Code of Ethics and Practice
& Mission Statement

 

Mission Statement
Brent Bereavement Services aim to offer a professional, responsive and accessible service to people who request bereavement counselling or related advice. This service is free and open to all Brent residents and workers of whatever culture, age or developmental stage and is provided by suitably selected, trained and supervised volunteers on a regular basis usually in people's own homes.

Our key objectives are:

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 to meet personal and social needs,
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 through communication of feelings, to prevent detrimental behaviour, relieve suffering and mental ill-health amongst the bereaved,
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 to acknowledge the grief of forgotten mourners - children, young people and people with learning disabilities,
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 to prevent the need for hospital admission or out-patient treatment,
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 to train and educate others who care for the bereaved,
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 to work in close association with health staff, social service personnel, teachers and other professionals,
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 to create and promote informed public opinion on the needs of the bereaved.

Code of Practice
We adhere to our own code of practice which is a combination of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and the Central Council for Education and Training in Social Work (CCETSW).

We have been an Approved Agency for Practice Learning since 1997

Code of Ethics

Introduction

The purpose of this Code of Ethics is to:

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 Express values and principles
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 Establish standards of professional conduct
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 Protect those who seek to use and who use the services
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 Guide all working within Brent Bereavement Services

Every person working within Brent Bereavement Services (BBS) is required to abide by this common frame of reference within which they manage their responsibilities to clients, colleagues and the wider community. No code can resolve all issues relating to ethics and practice. In this code we aim to provide a framework for addressing ethical issues and encouraging best possible levels of practice. Individuals must determine which parts apply to particular settings, taking account of any conflicting responsibilities. No clause or section should be read in isolation from the rest of the Code.

1. Express values and principles
 
1.1 Value  
  Every human being has intrinsic value regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, ability or disability. The fundamental values of bereavement counselling include a commitment to:
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 Respecting human rights and dignity  
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 Ensuring the integrity of individual-client relationships  
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 Enhancing the quality of professional knowledge and its application  
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 Alleviating personal distress and suffering  
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 Striving to increase personal effectiveness  
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 Working to enhance the quality of relationships between people  
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 Showing respect for all persons and respecting Client's beliefs,   values, culture, goals, needs, preferences, relationships and affiliations  
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 Fostering individual well-being and autonomy, subject to due respect for the rights of others  
     
  All those working within BBS will work in such a way to promote respect for human dignity through integrity and competence, fostering a sense of self that is meaningful to the person concerned, subject to due respect for the rights of others.
     
  All those working within BBS have a duty to:  
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 Identify, develop, use and disseminate knowledge, theory and skill for bereavement counselling practice  
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 Maintain and extend their competence in order to provide quality service and accountable practice, appraising new approaches and methodologies in order to extend their expertise  
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 Use available supervision or consultation and engage in continuous professional development, consulting with the Co-ordinator to secure appropriate supervision  
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 Reflect on the nature and source of social problems and on ways of addressing them within the community  
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 Facilitate and contribute to evaluation and research  
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 Contribute to the education and training of colleagues and students, sharing knowledge and practice wisdom  
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 Contribute to promoting practice which is sensitive to the cultural and developmental stage of the client  
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 Recognise the limits of their competence and advise the Co-ordinator and Clients when referral to a more appropriate professional is indicated  
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 Provide clients with information about the benefits and implications of multi-professional working and about their rights in relation to the sharing of information and, subject to their consent, work to promote their well-being by sharing responsibility with other relevant professionals  
     
2. Establish standards of professional conduct
 
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 Values.. Bereavement counsellor's basic values are integrity, impartiality and respect  
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 Responsibility.
All reasonable steps should be taken to ensure the client's safety during counselling sessions. Counselling is a non-exploitative activity. Counsellors working for BBS must take the same degree of care to work ethically whatever the setting		  
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 Confidentiality.
Counsellors offer the highest possible levels of confidentiality in order to respect the client's privacy and create the trust necessary for counselling		  
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 Responsibilities to the profession.
All those working within BBS will, in both their private and their professional life, avoid any behaviour likely to damage the public image of bereavement counselling or bring the profession into disrepute		  
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 Privacy, confidentiality and records.
Respect client's rights to a relationship of trust , to privacy, reliability and confidentiality and to the responsible use of information obtained from or about them		  
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 Divulge confidential information only with the consent of the Client or informant, except where there is clear evidence of serious risk to the Client, worker, other persons or the community, or in other circumstances judged exceptional on the basis of professional consideration and consultation, limiting any such breach of confidence to the needs of the situation at the time  
     
3. Protect those who seek to use and who use the services  
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 All reasonable steps should be taken to ensure the client's personal safety. Individuals must take the same degree of care to work ethically whatever the setting  
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 Anti-discriminatory practice. Individuals must consider and address their own prejudices and stereotyping and ensure that an anti-discriminatory, anti-oppressive and anti-racial approach is integral to their work  
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 Take appropriate action if ill-health or any other factor is likely to interfere with their professional judgement or performance of duty  
     
4. Guidelines  
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 Individuals are not to use their position within BBS to solicit for independent practice  
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 Fidelity:
honouring the trust placed in the individual. Being trustworthy is regarded as fundamental to understanding and resolving ethical issues. Individuals who adopt this principle act in accordance with the trust placed in them; regard confidentiality as an obligation arising from the client's trust; restrict any disclosure of confidential information about clients to furthering the purposes for which it was originally disclosed		  
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 Autonomy: respect for the client's right to be self-governing.
This principle emphasises the importance of the client's commitment to participating in bereavement counselling. Individuals who respect their client's autonomy, seek freely given and adequately informed consent; engage in explicit contracting in advance of any commitment by the client; protect privacy, protect confidentiality; normally make any disclosures of confidential information conditional on the consent of the person concerned and inform the client in advance of foreseeable conflicts of interest or as soon as possible after such conflicts become apparent. The principle of autonomy strictly prohibits the manipulation of clients even for beneficial social ends.		  
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 Beneficence: a commitment to promoting the client's well being.
This means acting in the best interests of the client based on professional assessment. It directs attention working strictly within one's limits of competence and providing services on the basis of adequate training of experience. Ensuring that the client's best interests are achieved require systematic monitoring of practice and outcomes by the best possible means. It is considered important that research and systematic reflection inform practice. There is an obligation to use regular and ongoing supervision to enhance the quality of the services provided and to commit to updating practice by professional development. An obligation to act in the best interests of the client may become paramount when working with clients whose capacity for autonomy is diminished because of immaturity, lack of understanding, extreme distress, serious disturbance or other significant personal constraints.		  
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 Non-maleficence: a commitment to avoiding harm to the client.
This involves: avoiding sexual, financial, emotional or any other form of client exploitation, avoiding incompetence or malpractice, not providing services when unfit to do so due to illness, personal circumstances or intoxification. The individual has an ethical responsibility to strive to mitigate any harm caused to a client even when the harm is unavoidable or unintended. Individuals have a personal responsibility to challenge, where appropriate, the incompetence or malpractice of others and to bring this to the attention of the Co-ordinator.		  
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 Justice: the fair and impartial treatment of all and the provision of adequate services.
This requires being just and fair to all clients and respecting their human rights and dignity. It directs attention to considering conscientiously any legal requirements and obligations and remaining alert to potential conflicts between legal and ethical obligations. A commitment to fairness requires the ability to appreciate the differences between people and be committed to equality of opportunity and avoiding discrimination against people or groups contrary to their legitimate personal or social characteristics. Individuals have a duty to strive to ensure a fair provision of services, accessible and sensitive to the needs of clients and potential clients. 		 
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 Care for self: fostering self-awareness and care for self.
This means that the individual applies to all the above principles as entitlements for self. This includes seeking counselling, therapy or other opportunities for personal development. There is an ethical responsibility to use supervision for personal and professional support and development and to seek training and other opportunities for continuing professional development.