Relationships as the Building Blocks of Trauma-Informed Practice
Staff from across our partnership have come together to participate in our insightful workshop co-designed and co-delivered by our student ambassadors, exploring the vital role of relationships in trauma-informed practice and supporting care-experienced individuals.
The interactive training session, titled “Relationships as the Building Blocks of Trauma-Informed Practice,” was developed in response to Scotland’s commitment to keep The Promise, following the Independent Care Review. It focused on helping professionals understand how to invest in and support relationships as part of the scaffolding of care for the care-experienced community.
Participants explored:
- The Promise and how it connects to Further and Higher Education
- The meaning of care experience and where care happens
- Individual and institutional roles in Scotland’s care system, including corporate parenting responsibilities
- The impact of trauma, past relationships, and how these affect future learning and wellbeing
- Practical ways to build trusting, supportive relationships, including professional curiosity and radical candour
Feedback from participants has been overwhelmingly positive. Many highlighted the accessible delivery, the impactful wool-string exercise demonstrating the complex network of care, and the invaluable insight shared by student ambassadors with lived experience. Attendees left the session feeling better equipped to reflect on and improve their practice, communicate more sensitively, and ensure care-experienced learners receive the support they deserve.
Some participants shared:
“The workshop provided multiple opportunities to put myself in the shoes of care-experienced people, which I found not only invaluable, but unforgettable. It will surely inform my future conversations and practice related to care-experienced students.”
“The interactive nature of the workshop, with role-playing, thought-provoking questions, followed by comprehensive explanations, was for me the most valuable in providing a real context of the lived experiences of people who are or have been under care.”
“This session was very accessible and I found it was valuable for individuals who were completely new to Widening Participation as a concept as well as people who have worked in Widening Participation support for a number of years.”
The session is part of ongoing efforts to ensure Scotland’s education institutions are inclusive, trauma-informed, and committed to supporting every learner to thrive, regardless of background or experience.
If you are interested in training opportunities provided by the Hub for SUCCESS, get in touch!
