accepted that ‘fathers’ can often be overlooked but this also applies to stepparents and at times with very serious consequences. There has been no framework for assessment and little recognition of the clear differences between stepfamilies and nuclear families. Sadly, as a practising social worker, I have come across numerous child abuse and neglect cases where the stepfamily ‘factor’ contributed to the risk. This training offers a framework that can be applied when assessing stepfamilies
Learning Outcomes -
• To illustrate what makes some stepfamilies dangerous and what children could be most at risk
• Outline some of the realities of blended/stepfamilies compared with first families
• Speculate why professionals struggle to address or deal with the stepfamily factor
• Suggest ways that professionals can discover dangerous cases in time to prevent harm
Trainer bio:
Kellie Potter is a Social Worker with over 20 years of practice. She is an experienced Parenting Assessor with a special interest in the assessment of stepfamilies. Kellie was a stepchild herself and has also been a stepparent and successfully navigated the numerous challenges of raising children who are not biologically her own. Kellie has spent many years undertaking direct work with stepfamilies and has developed a wealth of specialist knowledge in this important area of practice. More recently, Kellie has been working towards a master’s degree exploring theories which relate to stepparenting, undertaking a literature review and analysing a selection of serious case reviews. In this article she outlines why social work practitioners need more specialist training in the assessment of stepfamilies.
Kellie had an article published in BASW’s PSW Magazine about the problems with professionals not knowing how to assess or work with stepfamilies and members can view this on page 30 at this link - https://basw.co.uk/system/files/resources/psw-mar-apr-2023.pdf
Delivered online via MS Teams.
Corporate multi booking rates available - contact ProfDE@basw.co.uk for details.