National Advisory Forum terms of reference

Last updated: 6 June 2023

The purpose of the National Advisory Forum

The National Advisory Forum provides expert support, advice and challenge to the work of Social Work England and our future ambition in line with our strategy.

The forum will:

• act as the centre for co-production within Social Work England, ensuring that our approach to co-production is comprehensive
• act as a critical friend, providing robust feedback and guidance on our work from the perspective of lived and learned experience
• contribute individual expertise and the perspective of key stakeholders, highlighting when additional external input may strengthen our work
• work collaboratively to develop and progress specific work strands; liaise with Social Work England staff as needed and feedback outcomes to keep other advisory members informed
• champion the work of Social Work England and support us in promoting the role and value of regulation
• model Social Work England’s values – fearless, independent, ambitious, integrity, collaborative, transparent
• provide feedback and views from the profession and people with lived experience to ensure that Social Work England’s communication and engagement offer reflects diverse voices
• maintain confidentiality of information shared in line with our co-production partner agreement

How the forum will meet

The forum will meet every two months for 2 hours. These meetings will be online; twice a year in person/ hybrid meetings will be offered.

The meetings will be chaired by members of the forum, supported by a Social Work England staff member.

An agenda and papers will be circulated 5 working days in advance of the meeting.

‘Challenge sessions’ will be held three times a year, for 1.5 hours to explore particular themes in more detail.

The forum will share the space equally and recognise the strengths and expertise of all members.

Members are asked to respect confidentiality; discussions are an opportunity for members to share their experiences and perspectives openly.

Documents for meetings are confidential and not for wider circulation unless otherwise agreed.

Notes and actions will be recorded and shared.

How membership works

There will be a maximum of 20 members.

Members will serve a term of 3 years, with the option to request extending for two more years.

Members must have an agreement with their employer (where relevant) to be able to attend meetings and undertake work in their role as a National Advisory Forum member.

Members who are not paid to attend through their organisation, for example, people with lived experience and students, will be remunerated for their time spent working on National Advisory Forum activities in line with our expenses and involvement payments policy.

All members will have any travel, accommodation and expenses covered when required to undertake work with Social Work England.

Members must declare potential conflicts of interest in line with the co-production partner agreement.

The membership of the forum will consist of the following people recruited through a selection process:

• registered social workers representing the breadth of social work
• people with lived experience of social work across the breadth of social work

We will regularly review membership and address gaps in representation through recruitment.

Roles and responsibilities

As a member of the National Advisory Forum, you are asked to:

• prepare, attend and participate in forum meetings every two months, and challenge sessions three times a year as a minimum requirement
• in addition, contribute individual expertise in order to co-produce the work of Social Work England in at least one project a year. This includes, but is not limited to, working collaboratively to develop and progress specific pieces of work (anything from 2 to 10 hours a month as availability allows)
• collate feedback, learning and reflections from co-production work to share with the forum
• act as a critical friend, giving feedback and guidance on our work
• be a champion of us and our work, and support us in promoting the role and value of social work regulation

Members should be:

• knowledgeable and have lived and/or learned experience of social work
• passionate about improving the social work profession
• willing to challenge and offer constructive criticism
• organised and able to work to agreed timescales
• respectful of others
• able to communicate with a diverse range of people
• able to understand the role of regulation
• supportive of our aims and embody our values

Social Work England commit to:

• co-production and being fearless in our ambition
• valuing our people, investing in them and showing our appreciation
• understanding when co-production is meaningful and proportionate for the work
• facilitating the independent role of the forum as a critical friend
• having challenging conversations with integrity
• working with people and listening to their experiences to bring change where possible

Social Work England will:

• offer a consistent point of contact (Participation Officer) to support you in your role including optional 1-2-1 meetings twice a year
• provide training to enable members to fulfil the role and offer personal development opportunities
• regularly send out updates about work across the forum and the organisation including co-production requests and opportunities to get involved.
• provide a comprehensive expenses and involvement payment policy
• take a fair approach to ensuring everyone has opportunities to participate in co-production work and support people’s involvement through reasonable adjustments
• link you with a Regional Engagement Lead covering your area of the country to develop relationships in the region and workstreams in the organisation

And finally:

No one advisory board member is expected to know it all.

The strength of the forum lies in its ability to attract and rely upon members from a wide variety of backgrounds, share out work amongst its members, and be able to offer feedback and expertise as a group. No one member is responsible for the forum as a whole.

All members share the responsibility of making the National Advisory forum effective and efficient by contributing to the work of Social Work England, being well-prepared and actively contributing to meetings.