Christopher Sherrington

Professional Role

Practice Learning Facilitator

"What Does That Job Title mean?"

My role , involves tutoring students who are experiencing their practice learning opportunities in the field of social work. The major focus of my role is liaison and ongoing support with students and their practice educators during the course of their social work practice learning opportunity. Providing  a link for social work students between the practice setting and  with the University. The work often involves visiting students and practitioners in their  settings and offering  encouragement and feedback about progress with work based learning and developments. For example I usually like to ask what has made sense so far ( and what hasn't), in applying knowledge in practice from the student placement experience and with  research and studies ?.

My Background

After leaving school I was for a while unemployed in Mrs. Thatcher's Britain of the 80's. I recall being told on one fortnightly visit to the job centre that social care was not for men and was offered work repairing the recently opened M25 . I declined this and saw my chances to prove things different by choosing to undertake work with Community Service Volunteers. C.S.V gave me a placement working with homeless men in a night shelter in Glasgow and this was my first proper experience of working in social care.  I have worked since witin the social care sector throughout for my entire career. The highlights so far being development of community support services for people with learning disabilities and working through the closure of institutional hospital based care . I have developed and managed voluntary sector services with people who are Deaf and have disabilities and with people who access mental health services. I qualified as a social worker in 1995 . I had my own social work placements in a voluntary sector drug treatment agency and with a mental health crisis intervention services. Postqualified my practice has so far focussed on working in multi-disciplinary mental health services ,within a specialist team for older adults, community mental health services for adults, children and their families in North London, the Home Counties and Lancashire.

Post qualified I  have gained experience as an Approved Social Work practitioner and focussed on my interests in  Social Work Practice Teaching  .

My Current Practice.

 I am a registered social worker and currently share my working week with Cumbria County Council as a Professional Learning and Development Lead Officer. In this role within the local authority I manage and develop resources for social work practitioners and students to progress their professional careers by focussing upon  supervision, teaching ,learning and assessment of practice in the workplace. Both of my roles combined provide me with a really unique and critical perspective into the organistions involved in  social work education.

Contacting Me

I work part time with Lancaster University. I have established a working pattern to be available every Thursday and Friday with alternate Wednesdays.

Current Teaching

A member of the Practice Learning Team. Contributes to Preparation for Practice.