Social Worker (Link Role) - Family Solutions, Colchester

We have an exciting opportunity to join our high‑performing Family Solutions team based in Colchester, North Essex. This is a fantastic opportunity to work within a service described by Ofsted as "exceptional", delivering early help to families facing multiple and complex challenges. Family Solutions is part of Essex's Children & Families service, working holistically with disadvantaged families to help them make meaningful and lasting changes. You'll be part of a supportive, multi‑disciplinary team that values collaboration, innovation, and professional growth.

The Opportunity

• Act as a source of advice and support for colleagues, including joint visits and joint working on complex cases such as those which would benefit from social worker expertise, e.g. concerns around neglect.
• Support the team to build positive and constructive working relationships with colleagues in statutory children’s services.
• Manage your own caseload and assess safeguarding risks.
• Work in partnership with the team manager and practice supervisor to review referrals and support threshold decisions as required by the team.
• Build strong, trusting relationships with families to promote positive change.
• Provide practical and specialist advice.
• Facilitate complex family meetings and coordinate additional support services.
• Offer emotional and practical support in homes and community settings.
• Work closely with your manager or senior social worker through regular supervision.
• Have an opportunity to support the further integration of Family Solutions and Children Social Care as part of the Family First Partnership Programme.

Accountabilities

• Support the manager and practice supervisor in undertaking screenings of new contacts and understanding threshold.
• Determine the direction and actions required to progress cases forward on a day‑to‑day basis, recognising when key decisions regarding risks or concerns should be referred to the Team Manager or Practice Supervisor.
• Act as a source of advice, guidance and support to colleagues in relation to complex cases that would benefit from social work expertise, mentoring and guiding colleagues in best practice.
• Undertake holistic assessments of family needs to create intervention plans and identify how outcomes can be achieved that fully reflect the family and young person’s views and aspirations, delivering interventions, including group work programmes, to support families to make change.
• Facilitate complex family meetings, managing potentially competing views of families and professionals, in order to find achievable solutions.
• Undertake individual and group programmes of work to enable children and families to develop their skills to resolve issues and problems themselves; provide information and accompany families to access other local services.
• Provide specific, practical, personal and emotional support to families in their homes or other settings as part of an agreed plan in order to achieve agreed and sustainable family outcomes.
• Actively participate in regular supervision in order to review work and ensure effective interventions for families.
• Ensure that the principles of effective practice are fully embedded in service delivery; work collaboratively with staff and partners to manage risk in line with the thresholds of the Effective Support and Guidance document, ensuring that the Family Solutions team follows the SET child protection procedures.
• Achieve specific individual and shared targets and objectives defined annually within the performance management framework.

The Experience You Will Bring

• Qualified Social Worker, registered with Social Work England, and post‑ASYE.
• Recent experience in frontline children’s services, including completion of assessments and management of CIN and/or CP cases.
• At least three years’ experience post‑qualification.
• Willing to work towards a Practice Educator Qualification.
• A strong commitment to uphold the standards and values of the social work profession.
• Evidence of continuing professional development with good knowledge in the relevant professional area and a commitment to evidence‑based practice.
• Significant practical experience of working with families with multiple and complex needs.
• Effective communication skills, good problem‑solving and assessment skills with a demonstrable track record of building and sustaining positive professional relationships with individuals and families with multiple and complex needs.
• Experience of applying a solution‑focused approach and providing practical advice and support to families to enable them to achieve positive and sustainable outcomes.
• Ability to work in partnership with others to maximise outcomes for families in line with the Family Solutions operating principles.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team and to use supervision appropriately.

Mobility Requirement

The role requires you to be mobile throughout a wider operational area, including travelling around the county of Essex and beyond, transporting service users and their belongings and to be able to do so in an emergency. Driving licence and car or another acceptable means of transport to meet mobility requirements are essential.

EEO and Inclusion

Essex County Council is proud to be a Disability Confident Leader. We’re committed to interview all disabled applicants who choose to apply under our Job Interview Scheme if they meet the minimum requirements of the job. Please speak to our recruiters if you require any reasonable adjustments during the process. We’re also committed to interview all veterans and care leavers, who meet the minimum requirements of the role for which they are applying.

Once you have secured your role within Essex County Council you will receive many great employee benefits, including support for unpaid carers and flexible working arrangements to accommodate their needs. As part of employment with Essex County Council (ECC) should your role require a DBS check you will be required to register with the DBS update service. The DBS update service ensures all registered DBS certificates are kept up to date and allows authorised parties to view the status of your certificate. This is an annual subscription and you will be responsible for maintaining it.

Essex County Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults, and expects all employees and volunteers to share this commitment. If you have queries about this role or require further information, please email resourcing.team@essex.gov.uk.