Independent Reviewing Officer (Fostering) in London

Discover yourself in Lewisham where what you do makes a difference to our vibrant and culturally diverse communities! We have a rich history of welcoming people from all over the world and are proud to be recognised as the UK’s first Borough of Sanctuary, for our work in championing the rights of refugees and migrants. It's an exciting time to join us - Lewisham is a wave 2 Pathfinder authority and is leading the way on national reforms to social work practice through the Families First for Children programme.

We are seeking an experienced and skilled Independent Reviewing Officer to join our Fostering and Kinship Service. This pivotal role is focused on promoting high-quality practice, robust care planning, and positive outcomes for children looked after, particularly those placed in foster care. You will bring independence, professional curiosity and confidence to support and challenge practice across the Fostering and Kinship Service. The Fostering Independent Reviewing Officer (IRO) will play a key role in ensuring high-quality, safe and effective fostering provision for Lewisham’s looked after children and young people.

The postholder will provide independent oversight, professional challenge and quality assurance through the foster carer annual review process, contributing to continuous improvement across the fostering service. Specifically, the role will:

• Ensure the Council meets its statutory duties and follows good practice guidance in relation to the monitoring, review and development of Lewisham’s registered foster carers through robust and timely foster carer annual reviews.
• Promote the safety, welfare and best outcomes of Lewisham’s looked after children by ensuring they are cared for in safe, nurturing and well-regulated foster homes that deliver high-quality care and demonstrate positive outcomes.
• Ensure that foster carers are actively involved in and central to their annual review, enabling their voices to be heard and their feedback to meaningfully inform service development and improvement.
• Contribute to the strategic and operational development of Lewisham’s Fostering Service, using learning from reviews, quality assurance activity and professional oversight to drive best practice.
• Work collaboratively as part of the wider Independent Reviewing Service to support strategic planning, quality assurance and improved outcomes for looked after children and care leavers.

We are looking for a senior, confident social work professional who:

• Has substantial experience of working with looked after children and fostering practice.
• Can independently chair statutory looked after children reviews or fostering annual reviews and ensure care plans and support for carers is progressed effectively.
• Provide authoritative advice and constructive professional challenge to practitioners and managers.
• Demonstrates a strong commitment to children’s rights, participation and permanence planning.
• Is skilled in identifying risk, escalating concerns and driving improvement in practice.

Key Responsibilities:

• To chair foster carer annual reviews in accordance with the Children Act 1989, Fostering Regulations 2011, Care Act 2000 and the Fostering Services National Minimum Standards.
• To provide high quality written review reports which are clear, concise and follow an agreed format.
• Agree and implement an action plan with the social workers and foster carers and make recommendations to the agency decision maker regarding the carer(s) suitability to foster.
• To ensure that children and young people are safeguarded and that foster carers operate in line with statutory requirements and adhere to child protection processes.
• To develop positive relationships with social work managers and social work teams in order to promote and implement the review process.
• To develop positive relationships with the Leaving Care service in relation to foster carers offering Staying Put in order to promote and implement the review process.
• To contribute to the Fostering Panel Business meetings and any IRO partnership work on issues linked to the foster carer reviewing process.
• To maintain accurate and timely data on all aspects of the reviewing process and provide written reports as required.
• To apply a Quality Assurance system to ensure the Fostering National Minimum are being adhered to and that any issues arising from foster carer reviews are addressed with management in a timely manner.
• To make suggestions for change to practice and contribute to policies and procedures in order to maintain high standards to the care given to our Looked After Children living with Lewisham foster carers.

About You:

We’re looking for an experienced and confident social work professional who can bring independence, insight and challenge to fostering practice. You’ll need to have:

• Significant post‑qualifying experience in children’s social work, particularly with children who are looked after and placed in foster care.
• Strong knowledge of legislation, statutory guidance and best practice relating to safeguarding, fostering and permanence.
• Experience of overseeing, supervising or quality assuring social work practice, with the ability to identify strengths and areas for improvement.
• Confidence working in complex, multi‑agency settings, building constructive relationships while maintaining professional independence.
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to write clear, high‑quality reports and confidently chair review meetings.
• Sound professional judgement, with a proven ability to assess and manage risk and make defensible decisions.
• Confidence to provide professional challenge, including escalating concerns when children’s plans or outcomes are not progressing effectively.

Qualifications:

• A recognised Social Work qualification (DipSW, Social Work Degree or equivalent).
• Registration with Social Work England.

What’s in it for you?

• Be part of a supportive and passionate team.
• Make a real impact in the lives of children, families and foster and kinship carers.
• Opportunities for professional development and training.
• Flexible working arrangements available.

Our Vision - What Good Children’s Social Work Looks Like in Lewisham:

In Lewisham Children’s Social Care, we know what good social work looks like and we are passionate about creating the right conditions and culture for good practice to thrive.

Families are respected and supported to stay together, whenever there is safety. Families will tell us they understand why we are involved. Children will tell us their social worker has made a difference to their lives. Children who are in our care know we care, and we won’t give up on them. Young people who have been in our care feel confident about their future.

We have taken a whole system approach to improving our services to children and young people in our borough using Signs of Safety as our practice model.

Ofsted recognised the progress we have made noting that:

• Staff talk positively about their manageable caseloads, regular supervision, team meetings and access to a range of training, including the social work model of practice.
• Senior leaders demonstrate a clear focus on hearing the voices of children to develop and improve services.
• Leaders know the service well. They have a clear understanding of areas for development that are being appropriately addressed.

In January 2024, Ofsted's report lauds significant improvements in our children's services. Praised areas include strong leadership, high-quality support for families and children, and positive outcomes across all criteria.

The Executive Director for Children and Young People and his team are credited for driving these improvements, with particular focus on enhancing workforce stability, early help services, and partnerships with stakeholders. Noteworthy practices include creative life-story work and culturally sensitive social work approaches, crucial in a diverse borough like Lewisham. The Council's anti-racist practice network and safe space platform also garnered praise for supporting staff from black and global majority backgrounds. Overall, the report highlights a commendable commitment to improving outcomes for vulnerable children and young people in Lewisham.

Why choose Lewisham?

“Lewisham has so much to offer any social worker. I feel supported, respected and valued every step of the way” (Social Worker). Our social workers benefit from working in small, supportive teams with caseloads on average between 15-20 children. Our Signs of Safety family-led practice framework means we are committed to working in a relationship-based way with children and families, focussing on strengths in the family network to effect change. A positive learning culture which promotes opportunities for reflection and relationship-based practice is important to us. We are committed to developing our practice using reflective practice spaces such as case mapping, thinking spaces and group supervision. Our permanent and stable senior management team are visible and approachable.

Our dedicated workforce team supports professional development across the service so that you will:

• be supported through our comprehensive learning and development offer, which includes subscription to ‘Research in Practice’.
• receive regular supervision and appraisal.
• have 1-1 practice development coaching as a case holder, and professional development coaching as a manager.
• have access to regular Signs of Safety training.
• have access to external leadership development opportunities such as the Black and Asian Leadership Initiative (BALI).
• have a clearly defined career progression pathway with opportunities for professional development at all levels.
• opportunities to become a practice educator and work with students and newly qualified social workers.

What we’re looking for:

If you want to work in a thriving borough and our social work vision connects with your professional values, then we are interested in hearing from you. We are looking for people to join our team who:

• value the importance of communication and seeking feedback.
• can inspire and motivate those they work with, manage and lead.
• are committed to developing their skills and expertise to deliver an excellent service.
• are professionally curious and value thinking slowly and calmly in a balanced way.
• work inclusively, collaboratively with others recognising their strengths.
• take responsibility and make a positive contribution by focusing on solutions.
• are transparent, are appreciative in enquiry, reflect and learn.

In return, we’ll offer excellent development opportunities, the opportunity to make a real difference to our local community plus a range of benefits including:

• Generous leave entitlement.
• Local Government Pension scheme.
• Flexible working and family friendly policies.
• Season ticket and bicycle loans.
• A range of staff discounts including local subsidised gym memberships.
• Supportive staff networks.

Location:

The job is primarily based in Laurence House in Catford SE6. There are 2 local train stations 3-5 minutes’ walk from the office, and the train journey from London Bridge is approximately 15 minutes. There are also numerous bus routes that stop right by the office. We operate a hybrid approach where you will be required to work both in the office and from home on a regular basis.

Creating an Inclusive Lewisham:

A core value of Lewisham Council is to 'draw on the diversity of our communities to create a more inclusive Lewisham'. We believe that freedom from discrimination and equality of opportunity are fundamental rights, and that each person should be valued regardless of race, gender, disability, sexual orientation, religion or belief, gender re-assignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, or age. Social inclusion lies at the heart of everything we do as a Council in our roles as an employer, a provider of services and a community leader.

Diversity:

Lewisham Council is a Disability Confident employer. We welcome and encourage job applications of all abilities. If you require any reasonable adjustments in the application or interview, please contact the lead contact on this advert. We will make reasonable adjustments to make sure our disabled applicants and those with health conditions are supported throughout our recruitment process. We support the access to work scheme, further details are available at www.gov.uk/access-to-work/apply.

Your Application:

The recruitment process is anonymous and we don’t accept CV’s. Applicant handbook- please read the guidance in this handbook when applying. It is essential that you complete the application fully and that your supporting statement covers how you meet each of the person specification criteria listed.

Special conditions:

A recognised professional qualification in psychology, psychotherapy, social work, counselling, or a related therapeutic discipline. The job is subject to a DBS check (Basic/Enhanced).

For an informal discussion about this job, please contact pathfinder@lewisham.gov.uk.

Salary: £56,436 -£58, 551 (SWLO/SCP 41-43).