A Positive Approach to Risk Learning
Welcome to our page on risk in relation to person centred thinking.
Questions to ask ourselves and ones we hope to explore with the following stories, videos, informative information, learning and exploratory questions. Could how we view risk when supporting individuals in our communities' change?
Why not get booked onto a fantastic learning opportunity facilitated by The Thistle Foundation in relation to Risk and reframing our conversations to support people live their lives!
Please watch Emma's video about the learning opportunity and then get booked on using the link below, thank you.
To book on click the link below
An Introduction To Working With Human Worries
Why is risk taking part of a person-centred approach?
As part of a person-centred approach, how are we promoting as much as possible the individual’s right to make their own choices and maintain as much independence as possible. With any decision, especially important ones, there may be an element of risk.
Why is it important to have a person-centred planning process?
Keeping risk person-centred is central to the planning process. Involvement of people who use the service, relatives and the people who support them is one of the most fundamental tenets of any person-centred approach. These conversations in the planning process can support the individual to identify what is important to them from their perspective and find appropriate solutions. Enabling individuals to express choice over their lives and achieve better outcomes.
How does the person-centred approach improve quality of life?
"Tolerable Risks" A key aspect of the person-centred approach. It uses creative thinking techniques to mitigate risk and improve quality of life. Moving from situations which make the person happy but unsafe, to where they and the community are safer, and from strategies where the person is ‘safe but unhappy’, to where they can be happier.
What is Positive Risk Taking?
Positive risk-taking is weighing up the potential benefits and harms exercising one choice of action over another. The potential risks involved and developing plans and actions that reflect the positive potentials and stated priorities of the service users. It involves using available resources and support to achieve the desired outcomes, and to minimise the potential harmful outcomes. It requires an agreement of goals to be achieved or a clear explanation of any difference of opinion regarding the goals or course of action.
Please watch this short video from the Care Inspectorate on Positive Risk Taking
What do we need for this to happen
In order for positive risk taking to be implemented into a person centred approach we need:
Individual with lived experience and carers to be prominent in the process
Strengths base approach
All practitioners and services to engage
Whole team consensus and approach
High quality supervision and support
Independent Review of Social Care in Scotland 2021
On 1 September 2020, the First Minister announced that there would be an Independent Review of Adult Social Care in Scotland as part of the Programme for Government. The Review was chaired by Derek Feeley, a former Scottish Government Director General for Health and Social Care and Chief Executive of NHS Scotland. Mr Feeley was supported by an Advisory Panel of Scottish and international experts.
The principal aim of the review was to recommend improvements to adult social care in Scotland, primarily in terms of the outcomes achieved by and with people who use services, their carers and families, and the experience of people who work in adult social care. The review took a human-rights based approach.
The Independent Review concluded at the end of January 2021 and its report, together with an accompanying short film, was published on 3 February 2021.
New Learning
Leading the Way & Changing the Conversation
"Working with Human Worries"
Please Watch this video created by Thistle Foundation in relation to a fantastic learning opportunity in 2023
At Thistle Foundation, we believe that to work to support people with what really matters to them and enable them to live the lives they want, absolutely implies living with risk. However, the old paradigms of risk assessment and management (or even risk enablement), have created barriers and blocks to the kind of active citizenship talked about in the Independent Review.
What if the conversation around risk could change to more accurately reflect the reality expressed many years ago by Helen Keller that,
Following our former colleague Stephen Finlayson’s work, we suggest
‘Working with people’s human worries’ - instead of ‘risk assessment’.
This doesn’t imply a reckless lack of responsibility, rather it is a reframing of the issue into one where, as a matter of course, our main concern is to support people to have their fair share of ‘daring adventure’ in their lives but to understand that this is bound to be accompanied by worries about things going wrong.
To discuss these worries with fellow citizens and their loved ones, to come to agreements about where these worries can be mitigated and planned for, but not necessarily completely avoided – is we believe, at the heart of a truly person-centred approach in the 21st century.
About Thistle Foundation
Thistle Foundation is a leading Scottish health and wellbeing charity with a 75-year history of supporting people to live the life they want regardless of health condition, disability or life situation. Thistle offers a range of person-centred health and wellbeing services to people across Scotland, with Good Conversations - focussing on what matters to the person - at the heart of our approach.
We work in partnership with local authorities, the NHS, other Third Sector organisations, the people we support, and their families, to build capacity, resilience and coping skills so that people are better able to live a “good life”, whatever that means to them.
About the Facilitators
Emma McKendrick is a Peer Support Worker and facilitator at Thistle Foundation who has worked in the social care sector in Edinburgh since 2011. Emma is also supported by Thistle. She began her career as a volunteer with The Lothian Centre for Inclusive Living (LCiL).
Her role involved answering front line enquiries coming into the organisation and facilitating training for people who were thinking about or were already accessing SDS. Topics included planning for the future and PA employment skills. In 2013, she also took on the role of champion at LCiL.
In this role, Emma shares her experiences of having 24/7 SDS support with a variety of groups. For example, co-facilitating training for Social Work teams across Lothian, particularly during the first year of SDS implementation. She left her main role at LCiL to join Thistle Foundation in 2018 and continues to be part of LCiL’s Champions Programme.
Steve Coulson is a Lead Training Consultant and Coach (for self-organised teams) at the Thistle Foundation and has practiced and trained in person centred approaches since 1999.
He worked at Scottish Human Services as a Senior Trainer and left in 2002 to join Edinburgh Development Group where he led the Future Plans project using person centred planning with young people in transition.
He developed the Big Plan in Scotland with his friend Heather Simmons, and they wrote the book ‘The Big Plan – a good life after school’ published by Inclusion Press in 2006.
Steve has also contributed to a Jessica Kingsley Publication ‘Co-production and Personalisation in Social Care.’ He has developed programmes and facilitated throughout the UK, Western Australia, USA and Cyprus.
We are really excited to have Emma & Steven bring this learning experience to the workforce of Perth and Kinross Partnership.
GET BOOKED ON TODAY!
An Introduction to Working with Human Worries - Online Sessions
Click the link below...
An Introduction To Working With Human Worries
Please watch this video from Helen Sanderson Associates on person centred approach to risk. Helen Sanderson Associates is an international development, training, and consultancy team. They work with people to change their lives, organisations and communities through person-centred thinking and planning.
More Resources.....
Inquisitive to know or learn more in relation to our own thoughts and feelings around risk then explore these questions below.
