STUDY

This module introduces you to legislation and the roles and responsibilities in safeguarding children and vulnerable adults within a range of client groups. You will explore the ethics of practice, occupational standards and professionalism that support you to practice in a responsible and ethically-informed manner that respects the rights of individuals, communities and the environment. The module introduces the importance of multi-agency working in safeguarding children and adults particularly through transitions during the lifespan.

This module will introduce you to group work and approaches to wellbeing and how these can be applied to practice. You will be encouraged to draw on knowledge gained from your own experience and will demonstrate your understanding of the value of group work through critical examination of case studies/experiential accounts.

Students will develop their own repertoire of Arts for future practice by working both collaboratively and independently, facilitated by the module tutor(s) and making use of dedicated studio space. Students will reflect on their experiential learning both in the classroom and in the work setting, engaging with theory. You will make links between your emerging knowledge and understanding and will be encouraged to identify elements of managing projects as an independent practitioner, which will be explored further at level 5.

This module provides you with a sound foundation on which to develop key transferable skills including communication; information technology; problem solving; numeracy; working with others; and reflection in the context of practice. These skills will give you the confidence to work and learn effectively within both the higher education and the workplace environments. 

When providing Arts to support client wellbeing, students need to be able to engage effectively and productively, Egan’s Skilled Helper is an approach used by a range of practitioners in support of this. Students will be given the opportunity to practise in groups and to record their practice for their own self-reflection. Throughout this, students will acknowledge the role of creative Arts in wellbeing and as a medium for supportive engagement and will use the opportunity to develop their own creative Arts repertoire.

Most professional and statutory bodies have well developed codes for the environmental, social and ethical dimensions of their practice and currently there is increasing pressure on professionals to become more engaged with “sustainability” issues. This module identifies some of the competencies, knowledge, skills and attitudes that reflect evolving professional standards with which students will explore the implications of ethical issues and sustainability for the future of their sector as well as their own professional practice as creative Arts practitioners. Emphasis is placed on developing the capability to learn from learning, to vision the future, to adapt to change, to think critically and act responsibly. Specific topics are addressed in the lectures and examples are reviewed in the seminars.

With the aim to reframe traditional concepts and genres of creativity using found and free resources and to consider biography as expressions of the inner and outer self. You will need to examine ideas that stem from social psychology and humanistic perspectives. You will also be able to play with modern notions of self-portraits and the selfie. Working outside, you will be supported in exploring  time-based ephemeral works that explore the self in the landscape; the wilderness of the woodland or even the urban environment. The psychological benefits of being in nature is widely recognised to reduce stress and mental fatigue, building resilience and recovery.

It is important that you develop flexible skills and can be adaptable to cope with the demands of an ever-changing employment landscape and that you have an understanding of self-employment, and funding opportunities. To this end, you will gain an understanding of the basics of project management and begin to create an identity as a practitioner.

In all organisations, including roles where graduates could be using their creative skills to support wellbeing, there has been an increasing emphasis on theoretically-informed practice which requires professional practitioners to be able to reliably access, assess and implement appropriate research evidence.  This ability demands an appreciation of research methods, concepts and applications that are consistent with the academic and professional requirements to develop both knowledge and skills.

An opportunity to showcase skills developed on the course and in the workplace, you will manage a project in the workplace. The project will follow a successful proposal and the you will, with the support of their project mentor/manager and/or tutor, manage and lead a project with one or more service user/client participants.