Social Worker, Connecting Families Team in North East

Connecting families are a team within the Children in Care service in Durham. The team support families of children who are subject to a Section 31 Care Order. The team’s primary focus is on safely reconnecting children with their parents or birth family. Reunification involves more than simply returning a child to their parents; it requires support to make this successful. Our team works alongside Family Group Conferencing, Supporting Solutions, Connected Care and Early Help to strengthen support we offer to families, with the child at the heart of everything we do.

We are looking for a social worker who has completed their assessed and supported year in employment to join our Children in Care teams. In this role, you will work with children and young people aged 0 – 18 who are in our care, where it is viable for them to return home to their birth family.

We are a dedicated team in supporting families to overcome issues so that children can safely return home and statutory involvement can end, allowing children to live with their families. This role requires the social worker to work closely with families to formulate appropriate exit plans for children resulting in applications being made to court to discharge the Care Order and to formally end a family’s involvement with Children’s Services. The role requires the social worker to complete discharge statements to court, which evidence the good progress that families have made since the original care proceedings concluded and are positive statements to write.

We are looking for passionate workers, who are skilled in writing timely assessments of a high standard that will be filed to court and who demonstrate excellent communication skills and are driven by relationship‑based practice which highlights the importance of fully involving families in the decisions that are made in relation to their children. We are a small, nurturing team and we ensure social workers feel supported and valued by their management team, which in turn helps us achieve our goal to enable our children and young people to return home to their families.

Relationships with children and their families will be very important to you. You will spend quality time with children in our care, understanding their views and their life events. You will take a trauma-informed approach, supporting the child to understand and recover from what has happened. Your work will be informed by the Signs of Safety framework which will support you to take a strength‑based approach and work towards the goals of the child and their family.

What will I need?

• Degree in social work or equivalent social work qualification, e.g. Post Graduate Diploma in Social Work (PDDipSW), Certificate of Qualification in Social Work (CQSW), Diploma in Social Work (DipSW), Certificate in Social Services (CSS)
• Current Social Work England Registration
• Successful completion of the Assessed and Supported Year in Employment (ASYE)

Social workers post ASYE in this post are eligible for a recruitment/retention allowance of £2,500 over 12 months (pro‑rated for part‑time workers). Payments are made in equal instalments across a 12‑month period alongside your pay. The allowance is subject to tax, National Insurance and pension contributions. If successful, you will be required to apply for a Disclosure and Barring Service Enhanced Disclosure.

Our commitment to safeguarding: Durham County Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. We expect all employees and volunteers to share this commitment. This role is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and therefore if successful in your application, an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check will be sought inclusive of a check of the Children’s Barred List, due to the position working in regulated activity. Applicants should be aware that the DBS check will disclose both spent and unspent convictions, cautions, reprimands and warnings, in line with current legislation.

Interviews will be held on 27th April 2026 at Seaham Spectrum, SR7 7TT. We operate a guaranteed interview scheme for applicants that can show they meet all the essential criteria and have indicated they have a disability, are a looked after young person, care leaver or a veteran.

Our offer to you: We offer a competitive rewards package that includes attractive salaries, a generous annual leave entitlement of 27 days (rising to 32 after five years’ continuous local government service), membership of the excellent contributory career average Local Government Pension Scheme, and a range of flexible working arrangements including hybrid working (home and office) where applicable. Rewards and benefits are subject to individual terms and conditions. We are passionate about social work in County Durham. We are committed to providing a culture where good practice can flourish. We ensure our social workers are highly supported and encourage flexible working to achieve a good work‑life balance. You will benefit from a range of training opportunities and professional development through personalised induction, professional supervision, and mentoring.

Hybrid working: Durham County Council currently operates a hybrid working policy where a model of 2 days in the workplace and 3 days at home/remote will apply. This model is pro‑rated for part‑time roles and arrangements are at managers discretion; alternatively, you can work all of your contracted hours within the workplace if you prefer.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: We are a proud equal opportunities employer and believe a diverse workforce brings fresh ideas and drives service improvement. We welcome applications from everyone and make employment decisions based on skills and ability. As a Disability Confident Leader, we actively encourage applications from disabled and neurodivergent people and offer support throughout the recruitment process.

How to apply: Please note, we do not accept CVs. All applications must be submitted online via the Northeast Jobs portal. Use the Person Specification section of the form to clearly demonstrate how you meet the essential (and where possible, desirable) criteria. Applications that do not evidence the essential requirements will not be shortlisted. If you require assistance when applying for this role, contact our Recruitment Helpdesk at 03000 26 27 27 or via email RecruitmentCYPS@durham.gov.uk. All correspondence relating to your application will be sent from donotreply@northeastjobs.org.uk. Kindly check your spam/junk folder regularly to ensure you don’t miss any updates.