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PROGRAMME REVIEW REPORT Part A: Summary Report
CONFIRMED
A1 Programme Specification Title(s)
Social Work Studies
Including collaboration with East, East Midlands and North West Regional Partnerships
A2 Home Department/School Social Work and Social Change
A3 Home Faculty Health, Psychology and Social Care
A4 Type of Event Review
A5 Date of Event 1 – 2 May 2013
A6 Objectives of Event
To ensure that the design, academic standards and quality of learning opportunities of the existing programme, together with the proposed developments, given strategic approval on 11 February 2013 (SAF ref PARM/12/097 refers) and as outlined in 7 below, remain
appropriate to the awards to which the programme leads and are informed by reference to institutional regulations and policies, national benchmarks and relevant professional and employment demands.
A7 Outline of Proposal/Development(s)
Manchester Metropolitan University has an established and successful history in the provision of Social Work education, offering a range of undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in partnership with a breadth of stakeholders. The only major changes since the last Periodic Review in 2008 have been to add a new collaborative award – MA Social Work (Employment Based) - and approve the relevant partnerships required to deliver this award. The current partnerships for this course are as follows:
East Regional Partnership: delivery by distance learning
East Midlands Regional Partnership: delivery by distance learning North West Regional Partnership: delivery by Staffordshire University
In considering proposed changes for this Review, the programme team sought full revalidation of the courses building upon the strengths and experience gained from current courses whilst incorporating a wide range of changes highlighted by external benchmarks. These changes focus upon:
• Admissions – raising of entry criteria for undergraduate and postgraduate programmes with new interview processes to meet TCSW guidelines
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Social Worker
• Curriculum alignment to TCSW Professional Capabilities Framework and HCPC Standards of Proficiency for Social Work
• Curriculum alignment across levels of learning with identification of core professional themes
• Development of new unit outlines to meet changes to the curriculum
• Introduction of a variety of creative and appropriate methods of assessment for each level of study
• Introduction of a Professional Development Portfolio for students studying the University Based programmes
• The introduction of 30 skills days for practice, the assessment of direct readiness to practice and the alignment of practice learning days from two 100 day placements to a 70 day placement followed by a 100 day placement.
A8 Conduct of the Event and Panel Membership
The event, comprising private panel meetings and meetings of the panel with members of the programme team, senior management team, practice educator representatives, service user and carer representatives and representatives of current students, was held on the Didsbury Campus.
The panel included the following internal members: • Dr Liz Price (Chair)
• Dr Kathryn Heathcote (Faculty representative) • Miss Emma Wingate (Panel Secretary)
• Miss Sarah Ives (Centre for Academic Standards and Quality Enhancement)
The panel included the following external member appointed by the Head of Centre for Academic Standards & Quality Enhancement after nomination by the Faculty:
• Prof Sue White (University of Birmingham)
The panel included the following external members representing the professional/statutory body indicated:
• Mr David Childs (Health and Care Professions Council) • Ms Laura Golding (Health and Care Professions Council) • Ms Amal Hussein (Health and Care Professions Council) • Mr Ben Potter (Health and Care Professions Council) • Mr David Ward (Health and Care Professions Council)
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• Dr Robert Johns (The College of Social Work) (Day Two only) • Ms Helen Tipton (The College of Social Work) (Day Two only)
A9 Documentary Evidence Base
• Programme Specification • Unit Specification Proformas
• Subject External Examiner comments & Programme team response • Course Development Plan (including approved Strategic Approval Form) • Summary CVs of staff teaching on the programme
• External Examiner Reports for the last two years • Programme and Placement Handbooks
• Practice Learning Documentation
• Mapping documents for both the Health and Care Professions Council and The College of Social Work
A10 Conclusions on Innovation and Good Practice The Panel identified the following aspects of good practice:
1. The integration and supportive nature of the team following recent senior level staff changes and their currency of knowledge of the social work field;
2. The strength of the team's links with local agencies, service users and carers;
3. The team's use of strategic practices, particularly the level of involvement in research-informed teaching.
A11 Conclusions on Quality and Standards
The Panel concluded that the intended learning outcomes of the programme were being achieved by students, that the standards of the University’s awards were being maintained and that the programme as modified remains current and valid in the light of developing knowledge in the discipline, practice in its operation and developments in teaching and learning.
A12 Summary of Outcome The Panel recommended:
(i) Continued approval with effect from September 2013 subject to fulfilment of the one
condition in Section A13 below.
A full list of the award titles approved may be found in para 2 of the updated programme specification.
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(Postgraduate) of the University’s Undergraduate and Taught Postgraduate Programmes, currently in approval, be noted.
A full list of changes made as part of this Review event may be found in Appendix 1 of this report.
A13 Condition of Approval
The following condition of approval must be fulfilled before the programme may commence: 1. The programme documentation must be amended to:
a) complete the outstanding changes requested in the Document Approval Form (DAF) (ref B8 para 5 below);
b) clarify the core unit requirements for both Postgraduate Diplomas and which parts of the MA (Employment Based) course are professionally accredited (Programme Specification Section 25) (ref B3 para 1);
c) ensure clarity for students and other stakeholders on methods of assessment for each unit (type of assessment clearly indicated; number of questions and any element of choice indicated for exams etc.) (ref B5 para 9);
d) explain how AP(E)L is carried out for the MA (Employment Based) course and amend any reference to information in the University's current AP(E)L policy to a web link, to ensure it is always up to date (Programme Specification Section 28) (ref B8 para 5);
e) carry out the changes requested by the programme team to Section 27 of the Programme Specification (Placement and Work-Based Learning);
f) ensure consistency in references to the MA (Employment Based) course (ref B8 para 5).
A14 Deadline for Fulfilment of Condition
21st May 2013
A15 Recommendations
The Programme Team must consider and address explicitly the following recommendation(s) in the course of its annual monitoring processes:
No recommendations were given by the University Panel. A16 Date of next scheduled review
The next scheduled periodic review of the programme will be held during the Autumn/Spring term of the academic year 2018/19.
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Part C: Response to Conditions: Status Report
Programme Title Social Work Studies
Type of Event Review
Date of Event 1-2 May 2013
Deadline for fulfilment of
Conditions 21
st May 2013
Panel Chair Dr Liz Price
Response to be approved by (indicate as appropriate) Panel Chair on behalf of
Panel X
All/designated Panel Member (please specify)
C2 Documentation submitted for approval Revised Programme Specification
Revised Unit Specifications
C3 Panel Chair/Panel Member Comments
C4 Confirmation of approval
I confirm that I am satisfied that the condition(s) of approval has/have been fulfilled.
Signed:
Date: 13th June 2013
Secretary’s Note 1:
The University conditions for this Review were approved on 13th June 2013. Consequently,
some additional amendments to the programme specification were required by the
regulator, the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC), to clarify its area of responsibility for the programme and the status of successful graduates with regard to entering the HCPC
CASQE page 6 of 6 PARM Report Register. The amended version of the programme specification was sent to the Chair and
approved on 7th August 2013.
Secretary’s Note 2:
Step Up to Social Work Programme – delivery wef January 2014:
Partner Approval of Greater Lancashire Regional Partnership, the new collaborative partner to deliver the Step Up to Social Work (identified after the review event) was completed in the Autumn term 2013 and amendments to the programme specification to incorporate the new partner and HCPC requirements were approved by FAQSC on 9 December 2013
Section D - For CASQE use only
D1 Date Report Received 8 August 2013
D2 Date Panel Recommendation(s) &
responses to conditions confirmed by Head of CASQE
MMU delivered programmes: 13 August 2013 Step up to Social Work (collab): 6 January 2014 D3 Date final outcome reported to
AQSC MMU delivered programmes; 2012/13 annual report
Step Up to Social Work (collab): Update on 2012/13 report – February 2014
