Children's services team win national award in digital transformation
Our Specialist Support Service has won the Digital Transformation in Social Work Award in the national Social Worker of the Year Awards 2023 held on Friday (3 November).
The Specialist Support Service is made up of Youth Justice, Domestic Abuse, Family Group Conferencing, Support for Children and Young People who are Reported Missing and Family Support teams.
The service uses real life experiences to shape and develop their work to ensure the children and young people they work with can be heard in their own services and with partners across the borough, including Health, Police and Housing.
The Digital Transformation in Social Work Award recognises the individual social workers, social work teams and local authorities which have sought to improve the lives of people with lived experience through the use of digital technologies.
At Gateshead, the winning team commissioned two innovative digital projects with Digital Voice for Communities, a Gateshead Based Community Interest Company. The first project worked with children affected by domestic abuse and the second project worked with children and young people who have experience of Gateshead's Youth Justice Service. Both projects created films with digital animation to anonymise the young people involved, while ensuring that their voices were heard by those in the service and partners.
Our Specialist Support Service was one of just five finalists from across the country in the Digital Transformation in Social Work Award category.
Councillor Gary Haley, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, Gateshead Council said: "The recognition of our Specialist Support Service is a huge achievement for our teams and the young people involved in the innovative digital transformation projects.
"Both pieces of work submitted for this award share emotive stories of personal journeys and how our staff have supported children and young people living with adversity. Our colleagues and young people should be incredibly proud of not only what they have achieved through the DigitalMe projects, but of their bravery and dedication to improving the lives of other young people across the borough."
Julie Nicholson, Managing Director at Digital Voice, said: "I first set up Digital Voice to give a voice to individuals and groups who are digitally excluded and now, sixteen years on, that is still our mission.
"The fact that these DigitalMe films are making a tangible difference is the real reward, these young people have a story to tell and we should all be listening."
Our Specialist Support Service has won the Digital Transformation in Social Work Award in the national Social Worker of the Year Awards 2023 held on Friday (3 November).
The Specialist Support Service is made up of Youth Justice, Domestic Abuse, Family Group Conferencing, Support for Children and Young People who are Reported Missing and Family Support teams.
The service uses real life experiences to shape and develop their work to ensure the children and young people they work with can be heard in their own services and with partners across the borough, including Health, Police and Housing.
The Digital Transformation in Social Work Award recognises the individual social workers, social work teams and local authorities which have sought to improve the lives of people with lived experience through the use of digital technologies.
At Gateshead, the winning team commissioned two innovative digital projects with Digital Voice for Communities, a Gateshead Based Community Interest Company. The first project worked with children affected by domestic abuse and the second project worked with children and young people who have experience of Gateshead's Youth Justice Service. Both projects created films with digital animation to anonymise the young people involved, while ensuring that their voices were heard by those in the service and partners.
Our Specialist Support Service was one of just five finalists from across the country in the Digital Transformation in Social Work Award category.
Councillor Gary Haley, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, Gateshead Council said: "The recognition of our Specialist Support Service is a huge achievement for our teams and the young people involved in the innovative digital transformation projects.
"Both pieces of work submitted for this award share emotive stories of personal journeys and how our staff have supported children and young people living with adversity. Our colleagues and young people should be incredibly proud of not only what they have achieved through the DigitalMe projects, but of their bravery and dedication to improving the lives of other young people across the borough."
Julie Nicholson, Managing Director at Digital Voice, said: "I first set up Digital Voice to give a voice to individuals and groups who are digitally excluded and now, sixteen years on, that is still our mission.
"The fact that these DigitalMe films are making a tangible difference is the real reward, these young people have a story to tell and we should all be listening."
