Social workers in schools trial

Main Report

IPE:

• The SWIS intervention was implemented relatively well, despite challenges due to the recruitment crisis and COVID-19 pandemic

• Social workers faced challenges in balancing different aspects of their role, but most schools received a “gold” rating for successful implementation
• There was variation between schools and LAs in the balance between statutory social work, lower-level preventative work, and other activities, with enthusiasm from social workers and school staff for lower-level preventative work and non-statutory work
• SWIS had an influence on other parts of the CSC system, particularly ‘front door’ processes in LAs

• The pathways and mechanisms identified in the pilot logic model were generally supported, and when SWIS was implemented successfully, it was in schools with a combination of compatibility between social worker and school, physical presence, and limited caseloads

Impact evaluation:

• There was no evidence of benefit from the SWIS intervention on the rate of section 47 enquiries. The rate was estimated to be 5.5% higher in the SWIS arm than in the control arm, but this effect was not statistically significant
• All effects of SWIS on the secondary outcomes were small and not statistically significant

Economic evaluation:

• There is a low probability of SWIS being considered cost-effective based on the primary cost-effectiveness analysis., with average total costs per school being higher in the SWIS intervention arm than the control arm and more section 47 enquiries being accrued in the former than the latter

• There were no statistically significant differences for any estimates of cost, cost-consequences, or cost-effectiveness between the intervention and control arms

Domestic Abuse in Schools

• Although most SWIS school DSLs reported improved confidence in identifying the signs and symptoms of DA, there were no statistically significant differences between them and control schools on questions relating to identifying and managing DA.
• All LAs reported a considerable increase in DA concerns resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown periods, with no perceived differences between SWIS and control schools.
• Most school staff (92.5%) had received some training in DA, but only 16.8% had received training in teenage relationship abuse and only half felt they had sufficient training in addressing situations of DA.
• Most staff felt prepared to document student experiences of DA, share appropriate information, and make appropriate referrals, but fewer felt prepared to manage disclosures of teenage relationship abuse (72.0%) or recognize when a student had been exposed to DA by their behavior or presentation (58.9%).

• The capacity for SWIS to operate at the preventative level was particularly valued by schools because students affected by DA were often not involved with CSC.