We sat down with Debbie Pedder, to delve deep into her role as Panel Manager, and gain insight into her experience, specialism and responsibilities.
Hi Debbie, How long have you worked with Advanced?
I was approached by Mark Webb in 2005 and became his first Independent Social Worker. I have worked with the company since that time and was delighted to have been appointed as Panel Manager on 1st March 2021.
Tell us a bit about your role and responsibilities as Panel Manager.
I consider my role to be one of support to all of our Independent Social Workers and Parenting Practitioners. I offer consultation, guidance if necessary and oversee all of the work that they do, supported by our wonderful and very competent administration team. I am responsible for ensuring the quality of reports and assisting with any significant queries from Local Authority representatives and Solicitors. I am currently supporting the development of our 24/7 In the Home Programme and have developed a stringent recruitment and induction process.
I have developed assessment tools and training presentations for the company and aspire to continue to develop this aspect of my role in order to offer all of our ISW’s the opportunity of career development. It ensures that Advanced CCA remains at the top of our field and provides our clients and the parents and carers we assess, the expertise and competence that we are driven to achieve.
I have always valued the support that was offered to me by Mark Webb throughout my years as an ISW and he has encouraged and nurtured that aspect of my current role. I hope to have the opportunity to connect the ACCA family and harness the considerable strength and knowledge that our panel hold.
What is your previous experience of social work?
I qualified as a Social Worker in 1999 and began my career as an Education Welfare Officer. Within the remit of this role, I developed a passion for working with families in order to bring about change and within a year, I had secured my first Social Work position with Lancashire County Council as a Behaviour Management Social Worker. This was a time of preventative Social Work and I was able to develop innovative ways of working with families. I remember at one time, handing out a Harry Enfield DVD of Kevin the teenager, just to bring a little respite to the challenges of caring for children during this time of transition. The idea came from watching the DVD with my own teenager and recognising how it offered us both a different perspective for a while.
I worked as a Social Worker in 4 further Local Authorities and across all teams relating to children and families before securing a post as a Children’s Guardian. I fulfilled this role for around 2 years, within which time, my role with ACCA had developed and so I relinquished my Guardian position and became a full-time ISW.
What drove you to become a specialist in PAMS and ParentAssess assessments?
As with any area of Social Work, experience is key. I trained with Sue McGraw in 2011 and have been undertaking PAMS Assessments for the past 10 years. I then undertook training in ParentAssess in 2020 and my experience of working extensively with parents with learning difficulties has played a crucial role in being able to share that knowledge in order to support our ISW’s in the preparation of these types of assessment. I have offered workshops to support some of our panel to develop their assessment skills and to enhance the process for parents and carers.
I have a passion for ensuring that parents with learning difficulties are offered optimal opportunities for demonstrating their abilities to care for their children. Assessment processes should never be a tick box exercise and I continue to develop assessment tools that will compliment these assessments undertaken by ACCA. Many of my colleagues share my passion and this is represented in the high quality of the assessments they produce.
How important is the role of a social worker?
Describing the role of a Social Worker and explaining what we do on a day to day basis is not simple. There are many definitions of Social Work but I am drawn to the one developed by the Government appointed Social Work Taskforce in 2009, which states,
“Social work helps adults and children to be safe so they can cope and take control of their lives again. Social workers make life better for people in crisis who are struggling to cope, feel alone and cannot sort out their problems unaided. How social workers do this depends on the circumstances. Usually they work in partnership with the people they are supporting – check out what they need, find what will help them, build their confidence, and open doors to other services. Sometimes, in extreme situations such as where people are at risk of harm or in danger of hurting others, social workers have to take stronger action to protect them – and they have the legal powers and duties to do this…”
As Independent Social Workers, we support families and Local Authority Social Workers to achieve those goals. We assist the judicial process within Family Proceedings, both public and private and work closely with Solicitors and the range of professionals involved with families.
Do you think that now more than ever social workers roles are becoming ever more important?
We are hopefully in the wake of a global pandemic. The use of the word ‘unprecedented’ appears to have described many aspects of our experiences over the past 19 months and the strain of this has caused an exponential rise in the numbers of families brought to the attention of Children’s Services. It has left families isolated and increased the incidences of domestic violence and created a mental health crisis. The need for Social Work support has never been more important than it is now but more importantly, the need for Social Workers who are able to recognise the contribution of all of this for children and their families and to develop innovative ways in which to offer support to those families.
What do you think it is that drives social workers?
There are many reasons why individuals choose to pursue the Social Work role however, in my experience, most are to uphold the values and beliefs of the profession. They want to make a difference to people’s lives and to do so in a way that coveys empathy, respect and competence.
What does the future hold for Advanced and what will your role be within it?
Advanced CCA continues to grow and develop and we strive to achieve the highest level of professionalism in everything that we do. We aspire to develop our training programme to offer all of our ISW’s the opportunity of career development and in turn, offer our clients and the parents and carers we work with, the best service that we can. My own role continues to develop and I am very excited about the opportunities that provides, both personally, for our panel members and for the company.
