“Tough and uncompromising” training capable of transforming social work culture

The findings showed that Grit training led to significant personal and professional growth for most participants.

Despite being hesitant about the training, the majority had seen real changes in how they felt about their work, such as feeling calmer when under pressure, approaching problems in a new way, and increased ability to handle difficult conversations.

They also reported that they understood themselves better and carried a self-awareness and confidence into the workplace which empowered them to better advocate for themselves and their clients.

A key element of Grit is its focus on understanding relationships and community, leading to some of the leaders feeling they’d achieved a better knowledge of how others viewed them, and of the effects their own behaviour had – with their team members stating that they have since felt more valued.

Director of the Nottingham Institute of Education and lead researcher, Associate Professor Chris Rolph, said: “The evaluation found that participants had some initial reticence in terms of balancing the training with heavy workloads, and a little apprehension in taking part without really knowing what to expect.

“But while most of the participants did find it challenging, they also felt they now had a new ‘toolkit’ for their work and found this new understanding of themselves and how they think and work liberating and transformational.

“On the front line, social workers say they are more confident, more people-focused, and consequently more effective than they were before Grit.

“These findings suggest that systemic or cultural change within LA social work teams can be achieved through Grit training, both at the front line, where it supports challenging conversations based on strong relationships with young people and families; and within the organisation where Grit supports openness and honesty in professional relationships.”

Grit’s Director of Development, Jon Down, said, “Although we have plenty of our own internally produced evidence of the difference our programmes make, if we want to deliver at scale and grow the impact of our work, we need a robust, academically credible and independent evidence base for us to take to local authorities and other potential partners. This evaluation does just that.

“It shows how Grit can lead to a qualitative improvement in the work done by Local Authority social work teams and associated agencies, how impact is sustained over the medium term, and how it creates systemic or cultural change, both on the front line, and within the organisations.

“Amidst the staff recruitment and retention crisis in Children’s Services, and local authorities more generally, it shows how our work can regenerate a collaborative ‘can-do’ culture, build resilience, bring more effective team working, impact job satisfaction and, most importantly, get better outcomes for the children and families they support.”

Read the full report online.