Skill Serve Ltd

Youth Work Learner Self-Assessment

Checklist

A key theme running through your Youth Work Qualification is a focus on youth workers ability
to assess and reflect on your own performance, skills, knowledge and attitude. The ability to
look at yourself and your performance, to reflect on what you have done and how you have
done it and the ability to identify changes and improvements that could be made to your
skills, your knowledge and the way you work are incredibly important attributes for any good
youth worker.
To assist you in this process we have devised this self-assessment checklist. Please complete
the checklist as honestly and as objectively as you can. It is not a test.
Part One Assessing Yourself against the Youth Work Code of Conduct
In this section, please read each of the statements below taken from the Youth Work Code of
Conduct and rate yourself by placing a tick in the relevant box Outstanding, Good, Requires
Improvement or Inadequate. This will provide evidence for the Theory Unit criterion 6.1.
Code of Conduct/Grade

Grade 1
Outstandi
ng

Grade
2
Good

Grade 3

Grade 4

Requires
Improvem
ent

Inadequa
te

Treat young people with respect, valuing each

individual and avoiding negative discrimination.
Respect and promote young peoples rights to make
their own decisions and choices
Promote and ensure the welfare and safety of young
people, while permitting them to learn through
undertaking challenging educational activities
Contribute towards the promotion of social justice for
young people and in society generally, through
encouraging respect for difference and diversity
Recognise the boundaries between personal and
professional life and be aware of the need to balance
a caring and supportive relationship with young
people with appropriate professional distance.
Recognise the need to be accountable to young
people, their parents or guardians, colleagues,
funders, wider society and others with a relevant
interest in the work, and that these accountabilities
may be in conflict
Develop and maintain the required skills and
competence to do the job.
Work for conditions in employing agencies where
these principles are discussed, evaluated and upheld
If you rated yourself as Grade 3 or Grade 4 for any of the above statements please think about how you
could develop in those areas and make a note of any specific training, development or performance
improvements you could make on the Personal Development Plan at the end of this document.
Alternatively if you already have a PDP that you have agreed with your line manager, add some
development actions to it and include that in your portfolio instead. Your PDP will provide you with
evidence for the Theory Unit criterion 6.4.

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Part Two Assessing Yourself against the National Occupational Standards for
Youth Work
In this section, please read each of the statements below taken from the National
Occupational Standards (NOS) for Youth Work and rate yourself by placing a tick in the
relevant box Outstanding, Good, Requires Improvement or Inadequate.
NOS Standards

Initiate, build and maintain purposeful relationships with

young people
Assist young people to express and to realise their goals
Engage with communities to promote the interests and
contributions of young people
Develop productive working relationships with colleagues
and stakeholders to support youth work
Enable young people to use their learning to enhance their
future development
Enable young people to work in groups
Encourage young people to broaden their horizons to be
effective citizens
Support young people to identify and achieve aims
Support young people in their understanding of risk and
challenge
Facilitate young peoples empowerment through their
active involvement in youth work
Plan, prepare and facilitate activities with young people
Work with young people to manage resources for youth
work activities
Support young people in evaluating the impact of youth
work activities
Facilitate young peoples exploration of their values and
beliefs
Advocate on behalf of young people and enable them to
represent themselves to others
Enable young people to access information to make
decisions
Work with young people in promoting their rights
Explore with young people their wellbeing
Work with young people to safeguard their own welfare
Embed organisational policy for the protection and
safeguarding of young people
Develop a culture and systems that promote inclusion and
value diversity
Ensure that youth work activities comply with legal,
regulatory and ethical requirements
Evaluate and prioritise organisational requirements for
youth work activities
Investigate the needs of young people and the community
in relation to youth work
Influence and develop youth work strategies
Identify and secure funding and resources for youth work
Facilitate and engage young people in the strategic
development and delivery of youth work
Work in partnership with agencies to improve opportunities
for young people
Monitor and evaluate the quality of youth work activities

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Grade 1
Outstandi
ng

Grad
e2
Good

Grade 3
Requires
Improvem
ent

Grade 4
Inadequa
te

Work as an effective and reflective youth work practitioner

Provide youth work support to other workers
Manage your own resources and professional development
Make sure your own actions reduce risks to health and
safety
Ensure health and safety requirements are met in your
area of responsibility
If you rated yourself as Grade 3 or Grade 4 for any of the above statements please think about how you
could develop in those areas and make a note of any specific training, development or performance
improvements you could make on the Personal Development Plan at the end of this document.
Alternatively if you already have a PDP that you have agreed with your line manager, add some
development actions to it and include that in your portfolio instead. Your PDP will provide you with
evidence for the Theory Unit criterion 6.4.

Part Two Assessing yourself against the competencies in your Youth Work
qualification
In this section you will find a series of statements and questions for you to complete. Again please be
as honest and objective as you can and give full and detailed answers wherever possible.
1. Please list below what you feel are your strengths and your development areas when
communicating with young people and others at work. Evidence for E&C AC 5.2
Communication strengths

Communication development areas

2. Please list below what you feel are your strengths and development areas in your group work
skills and leadership style. Evidence for Group Work unit AC 7.1, 7.2.
Group work strengths

Group work development areas

My leadership style in group work

The advantages and disadvantages of this

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leadership style

3. Please list below the core values and beliefs that you hold and then describe how each of these
can promote and/or hinder your work with young people and managing their behaviour.
Evidence for Challenging Behaviour unit AC 1.5
My core values and beliefs

How these can hinder and/or promote my work

with young people and my ability to manage their
behaviour

4. Please list below what you feel are your strengths and weaknesses in managing conflict and
challenging behaviour at work and then describe how each of these impacts on your work.
Evidence for Challenging Behaviour unit AC 2.3.
My strengths in managing conflict

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How these can promote my work with young

people and my ability to manage their behaviour

My weaknesses in managing conflict

How these can promote my work with young

people and my ability to manage their behaviour

5. In the space below please give 2 examples of when you have or might need additional support
to manage conflict and challenging behaviour state each example, state what additional
support might be required and then describe how this additional support might work and what
problems it could cause. Evidence for CB unit AC 4.1.
Example 1

Additional support required

Advantages and disadvantages of this

additional support

Example 2

Additional support required

Advantages and disadvantages of this

additional support

Please add some specific development points to the PDP at the end of this document (or your
workplace PDP of you have one) to show what development needs you have in relation to managing
conflict and what specifically you are going to do to meet them. Evidence for CB unit 5.3.
When completed, this whole document will provide you with evidence for the Reflective Practice
Unit criteria 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, and if you discuss and agree your PDP with your line manager 2.4.
6. Please describe below 2 examples of when you got feedback from others about your work with
young people and how you used it to improve. Evidence for RP unit AC 3.2, 3.3.
Example 1 Feedback received

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How I used this feedback to change and improve

Example 2 Feedback received

How I used this feedback to change and improve

7. Please describe below 2 examples of when you 1, reflected on your own practice and made
changes and improvements as a result and 2, when you encouraged a colleague to reflect and
assisted them to change and improve. Evidence for RP unit AC 3.3, 3.4, 3.5.
Example 1 what I did and what I
thought about it

How I used this reflection to change and improve

Example 2 What my colleague did

and how I encouraged him/her to
reflect

How s/e used this reflection to change and improve

8. Think of a youth work programme that you delivered recently and work through the following
questions to evaluate how well it went. Evidence for RP unit AC 4.1, 4.2. In your PDP will also
cover AC 4.3.
Programme Title?

How effective was it? What aims and objectives were achieved? Which ones werent?

What did I do well in the planning of the programme?

What did I do less well in the planning?

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What did I do well in the delivery of the programme?

What did I do less well in the delivery?

What would I do differently in order to improve next time?

9. Only complete this question if you are doing the optional unit about working with LGBT young
people. Please describe below what you feel are your strengths and weaknesses in working with
LGBT young people. Evidence for LGBT unit AC 3.1
My strengths

How these strengths help me in my work

My weaknesses

How these weaknesses hinder my work

With reference to your weaknesses listed above, please add some notes to the PDP at the back of
this document (or your workplace PDP if you have one) to show your development needs in working
with LGBT young people and what specific actions you can take to meet them. Evidence for LGBT
unit AC 3.2.

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10. Only complete this question if you are doing the optional unit about young peoples
participation. Please describe below what you feel are your strengths and weaknesses in
promoting young peoples participation. Evidence for YPP unit AC 4.1.
My strengths

How these strengths help me in my work

My weaknesses

How these weaknesses hinder my work

With reference to your weaknesses listed above, please add some notes to the PDP at the back of
this document (or your workplace PDP if you have one) to show your development needs in
promoting the participation of young people and what specific actions you can take to meet them.
Evidence for YPP unit AC 4.2.
11. Only complete this question if you are doing the optional unit about working Anti-Discriminatory
Practice in youth work. Please describe below what you feel are your strengths and weaknesses
in anti-discriminatory practice. Evidence for ADP unit AC 5.1.
My strengths

How these strengths help me in my work

My weaknesses

How these weaknesses hinder my work

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With reference to your weaknesses listed above, please add some notes to the PDP at the back of
this document (or your workplace PDP if you have one) to show your development needs in
promoting anti-discriminatory practice and what specific actions you can take to meet them.
Evidence for ADP unit AC 5.2.

Personal Development Plan

Whether you use a PDP developed at work or the document on the next page, please be sure to make
your development objectives SMART. That is:
Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Relevant
Time-bound

State exactly what your development objective is

You need to be able to measure or check that you have met
your objective.
Your objectives need to be realistic and attainable.
Your objectives need to relate directly to your work with young
people
You need a target date by which you hope to have met your
objective.

Please also be sure to discuss them with your manager and have him or her agree them with you and
sign and date the document.

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Development Needs
(stated as
objectives/outcomes)

Name:

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Actions needed to meet

objectives (be specific)

Signature:

Target
date

Date:

Progress Notes

Line Manager Name:

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Signature:

Date: