Standard 4: Supervision and reflective practice

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Everyone should have an opportunity to have reflective supervision to support staff to understand how to identify and respond to potential harm and neglect in care homes, as well as having the opportunity to learn from their experiences.

This is a safe space for staff to feel comfortable to challenge poor practice and raise concerns and feel supported through the process. There is potential for under-reporting safeguarding concerns by staff who are afraid that this will affect their jobs. Creating an open and trusted culture is paramount.

NICE guidance: line management and supervision responsibilities

4a. Do you offer safeguarding supervision?

It is good practice to ensure that there is there an opportunity in your service for staff to have protected time to reflect on practice and discuss lessons learnt this may be following a safeguarding concern.

See also: Recommendations | Safeguarding adults in care homes | Guidance | NICE

Safeguarding supervision provides a safe space where staff they can reflect on challenging cases and difficult encounters, within practice in the care home.

Reflective practice and supervision can help staff to:

  • Understanding of staff’s own personal values and beliefs and how these may impact on their own actions and decision making.
  • Consideration of previous practice, exploring what happened, what you did, and your decision making.
  • Exploring and recognising one’s own emotions and behaviours.
  • Ability to reflect on lessons learnt and ask oneself, what you did well, what you could have done better and how you may respond next time.
  • An opportunity to develop self-awareness, critical thinking, and sound decision-making.
  • Staff to develop an understanding of how to identify and respond to abuse and neglect.

Management responsibility and role

  • Managers and supervisors have an important role to play in encouraging and supporting care staff to challenge poor practice and raise concerns about potential abuse or neglect.
  • Make sure that there is there an opportunity to positively acknowledge how staff have learned from their experience of identifying, reporting and dealing with safeguarding concerns.

Reflecting on the concerns of staff

  • When exit interviews are carried out, good practice suggests that this should be done independently of the manager. This allows for staff leaving the care service to share how they felt about the culture, learning and management around safeguarding.
  • Bear in mind that some staff may be afraid of losing their job, hence this can lead to underreporting safeguarding concerns.

4b. Do you offer and document group safeguarding supervision sessions as an opportunity for learning / reflective practice?

It is important for all staff to have protective time and safe space to reflect on their practice having the ability to reflect on one’s own actions and other. It is also an opportunity to engage in a process of continuous adaptation and learning.

A contract should be drawn up and each session clearly documented and signed by both the supervisee and supervisor as a true account of their discussion.

Safeguarding Toolkit Reflective Supervision Form [docx] 15KB

Safeguarding Toolkit Supervisor Record Form [docx] 33KB