Children's Senior Practice Cover in Wigan

We are on a journey to build a workforce reflective of our Borough. We are committed to fostering diverse teams where everybody can bring their authentic selves to work and feel that they belong. If you want to work for a Council where everybody is encouraged to meet their full potential and make a difference in our neighbourhoods, we would love to hear from you!

Your role will be working as a floating / covering Senior Social Worker for a forward-thinking and collaborative Children in Care or Fostering Service as part of a supportive team. You will provide high-quality social work practice across services, managing complex cases, undertaking assessments, care planning, and safeguarding responsibilities. You will build strong relationships with children, young people, families, and foster carers, ensuring their voices are central to decision-making. The role offers variety and professional challenge, requiring flexibility, strong leadership, and a commitment to achieving the best possible outcomes for children through effective multi-agency partnership working and relationship-based practice.

We are looking for an experienced, motivated, and resilient Senior Social Worker with a strong understanding of fostering and children in care services. You will hold a recognised social work qualification, be registered with Social Work England, and have substantial post-qualifying experience working with children, foster carers, and families. You will demonstrate excellent assessment, safeguarding, and care planning skills, alongside the ability to build strong relationships and manage complex cases. Strong communication, leadership, and decision-making abilities are essential, as is a commitment to achieving positive outcomes for children, promoting permanence, and supporting foster carers through effective partnership working.

At Wigan Council Children’s Services, we are committed to helping children in care and fostering families achieve positive, lasting outcomes. This rewarding Senior Social Worker role offers the opportunity to work within a supportive, ambitious, and child-centred service, where professional development, high-quality supervision, and career progression are actively encouraged. You will manage complex cases, support foster carers, influence practice, and contribute to service improvement while working alongside experienced colleagues. We offer flexible working, a strong learning culture, and the chance to make a real difference to the lives of children, young people, and their families.

The Progress with Unity plan is a place movement for change for the next decade, bringing a new era for Wigan Borough. It draws on the strengths of our individual organisations, recognising that together we can achieve much more for our communities by delivering on our two place missions: create fair opportunities for all children, families, residents and businesses and make our towns and neighbourhoods flourish for those who live and work in them.

Here at Wigan, we are proud to support flexible working patterns, when the service can accommodate this. We also take a blended approach to where we work, depending on the work we do. This may include working from home, the office, or the community. We like to thank our employees for their hard work and commitment by giving them the opportunity to access a range of exclusive rewards and benefits.

To be appointed to this role you must be able to prove your right to work in the UK, and you must maintain a valid (active) right to work. Please note, at present we are not a licenced sponsor. Wigan Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people, and vulnerable adults, and expects all employees, workers and volunteers to share this commitment. Safeguarding is everyone's responsibility. As part of this commitment, Wigan Council operates robust Safer Recruitment procedures.

For further information, please contact Karen Dolan, Service Manager Children in Care and Adoption at K.Dolan1@wigan.gov.uk or Anna Lomas, Service Lead Fostering and SGO at anna.lomas@wigan.gov.uk. Interview date: 24th September 2026. This position is subject to Enhanced Disclosure Procedures plus child barred list check. The employer is committed to safeguarding.