Sandstories Workshops

Creating a reflective space for practitioners to step back and make sense of the lived experience of the vulnerable children and young people.
The Sandstories workshop has been carefully crafted for a group of up to 20 people. The workshop is not suitable for lone, online learning.
The workshop lasts around 3 hours and will be presented by one of your chosen local facilitators.
The workshop content will comprise:
- A 50-minute film, created and presented by Sue Woolmore
- Whole group discussion
- Small group and individual reflection
The workshop retains all the unique qualities of the original Sandstories training, including space for reflection, visual storytelling and it is underpinned by messages from research and significant/serious case reviews.
Your chosen facilitators will be trained to deliver the Sandstories workshops training sessions. They will be able to arrange and manage each workshop through the training portal.
Sandstories workshops are considered through the lens of child centred practice and address the impact of “disguised compliance” and the impact that “thresholds” of evidence have on the professional responses given to vulnerable children.
This training session will strengthen the current, day-to-day practice of the workshop participants, as increasing practitioners’ professional confidence and their commitment to child centred practice is at the core of this learning experience.
This immersive workshop is designed to leave a lasting impact on learning and professional practice
Increase awareness of the influence of disguised compliance on professional judgements
Recognise the potential for rigid adherence to referral thresholds to result in ‘no further action’ for vulnerable children
Deepen insight into the lived experience of vulnerable children and young people
Understand and promote the crucial role of reflective supervision for all practitioners
Focus on the central role of emotionally available adults for vulnerable children and young people
Emphasise the need for multi-agency working, meaningful communication and mutual professional respect
Understand the links between animal maltreatment and human maltreatment, including the roles that pets can play in highlighting the lived experience of vulnerable children
Recognise and challenge professional hierarchies which may disadvantage vulnerable children
Promote the use of local escalation policies and advocacy, in situations of professional disagreement
How it works

We’re here to answer your questions
Get answers to the questions we get asked the most.