A new online resource designed to help all social service workers and people who use services to develop their own leadership skills has been launched today by the Scottish Social Services Council.

Everyone working in social services and those who use services have a part to play in effective leadership. Whether they are a frontline worker supporting an individual to achieve their goals, or a CEO bringing strategic direction their leadership can make a difference.

The new Step into Leadership website has been designed to help people in Scotland’s social services explore their own leadership style, identify their leadership learning needs, and access a range of resources to help them enhance their skills. Since April 2010, at the request of Scottish Government, the SSSC, with partners, has been taking forward the strategic direction for leadership in Scotland's social services.

Anna Fowlie, Chief Executive of the SSSC said:

“We currently work in a difficult climate and there are economic challenges across the sector. Social services are at the heart of public services reform. It is more important than ever to think creatively and take managed risks. We have a collective responsibility to show leadership in public services and specifically in our sector. We need to develop leadership at all levels of the social services workforce in Scotland with citizen leadership really at the heart of that."

“The principle of citizen leadership is absolutely core to this work. But we need people at the frontline to take the lead and work alongside people who use services and their carers to improve outcomes with them. People really need to feel empowered to do this by their organisations. Organisational cultures need to support leadership development and enable individuals be person-centred in their practice. It’s about developing leadership across the whole workforce. Leadership is about being passionate, using your autonomy, creativity, taking and managing risks. It’s about motivating and inspiring your colleagues. Step into Leadership encourages people to do this and provides access to a variety of leadership development tools and resources.”

The Step into Leadership website was developed by the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) in partnership with Aurion Learning. To find out more about Step into Leadership please see: http://workforcesolutions.sssc.uk.com/leadership/