Senior Social Work Practitioner in London

Organisation: Leicestershire County Council

Work Location: County Hall, Glenfield, LE3 8RA

Worker Category: Field Based Worker

Salary: Grade 12 – £43,860 - £47,829 per annum (Pro rata for part time) plus market premium

Working Hours: 37 hours per week

Contract Type: Permanent

Closing Date: 11th January 2026

Interview Date(s): 20th January 2026

Come and be part of our Outstanding First Response Service, Assessment and Screening. It's an exciting time to be a part of Children and Family Services at Leicestershire County Council, our staff are at the heart of delivering excellent services to children and families across Leicestershire. Our recent Ofsted inspection praised Leicestershire's work to build "strong and long-lasting relationships" with children and families which lead to many families achieving "positive changes" in their lives.

About the Role:

We have Senior Practitioner roles within the First Response Assessment team. These are exciting opportunities to be part of a diverse and highly skilled team, we are looking for a passionate, dedicated, and child-focused social worker. As a Senior Practitioner within the Assessment team, you will be within one of five team PODs, consisting of a team manager, a senior practitioner, and five social workers. This is predominantly an office-based role but there is scope to work flexibly which is balanced with meeting the service needs and demands.

You will be expected to produce quality assessments that are timely and proportionate to the level of need, as well as support staff on complex assessments or scenarios where greater experience is required, i.e., care proceedings. You will lead and present at development meetings, support with service performance, and the learning and development of individuals as well as the team.

In Leicestershire, we have a fantastic package to provide our workers. This includes the option as a full-time worker to do hybrid working, celebrating diversity with a range of events throughout the year, recognition of our staff in annual Pride in Practice events, fantastic learning and training opportunities – enabling our staff to develop and progress within their roles and committed wellbeing support.

We are proud of our continuous improvement plan – 'Achieving Excellence through Purposeful Practice' which sets out our key values, behaviours, and ambitions. We have embedded the Signs of Safety approach throughout our services and this approach mirrors our values of Aspiration, Being Curious, and Collaboration. We are focused on working with families and the networks of family, friends, and professionals around children, to work in collaboration to achieve shared goals.

We are committed to our vision of becoming a trauma-informed responsive department where we believe we are "stronger together". Our culture is one of partnership, where we look for solutions and recognise the potential impact of trauma on the children and families we work with and on our staff. We will strive to create a safe, compassionate, healing environment demonstrated through relationships based on trust, respect, hope, and empathy.

We support and empower our staff to be the best that they can be. We will give you the support and resources that you need to work in collaboration with children and families. A DBS enhanced check for a regulated activity is required for this post.

About You:

• Be a qualified Social Worker holding a Social Work degree or equivalent, e.g., CQSW, DipSW (with specialism in children's services) and be registered with Social Work England, hold a valid driving licence and access to a vehicle.
• Extensive knowledge, experience, and application of social work legislation, methodologies, social care policies, guidance, procedures, and case reviews.
• Demonstrate the ability and experience of supporting with the service performance and the learning and development of the team and individuals as well as a commitment to your continuous professional development.
• Understand and demonstrate experience of the importance of multi-agency working and the differing roles, responsibilities, remit, and functions of other parts of the wider service and agencies.
• The ability to communicate clearly and accurately, both orally and in writing, with a wide range of people, including representatives from other agencies and court, completing reports and assessments to a high standard.
• Excellent demonstration of the ability to prioritise effectively, manage competing demands to meet deadlines and the flexibility to respond to changing requirements.

We are keen to support employees to balance their working life with other commitments. Therefore, wherever possible, we will consider working arrangements that suit an individual's personal circumstances whilst still meeting the needs of the Council.

Leicestershire County Council is an inclusive organisation which is on a journey to embed and celebrate equality, diversity, and inclusion at every level. We warmly welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds, as having a diverse workforce with different perspectives and ideas is fundamental to our values and enriches the services we offer our communities.

To apply for this job, please click on the apply button. You will need to upload a supporting statement as part of your application which explains how you meet the criteria listed in the 'About You' section above.