We cultivate the workforce
A class is taught by one adult.But a childhood is shaped by many.
We develop the wider workforce around children, so people see themselves as one connected team, not separate services passing a child between them.
The premise
Many services. One workforce.
The people around a child rarely think of themselves as a workforce at all. The teacher, the health visitor, the youth worker and the family support worker each belong to a different service, budget and chain of command.
A child moves between them, but they seldom move towards each other. What the child experiences as one life, the system delivers as separate parts.
Too often, we ask our most rooted people to choose between growing and staying.
The people who know the families, who came from the neighbourhood, who are trusted on the doorstep, too often have to leave the places they are most needed in order to train, qualify or progress.
The work
The workforce children deserve
Connected
People who see themselves as one workforce around a child, not separate services passing a child between them.
Rooted
Ways to train and progress without leaving home, so the most trusted people can grow where they're needed.
Child-centred
The child, not the service, as the organising principle for how the work is done.
Our programmes
Two ways we're growing it
Centre for the Children's Workforce
A national initiative to turn disconnected disciplines and services into one workforce that is more than the sum of its parts.
- Shared narratives
- New training pathways
- Cross-sector learning
Power Up Pastoral
For the staff closest to our most vulnerable children. Affordable, practical development in relationship-centred practice, plus something this workforce rarely gets: a professional community beyond their own school.
- Learning mentors
- Attendance officers
- Safeguarding leads
- Family support workers
Find your way in
Whatever your role around a child, there's a place to start.
Join Power Up Pastoral
A year of practical development and a community of people doing the same job.
Work with the Centre
Shared narratives, training pathways and cross-sector learning for the whole workforce.
Develop as a leader
Our x100 and LeadingTrusts programmes for leading beyond your own gates.
Build support in your neighbourhood
Start with the Cradle-to-Career Partnership and our Catalyst programme.