The Fife Model of Risk Taking

Fife Social Work Services are helping people who use their services, and their care staff, to improve their lives through taking risks. Starting with services for Adults and Older People, the aim is to encourage other services and other agencies to adopt a shared approach to risk and the taking of risks. We have been working closely with the council to support the development of policy and guidance on risk taking.

What it involves
The approach in Fife has so far involved:
1) Spelling out guiding principles for risk taking
2) Devising procedures to guide the assessment and management of risks
3) Creating forms for risk assessment and management recording
4) Providing guidance for staff
5) Training of managers and frontline staff
6) Holding reviews and discussions
7) Measuring the success of the initiative, and learning from results
8) Developing a training pack
9) Encouraging colleagues in other agencies to adopt this approach
10) Producing information for the public

If you would like to know more, contact Sheena Robertson, Fife Social Work Service, 16 East Fergus Place, Kirkcaldy KY1 1XT, telephone: 08451 550000, email: Sheena.Robertson@fife.gov.uk; or Mike Titterton, HALE, 17 Grove Street, Edinburgh, EH3 8AF, telephone: 0131 299 7117, email: titterton@haletrust.com.