Being an intern with the Head, Heart, Hands programme

Before I started my internship I didn't know much about social pedagogy in England, and even less of the Head, Heart, Hands pilot programme.

Through this project the social pedagogical staff are involved in many activities and work together with different teams. Perhaps you can imagine it, at the beginning the information was too much and I mixed up many things. For example in my first weeks I had many meetings with my mentor and I thought “OK… the British social worker must like very much meetings.” Luckily it did not last long, and I have settled in well. Through my mentor, I have had the opportunity to get in touch with the other staff working at the site.

With some of the teams have taken me on visits with them e.g. a -weekly visit- with a staff from the adoptions team. I've had several visits with staff from the fostering and safeguarding team, I had a good insight into the assessment work and visits. In Germany I had no contact with teams like this.

This placement is my first contact with foster carers too. Most of the stuff that I have done is new, but very interesting information for me, too. I have previously worked with unaccompanied minor refugees people with disabilities and old people. In this way I could have a little insight about the system from the UK social work, I learn more about the structure of the social system and thought that I had the possibility to be in many different meetings (meetings as Allegations meetings, Panel, best practice and social pedagogy meeting, discussions group act.). I could observe many things and saw where all now social pedagogy is integrated and involved.

A meeting like allegations for example there discussed about all the complaints that have been filed. These complaints can be come from a foster carer, social worker or someone else. During the discussions they try to find a pedagogical way for a solution. Or meeting like discussions group, there are different people from different teams like from shaping future and adoptions team or foster carer. Basically anyone who is interested can take part in this group. In this group they talks and shares about different social pedagogy issues, problems or experiences. Everyone have the possibility to add something in this group. So it is very interesting to be a part in these groups.

One of the stuffs and course I visited and I have done I liked the “Sons and daughters day” - this is an activities to the birth children from the foster carer. I just thought, "Finally contact with children." I had missed the contact and play with children, young people and adults.

I don’t want to forget to mention the “social pedagogy orientations days”. Inter alia through discussions, examples, activities and of course theory and different models the mentors try to bring closer e.g. the social pedagogy approach, what social pedagogy means, why is social pedagogy important for the social system, and who can you develop a child with the pedagogy. What I recognise is, that the different models like the Common Third, the Diamond Model or the Learning Zone are very popular by the participants and this models are really very helpful. And it was nice to see that all the people with theirs different roles (foster carer, social worker or panel members) works and learns together.

All in all, this placement has been a very good chance for me and I am grateful for the experience. I really like the diversity from work. I was so often in my learning zone and also in my panic zone too. I learn more about me, what I can and what I have to learn in the future. I hope in the remaining weeks of my placement, I can learn-develop, make more experiences and help the team with my experiences too.