Case Planning and Case Notes for Social Work Practice (August2025)

Live Workshop

Capabilities: Evolving and Established

Date: 20 & 27 August 2025

Time: 10.00am–1.00pm AEST (Melbourne/ Sydney time)

A clear understanding of the purpose and content of case planning and case notes documentation is an essential skill for social workers.

Strengthening and refining these skills needs to be a carer long focus, which is supported through experience and ongoing training.

This two part workshop series is an opportunity for participants to refresh their case planning and case notes knowledge and build upon these skills in a small group environment.

Session 1: Case Planning

This 3-hour session will provide an overview of case planning, its purpose, and application to social work practice. Best practice for a strengths-based approach to, and development of, case plans will be explored. participants will have the opportunity to develop case plans referencing a provided case study, or a “typical client” in their area of practice. The session will also discuss goal setting, with a focus on developing clear and achievable goals that are reviewed regularly.

Session 2: Case Notes

The second part of the workshop series will focus on best practice for writing case notes and documentation. Beginning with an overview of privacy and confidentiality principles, this workshop will identify what should be included in quality case notes and examine the common pitfalls in case notes and documentation.

Participants will have the opportunity to:

• Analyse example case notes
• Develop an outline to inform how they write case notes in their own practice, and
• Explore the various different formats that case notes can take.

Resources

Participants will benefit from resources including pre-work for each workshop, their own copy of the Participant Workbook, a copy of the presentation slides, and additional resources.

The Workbook contains valuable tools such as:

• a case planning framework,
• goal-setting templates for clients,
• Exemplar case notes formats
• And much more!

Who should attend?

Suitable for Social Work students and new graduates or experienced Social Workers wishing to refresh their approach to case planning and case notes. This workshop series is particularly relevant to social workers who work with vulnerable young people, although the content is useful to any practice area.

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this workshop series, participants will be able to:

• Identify and apply best practice principles and standards for case planning
• Identify best practice strategies for comprehensive case notes and documentation
• Implement best practice case noting with existing and new clients
• Develop reflective practice behaviours

AASW Credentials: Clinical

Testimonials

Attending this workshop was an invaluable experience that significantly enhanced my professional skills and knowledge. The workshop provided comprehensive insights into best practices and strategies for effective case work, emphasizing the importance of client-centered approaches and ethical considerations. The resource material shared prior to the workshop was a great way to prepare myself. The interactive session and knowledge sharing from the speaker and various people who have been working for a long time in the industry was particularly beneficial, allowing me to apply new concepts and techniques. This workshop is highly recommended to social work practitioners seeking to enhance their proficiency and provide best practice standards.

- Zoya