The purpose of this unit is to develop the learner`s knowledge, understanding and skills to lead practice which supports individuals to take positive risks. Learner name Centre number PIN
17 min read AC 1.1 Analyse the tension between positive risk-taking and person-centred planning. Learner Workbook
NCFE CACHE Level 5 Diploma in Leadership for Health and Social Care and Children and Young Peoples Services (England) (Children and Young Peoples Advanced Practice) (601/4312/5) LM 503: Lead Practice Which Supports Individuals to Take Positive Risks Unit
LM 503: Lead practice which supports individuals to take positive risks
Unit reference
H/504/2213
Level
5
Credit value
4
Guided learning hours (GLH)
30
Unit aim
The purpose of this unit is to develop the learner`s knowledge, understanding and skills to lead practice which supports individuals to take positive risks.
Learner name
Centre number
PIN
ULN
Assessor name
Date started
Date completed
How to complete this workbook This is a knowledge AND skills unit — and a LEADERSHIP unit.
Learning Outcome 1 is knowledge, evidenced through written Tasks 1–4. Learning Outcomes 2–6 are “be able to” competence outcomes — and almost every criterion asks you to SUPPORT, DEVELOP or MANAGE your staff’s practice. They are evidenced from your REAL leadership of your team’s positive-risk practice, through the Practice Records in this workbook, workplace observation, work products, witness testimony and professional discussion. Simulation is not accepted for competence. Set the portfolio up using the Positive Risk Leadership Agreement before gathering LOs 2–6 evidence.
Write Tasks 1–4 in your own words; reference any sources you draw on. Your work may be checked for plagiarism and AI-generated content. For LOs 2–6, complete the Practice Record for each learning outcome as evidence accumulates — your account of how you LED your team’s practice, referencing the evidence that proves it. The leadership lens is essential: evidence must show you developing OTHERS’ practice, not just doing good risk work yourself. Keep the Evidence Matrix live throughout; every AC must map to at least one piece of evidence and its location. Holistic assessment is expected. Confidentiality: anonymise individuals, families and staff in everything submitted; original care plans and risk records are examined in the workplace by your assessor. Complete the final reflection at the end, then the declarations. Your assessor will provide written feedback and record judgements on the sign-off grid. Command verb guide Verb
What your assessor is looking for
Analyse
Break the topic into parts and examine each — relationships, tensions, mechanisms. Level 5 depth.
Explain
A clear account with reasons — the how and why, not just the what.
Leadership skills verbs (support staff to, develop practice, manage practice, support others to)
DOING verbs at the LEADERSHIP level: evidenced by what you actually do to build your TEAM’S capability — coaching, developing, managing, evaluating others’ practice — not by doing the risk assessments yourself.
Evaluate
A judgement with evidence — what worked, what the individual gained, what the methods and models got right and wrong.
Part A — Knowledge tasks (LO1) Task 1 (AC 1.1) Analyse the tension between positive risk-taking and person-centred planning.
In your answer you could cover:
the apparent paradox — person-centred planning follows the person’s hopes, which may carry real danger the dissolution — positive risk-taking IS person-centred planning taken seriously; the real tension is with defensive, service-led practice the genuine tensions that remain — wishes vs duty of care, autonomy vs family/staff anxiety, one person’s ambition vs others’ safety, reputation and liability vs a full life the manufactured tension — risk-averse, blame and inspection-anxious cultures the leadership point — holding the tension consciously across a team, not resolving it by defaulting to safety Apply and reflect: Identify where in your own service the tension is most often felt — and whether it is real or manufactured.
Task 2 (AC 1.2) Explain why positive risk-taking should be considered within the context of a person-centred assessment.
In your answer you could cover:
because the same activity is reckless for one person and reasonable for another — only person-centred assessment tells you which because the point of the risk is the person’s outcome — assess the hopes first and risk becomes a means to a valued end because person-centred assessment surfaces the person’s own risk-management resources that service-led assessment never sees because it guards against BOTH reckless under-protection and smothering over-protection because rights require it — the presumption of capacity, unwise decisions, children’s participation Apply and reflect: Give one example (anonymised) where the person-centred frame changed how a risk was seen.
Task 3 (AC 1.3) Explain how models of risk management can be used in positive risk-taking.
In your answer you could cover:
the positive risk-taking / risk-enablement model — ambition → hazards WITH the person → benefits weighed alongside harms → proportionate safeguards → agree, record, act, review risk-enablement panels/frameworks for significant, accountable decisions the risk-assessment cycle repurposed to ENABLE — likelihood × severity weighed against likelihood × value of the benefit strengths-based, outcomes-focused models — starting from what the person can do and wants how each model is USED, what it makes defensible, and its limits — models support judgement, they don’t replace it Apply and reflect: State which model your service uses (or should use) and why.
Task 4 (AC 1.4) Analyse how taking positive risks can contribute to personal growth for the individual.
In your answer you could cover:
using the unit’s definition of personal growth — confidence, ability, self-worth, overcoming obstacles, reaching new levels the mechanisms — confidence and self-worth from being trusted and succeeding; skill from doing (including imperfectly); identity and citizenship from work, travel, money, relationships; resilience and self-efficacy the counter-case — the harm of DENYING positive risk: stagnation, dependence, low self-worth, frustration, a life at others’ convenience for children and young people — the link to normal development: risk is how the young grow up Apply and reflect: Analyse one real (anonymised) example where positive risk produced growth — or where its denial caused harm.
Positive Risk Leadership Agreement (complete before gathering LOs 2–6 evidence) Your role and the practice you lead
Current position (team’s positive-risk practice, known strengths and gaps)
Planned evidence opportunities (development/training you will lead, supervision cycle, assessment and care-plan work you will support, review meetings)
Planned assessor visits (indicative: visit 1 — leading a risk-planning or staff development session (LO3/LO4); visit 2 — leading a review/evaluation meeting with staff (LO6)); professional discussion planned for systems ACs (5.2, 5.3) and recording ACs
Confidentiality confirmed (individuals, families and staff anonymised in all submitted evidence; care plans and risk records examined in the workplace only)
Learner signature / date
Manager approval — name, signature / date
Assessor approval — name, signature / date
Part B — Practice Records (LOs 2–6) Remember the leadership lens: each record is about how YOU built your TEAM’S capability — supporting, developing, managing and evaluating others’ practice.
LO2: Promote understanding of the legal and policy frameworks You must demonstrate, through your real leadership of your team’s practice:
2.1 Support staff to work to legal and policy frameworks for decision making which underpin an individual’s right to make decisions and take risks 2.2 Support staff to integrate human rights principles in supporting individuals to make decisions and take risks In your Practice Record and evidence you could show:
how you made the frameworks live for staff — the Mental Capacity Act five principles (including the right to make unwise decisions), Care Act wellbeing/strengths, and for children the presumption of participation, Gillick/Fraser, UNCRC Article 12 how you coached framework application in supervision (“you’re assuming she lacks capacity because the decision looks unwise — the Act says the opposite”) how you helped staff move from abstract rights to daily practice — FREDA applied to a real decision, dignity of risk defended, over-protection named as a rights issue Typical evidence: training and briefing records and materials; supervision extracts showing you coaching framework and rights application; paperwork you designed around the frameworks; observation; witness testimony from staff.
Practice Record — how you led your team’s practice for LO2, with dates and references to evidence
AC
Evidence reference(s) and location
Method (WP / OBS / WT / PD / PR)
2.1
2.2
LO3: Develop practice which includes the individual and others in assessment and planning You must demonstrate, through your real leadership of your team’s practice:
3.1 Manage practice which supports person-centred assessments rather than service-led assessments 3.2 Develop assessment practice with staff which engages the individual and others in identifying activities to support the individual achieve their hopes and ambitions 3.3 Support staff to engage in inclusive assessment practice to establish hazards and risks associated with hopes and ambitions 3.4 Support practice which enables the individual and others to balance individual hopes and ambitions with health, safety and well-being 3.5 Develop risk management strategies for engaging the individual and others to build in safeguards to mitigate against risks to the individual 3.6 Support others to develop care plans which address positive risk-taking In your Practice Record and evidence you could show:
how you managed the shift from service-led to person-centred assessment — audits, redesigned tools, supervision, quality standards held how you developed staff skill at eliciting hopes and ambitions (independent living, travel, employment, shopping, money, sport) and co-identifying activities — coaching, modelling, tools how you supported inclusive practice (individual, family, friends, guardians, staff from within and outside) and balanced practice (weighing benefit alongside risk, not over-protecting) the risk management strategies and safeguards you developed — frameworks, templates, a risk-enablement route how you supported staff to write care plans that carry the positive-risk work through Typical evidence: observed development/risk-planning session (visit 1); audits and redesigned assessment tools; the frameworks and templates you developed; anonymised care plans and risk assessments the team produced under your leadership; supervision extracts; witness testimony.
Practice Record — how you led your team’s practice for LO3, with dates and references to evidence
AC
Evidence reference(s) and location
Method (WP / OBS / WT / PD / PR)
3.1
3.2
3.3
3.4
3.5
3.6
LO4: Support others to understand ambitions and the support needed You must demonstrate, through your real leadership of your team’s practice:
4.1 Support staff to understand how their own values and belief systems may impact on supporting an individual to take risks 4.2 Support others to facilitate the individual to articulate what they want to achieve 4.3 Support staff to develop practice of gaining consent from the individual to include others in taking positive risks 4.4 Support staff to use advocacy skills with families and others to gain support for individuals to take positive risks 4.5 Support staff to record how decisions about positive risk-taking are reached In your Practice Record and evidence you could show:
the reflective work you led on staff values — values-clarification, supervision surfacing the worker’s own fear, distinguishing “this frightens me” from “this is unsafe for them” — handled without shame how you developed staff skill at helping people articulate ambitions — including those who communicate differently or have learned not to hope how you supported consent practice (the individual controls who is involved) and advocacy with families and others (addressing over-protection born of love and fear) how you supported defensible recording of positive-risk decisions Typical evidence: supervision and development-session records (anonymised); values-clarification materials; consent and advocacy guidance; recording templates and standards; observation; witness testimony from staff you developed.
Practice Record — how you led your team’s practice for LO4, with dates and references to evidence
AC
Evidence reference(s) and location
Method (WP / OBS / WT / PD / PR)
4.1
4.2
4.3
4.4
4.5
LO5: Develop systems for positive risk-taking You must demonstrate, through your real leadership of your team’s practice:
5.1 Support staff to understand the principle of duty of care while supporting the individual to take positive risks 5.2 Manage systems to ensure staff and others know what action to take if the individual chooses to take unplanned risks 5.3 Manage practice to ensure that: risk taking is compliant with risk assessment; supports are in place to enable the individual to undertake identified risks; consent is gained from individuals to include others; outcomes for individuals are reviewed In your Practice Record and evidence you could show:
how you led staff understanding that duty of care does NOT mean removing all risk — the difference between negligence and enabled, assessed, consented risk the systems you manage for unplanned risk-taking — protocols, decision support, escalation, recording — respecting the person’s right to in-the-moment choices your management oversight ensuring compliance with risk assessment, supports in place, consent gained, and outcomes reviewed Typical evidence: training and supervision on duty of care; the protocols and systems you manage; audit and oversight records; review mechanisms; professional discussion — the main method for 5.2–5.3; witness testimony.
Practice Record — how you led your team’s practice for LO5, with dates and references to evidence
AC
Evidence reference(s) and location
Method (WP / OBS / WT / PD / PR)
5.1
5.2
5.3
LO6: Evaluate the practice of positive risk-taking You must demonstrate, through your real leadership of your team’s practice:
6.1 Evaluate with staff and others: risk assessment methods; risk management model used; the benefits to the individual from risk taking 6.2 Support staff to evaluate their practice in working through the process of positive risk taking with individuals In your Practice Record and evidence you could show:
the evaluation you led WITH staff and others — the methods used, the model used, and centrally the BENEFITS the individual gained the reflective practice you facilitated — helping staff appraise their own practice, what they learned, where their values showed, what they would change how evaluation findings fed back into frameworks, training and culture — closing the loop Typical evidence: observed review/evaluation meeting (visit 2); evaluation records; outcomes and benefits evidence; reflective supervision records; witness testimony; professional discussion.
Practice Record — how you led your team’s practice for LO6, with dates and references to evidence
Evidence matrix Keep this live throughout. Methods: WP = work product; OBS = direct observation; WT = witness testimony; PD = professional discussion; PR = practice record/reflective account; TASK = workbook task.
AC
Assessment criterion
Method(s)
Evidence location
1.1
Analyse the tension between positive risk-taking and person-centred planning
1.2
Explain why positive risk-taking should be considered within the context of a person-centred assessment
1.3
Explain how models of risk management can be used in positive risk-taking
1.4
Analyse how taking positive risks can contribute to personal growth for the individual
2.1
Support staff to work to legal and policy frameworks for decision making which underpin an individual’s right to make decisions and take risks
2.2
Support staff to integrate human rights principles in supporting individuals to make decisions and take risks
3.1
Manage practice which supports person-centred assessments rather than service-led assessments
3.2
Develop assessment practice with staff which engages the individual and others in identifying activities to support the individual achieve their hopes and ambitions
3.3
Support staff to engage in inclusive assessment practice to establish hazards and risks associated with hopes and ambitions
3.4
Support practice which enables the individual and others to balance individual hopes and ambitions with health, safety and well-being
3.5
Develop risk management strategies for engaging the individual and others to build in safeguards to mitigate against risks to the individual
3.6
Support others to develop care plans which address positive risk-taking
4.1
Support staff to understand how their own values and belief systems may impact on supporting an individual to take risks
4.2
Support others to facilitate the individual to articulate what they want to achieve
4.3
Support staff to develop practice of gaining consent from the individual to include others in taking positive risks
4.4
Support staff to use advocacy skills with families and others to gain support for individuals to take positive risks
4.5
Support staff to record how decisions about positive risk taking are reached
5.1
Support staff to understand the principle of duty of care while supporting the individual to take positive risks
5.2
Manage systems to ensure staff and others know what action to take if the individual chooses to take unplanned risks
5.3
Manage practice to ensure risk taking is compliant, supports are in place, consent is gained, and outcomes are reviewed
6.1
Evaluate with staff and others: risk assessment methods; risk management model used; the benefits to the individual from risk taking
6.2
Support staff to evaluate their practice in working through the process of positive risk taking with individuals
Final reflection Reflect on your leadership of positive risk-taking and what you have learnt in this unit.
Where was your team most over-protective, and what did your leadership change? Which was harder to shift — the systems or the staff values behind them? What did you learn about your OWN values around risk? And what will you keep doing so that the people you serve go on getting the dignity of risk — not a life kept small in the name of safety?
Assessment criteria sign-off grid AC
Assessment criterion
Evidence location
Assessor initials and date
1.1
Analyse the tension between positive risk-taking and person-centred planning
1.2
Explain why positive risk-taking should be considered within the context of a person-centred assessment
1.3
Explain how models of risk management can be used in positive risk-taking
1.4
Analyse how taking positive risks can contribute to personal growth for the individual
2.1
Support staff to work to legal and policy frameworks for decision making which underpin an individual’s right to make decisions and take risks
2.2
Support staff to integrate human rights principles in supporting individuals to make decisions and take risks
3.1
Manage practice which supports person-centred assessments rather than service-led assessments
3.2
Develop assessment practice with staff which engages the individual and others in identifying activities to support the individual achieve their hopes and ambitions
3.3
Support staff to engage in inclusive assessment practice to establish hazards and risks associated with hopes and ambitions
3.4
Support practice which enables the individual and others to balance individual hopes and ambitions with health, safety and well-being
3.5
Develop risk management strategies for engaging the individual and others to build in safeguards to mitigate against risks to the individual
3.6
Support others to develop care plans which address positive risk-taking
4.1
Support staff to understand how their own values and belief systems may impact on supporting an individual to take risks
4.2
Support others to facilitate the individual to articulate what they want to achieve
4.3
Support staff to develop practice of gaining consent from the individual to include others in taking positive risks
4.4
Support staff to use advocacy skills with families and others to gain support for individuals to take positive risks
4.5
Support staff to record how decisions about positive risk taking are reached
5.1
Support staff to understand the principle of duty of care while supporting the individual to take positive risks
5.2
Manage systems to ensure staff and others know what action to take if the individual chooses to take unplanned risks
5.3
Manage practice to ensure risk taking is compliant, supports are in place, consent is gained, and outcomes are reviewed
6.1
Evaluate with staff and others: risk assessment methods; risk management model used; the benefits to the individual from risk taking
6.2
Support staff to evaluate their practice in working through the process of positive risk taking with individuals
