About this section

2B sets out what workforce readiness looks like for a site delivering the Restitute Model.

It covers workforce functions, recruitment and suitability, induction and competency, equipment, supervision and support, staff therapy, workload and capacity, development review, worker absence, worker exit and access removal.

It does not set out the client pathway. The client pathway sits in Client Pathway Standards and Practice.

2B.1 Workforce functions

1. A site must identify who holds the workforce functions needed to deliver the Restitute Model.
2. These functions include the support worker function, supervision function, line management function, induction and training function, staff therapy access route, and workload and capacity oversight.
3. Functions do not need to match fixed job titles. In smaller teams, one person may hold more than one function, provided this does not weaken supervision, safeguarding, worker support, accountability or quality assurance.
4. Workers must know who they go to for supervision, case discussion, safeguarding escalation, line management, staff therapy access and delivery questions.
5. Functional role descriptions are set out in Appendix D. Delivery Sites may use different job titles, but the required functions must be assigned.

2B.2 Recruitment, checks and suitability

1. The site must have recruitment, checks and suitability arrangements in place for each Restitute Model function before people begin client work or access client records.
2. Recruitment, appointment and allocation to Restitute Model functions must be based on the relevant functional role description. Job titles may vary, but the required function must be clear.
3. Suitability must be checked before the person begins the role. This should include relevant experience, safeguarding understanding, ability to work with trauma, distress and family complexity, professional boundaries, communication skills, ability to use supervision, ability to record accurately, and willingness to work within the Restitute Model.
4. Anyone delivering client work, supervising client work, managing client delivery or accessing client case records, including admin or data staff, must have an enhanced DBS check before they begin that role. References, qualifications and relevant training should also be checked before client work begins.
5. A person must not begin client-facing work or be given access to client records until the required checks, induction and authorised access arrangements are complete.
6. Restitute Model client support must be delivered by paid or contracted workers who meet the required checks, induction, competency, supervision and recording requirements. Volunteers must not hold Restitute Model client-support roles.
7. Former clients may apply for paid roles where they meet the role requirements. Lived experience may be welcomed or made relevant, desirable or essential where this is justified by the role, but recruitment must remain fair, safe and role based. Former-client status must not replace safer recruitment, competency, enhanced DBS, induction, supervision, safeguarding or boundary checks.
8. The site must have a clear route for workers to declare any conflict of interest, prior knowledge, personal connection or suitability concern before allocation and at any point during support. This includes where the worker knows the client, survivor, alleged perpetrator, referrer or key family member; where the client is a current or former colleague, trustee, director, volunteer, contractor or close associate; where the worker has prior knowledge of the family through another role; or where the case could create a personal, financial, reputational or relational conflict. The concern, decision and any action taken must be recorded through the agreed supervision, management or governance route.

2B.3 Induction and competency

1. The site must have an induction and competency process in place before workers begin client work.
2. Induction may be delivered locally where the site has the required knowledge, or with support from the Restitute Core Team.
3. Induction must cover:
   • the purpose and boundaries of the Restitute Model;
   • who the model is for and who it is not for;
   • the client pathway;
   • safeguarding routes, escalation and safeguarding training to the required level;
   • confidentiality and data protection;
   • conduct, ICT, social media, financial probity and record-keeping requirements that apply to the role;
   • professional boundaries and contact routes;
   • assessment and outcome requirements;
   • practical support controls;
   • benefits/application support within competence, including required benefits/application learning before this support is undertaken without close supervision;
   • use of supervision and case discussion;
   • worker wellbeing and staff therapy access;
   • Lamplight competency sufficient to record client work safely before holding a case.

4. The site must have a process for checking worker competence that goes beyond training attendance. This should include supervised practice, supervisor judgement and review of early client work.
5. A worker should only begin client work when induction is complete and the supervisor or site lead is satisfied that client work can begin safely with the agreed level of supervision.
6. Competency decisions must be evidenced and recorded. The record should show the functions the worker is approved to undertake, any limits or conditions, the evidence considered, who authorised the decision, and when competency will be reviewed.
7. Competency must be reviewed where a worker takes on a new function, returns after a significant absence, has a material practice or recording concern, or where the model, safeguarding requirements, systems or procedures change.

2B.4 Equipment, systems and documents

1. Before client contact begins, each worker must have the equipment, system access and documents needed to deliver the Restitute Model safely.
2. This must include approved, password-protected laptop or desktop computer access, a work mobile phone where calls, SMS or WhatsApp contact are used, an approved email address, access to the current Restitute Model documents, client pathway documents and Appendix C communication templates and example wording, and confirmed safeguarding, supervision and worker-support routes.

2B.5 Supervision and support while working

1. The site must have supervision and worker-support arrangements in place before client work begins.
2. The site must have supervision arrangements that allow review of caseload, workload, client risk, safeguarding concerns, worker confidence and wellbeing, recording quality, practical support, benefits/application support, professional boundaries, training needs and whether work remains consistent with the Restitute Model.
3. Workers must know how to ask for help and when to use supervision, case discussion, safeguarding escalation or line management.
4. The site must have a route for workers to raise concerns about workload, wellbeing, supervision, risk, unsafe practice or anything that may affect safe delivery.
5. Where workers are expected or permitted to work evenings or outside normal office hours, the site must confirm before this work takes place how they can access support during those working hours. This must cover safeguarding escalation, worker safety concerns, significant changes in client risk and line management support where needed.
6. New workers must have a supervisor check-in after first client contact, on the same working day where possible and no later than the next working day.
7. Weekly supervision should usually be in place when a site first begins delivering the Restitute Model and when a new worker begins delivering the model. The length of that early supervision period should be dictated by worker experience, client complexity, risk, recording quality, workload, worker confidence and supervisor judgement.
8. After the early supervision period, supervision must take place at least monthly, with additional supervision where risk, complexity, worker confidence, workload, wellbeing or quality concerns require it.
9. Supervision records should show the key issues discussed, agreed actions, responsible person and review point.
10. The Appendix C supervision session prompt may be used as a practice tool to support supervision, but it does not replace the Delivery Site’s supervision record, safeguarding procedures, HR procedures or Lamplight recording requirements.

2B.6 Staff therapy support

1. The site must have a staff therapy route in place before workers begin delivering the Restitute Model.
2. Staff therapy must be separate from line management, practice supervision, case discussion and performance management.
3. A worker must be able to request access to staff therapy without having to explain the personal reason for the request.
4. The standard staff therapy offer must include access to assessment and six sessions of therapy where the qualified therapeutic provider assesses this as clinically indicated. The therapeutic approach should be determined by the provider through their own assessment, professional judgement and clinical governance.
5. Where delivery is funded by the Restitute Core Team, this offer is available once per worker per year. Where delivery is not funded by the Restitute Core Team, the Delivery Site must have an equivalent staff therapy route available at least once per worker per year.
6. Where a suitable local therapy route exists, the Delivery Site may use that route. Where a suitable local route is not available, access may be supported through the Restitute Core Team.
7. Use of staff therapy must not be treated as a performance concern.

2B.7 Workload, caseload and capacity

1. The site must have a way of managing worker capacity that goes beyond the number of allocated clients.
2. Capacity decisions must consider the worker's experience and confidence, client complexity, safeguarding or risk issues, the stage of each client's support journey, contact frequency, client-supporting work outside appointments, emotional load, recording quality, supervision and worker wellbeing.
3. Client-supporting work outside appointments includes preparation, thinking/formulation time, research, advocacy, benefits/application support, professional liaison, practical support arrangements, recording and follow-up actions.
4. No fixed maximum caseload is set in the Restitute Model. Capacity depends on where clients are in the support journey and how much active work each client currently needs.
5. A worker whose caseload is mainly in the Six-Week Foundation Pathway will usually have less capacity than a worker whose clients are mostly in lower-frequency ongoing support.
6. A worker should not be allocated additional clients where workload, risk, recording quality, wellbeing or supervision indicates that capacity is unsafe.

2B.8 Development review

1. The site must have arrangements for workers to review their development, training needs, strengths, challenges and support needs.
2. Development review should consider what has gone well, what has been difficult, what the worker has learned, strengths and development needs, whether supervision is meeting the worker's needs, and how the worker is contributing to Restitute Model culture and standards.
3. Development review should feed into training, supervision, workload planning and worker support.

2B.9 Worker absence and case cover

1. The site must have arrangements for covering client work where a worker is temporarily absent or unexpectedly unavailable.
2. Where a worker is unexpectedly absent, the supervisor should hold the case for up to two weeks and check for urgent dates, risk issues or priority actions.
3. If the worker remains unavailable, active clients should be reassigned as soon as an alternative worker becomes available.
4. Active clients should be prioritised before new allocations from the waiting list.
5. Any temporary cover or reassignment must be recorded in Lamplight.

2B.10 Worker exit, dismissal and access removal

1. The site must have arrangements for planned worker exit, dismissal, handover, equipment return and access removal.
2. Where a worker leaves in a planned way, there must be a written and verbal handover.
3. Where handover is not possible because of sickness, safeguarding concerns, dismissal or another reason that prevents safe handover, the supervisor must manage the handover and make sure active cases are reviewed.
4. The site governance lead, site lead or another named responsible person must know who to contact to suspend or remove access to Lamplight, email, shared documents, work phones and any other systems used for Restitute Model delivery.
5. When a worker leaves or stops delivering the Restitute Model, work equipment must be returned and access to Lamplight, email, shared documents, work phones and other systems must be removed promptly.
6. Where there is a safeguarding concern, gross misconduct concern, data protection concern, serious conduct concern or any other risk linked to continued access, system access must be suspended or removed as soon as the risk is identified.
7. Where dismissal for gross misconduct or safeguarding reasons is being confirmed, access must be removed before the worker is informed, unless there is a clear legal or HR reason why this cannot happen.
8. Access removal, equipment return and case handover must be recorded.