Senior Social Worker in Bromley

Employer King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site Princess Royal University Hospital Town Bromley Salary £55,524 - £62,652 per annum, including high cost allowance Salary period Yearly Closing 16/09/2026 23:59

King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is one of the UK’s largest and busiest teaching Trusts with a turnover of c£2.1 billion, 1.5 million patient contacts a year and more than 14,000 staff based across 5 main sites in South East London. The Trust provides a full range of local hospital services across its different sites, and specialist services from King’s College Hospital (KCH) sites at Denmark Hill in Camberwell and at the Princess Royal University Hospital (PRUH) site in the London Borough of Bromley.

We encourage all our staff to have a healthy work/life balance. In doing so, you can apply for flexible working from the beginning of your employment. We offer a range of options which are designed to suit different circumstances and priorities in line with service requirements.

As a Senior Social Worker in our Acute Frailty Assessment Unit (AFAU), you'll play a crucial role in providing high-quality, compassionate care to our elderly and frail patients. You will work as part of a team of x2 social workers who lead in overseeing transfer of care arrangements for patients require short admissions in our AFAU.

AFAU is a Same Day Emergency Care (SDEC) service which is a 12 patient assessment space. We offer rapid assessment and care for older adults within a safe and dementia friendly environment. Patients will remain in the unit for no longer than 10 hours and thereafter discharged home with a plan of care or transferred to the relevant ward for further treatment.

You'll be part of a dynamic multidisciplinary team, using your clinical skills and knowledge to assess, plan, and deliver person-centred care. This challenging yet rewarding position offers opportunities for professional growth and the chance to make a real difference in the lives of vulnerable patients. Join us in our commitment to excellence in frailty care and help shape the future of elderly patient services.

Main duties of the job

To develop and implement personalized transfer of care plans for frail elderly patients.

To collaborate with doctors, therapists, and nurses to provide holistic care.

To advocate for patients' needs and preferences, promoting dignity and independence.

Provide education and support to patients and their families about care and treatment, particularly through imparting advice and information in respect of community care and preventative approaches to social care

Lead in discharge planning to ensure safe transitions of care.

To Maintain accurate and up-to-date patient records.

To Adhere to infection control protocols and safety standards.

To Mentor and support junior staff and students in the unit and to support the delivery of social work education initiatives across the trust wide social work department

To actively engage with the trust social work department as a member of the AFAU

To Engage in continuous professional development to enhance skills in frailty care and maintain registration as a qualified Social Worker

Working for our organisation

The Trust provides a full range of local and specialist services across its five sites. Transforming Healthcare is the vision at the heart of the King’s Strategy – 2026 to 2031. Together, we are pursuing six strategic ambitions: delivering high-quality patient care; being a great place to work; leading pioneering research, innovation and education; building strong and successful partnershTips; providing timely and efficient care; and ensuring long-term financial sustainability. Achieving these ambitions will require all of us to work as one Team King’s, united by a shared commitment to our values of being caring, collaborative, inclusive and innovative. By living these values every day, we will transform healthcare for our patients, our communities and each other

We are at a pivotal point in our history and we require individuals who are ready to join a highly professional team and make a real, lasting difference to our patients and our people.

King’s is committed to delivering Sustainable Healthcare for All via our Green Plan. In line with national Greener NHS ambitions, we have set net zero carbon targets of 2040 for our NHS Carbon Footprint and 2045 for our NHS Carbon Footprint Plus. Everyone’s contribution is required in order to meet the goals set out in our Green Plan and we encourage all staff to work responsibly, minimising their contributions to the Trust’s carbon emissions, waste and pollution wherever possible.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Patient Care and Communication: Provide compassionate, person-centred care that promotes dignity, independence, and well-being Communicate effectively with patients, families, and carers, providing education and support about transfer of care and advocate for patients' needs and preferences within the multidisciplinary team. Participate in family meetings as required

Teamwork and Collaboration: Work collaboratively with the multidisciplinary team, including doctors, therapists, nurses and other healthcare professionals Contribute to effective handovers and ensure continuity of care Participate in team meetings and quality improvement initiatives Mentor and support junior staff, students, and newly qualified nurses

Safeguarding: To work in partnership with trust safeguarding functions to ensure timely reviews occur in respect of adult's identified at risk of abuse. Ensuring that the MDT is sighted on latest practice developments around MCA/Safeguarding and DoLS

Quality and Safety: Adhere to all relevant NHS and Trust policies, procedures, and guidelines Participate in clinical governance activities and contribute to maintaining high standards of care Report concerns and incidents promptly, contributing to a culture of openness and learning Support the implementation of evidence-based practice and quality improvement initiatives.

Person specification

Education and Qualifications

• Degree or equivalent in Social Work
• Registration with Social Work England
• Post graduate qualifications in Social Work or Social Work related subject area
• Formal training in Social Work and older people

Knowledge and Experience

• Post qualifying experience in a range of practice settings
• Post qualifying experience in supporting Adults and Families
• Social Work Theory and its application to supporting with old age and frailty
• Post qualifying experience working in a setting that specialises in supporting with older people
• Post qualifying experience in a NHS setting as a Social Worker
• Post qualifying experience in a Local Authority setting as an Adult Social Worker

Skills and Competencies

• Outstanding interpersonal and communication skills to work effectively with patients and their families
• Well developed interpersonal and communication skills and an ability to work effectively and constructively with other professionals and other disciplines.
• An ability to work independently, accept accountability and make full use of consultation and management processes.
• Skills and knowledge in the use of a number of models of social work intervention and the ability to select and use the most effective approach to meeting consumer need for the different aspects of the work
• Demonstrate organisational and professional skills such as: assessment, advocacy, recording, report writing, time management, liaison and communication.

IMPORTANT

• Check your email account regularly as this is how we will communicate with you
• If you delete the job from any of your accounts, you may be prevented from accessing further communications
• To enquire about your application or inform us of any changes in your circumstances, please contact the named person on this advert
• Please provide email addresses for referees where possible
• Please review the documentation on our recruitment microsite, particularly the Trust’s criminal records checking policy
• All staff have a responsibility for safeguarding children and vulnerable adults and for ensuring they are aware of the specific duties relating to their role.
• Please note that the closing date is given as a guide. On occasion, we might close a vacancy early due to a high number of applications being received. You are advised to submit your application as early as possible to avoid disappointment.

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• might not be specific or relevant enough to address the criteria in the recruitment profile
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We monitor applications for any behaviour that could create an unfair advantage, and we check all references carefully. You are likely to be tested on your experience at interview, so be honest and make sure all the information in your application is correct.

King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust Annual Reports and Other Corporate Publications

King's Health Partners Academic Health Science Centre Website

King's College Hospital is part of King's Health Partners Academic Health Sciences Centre (AHSC), a pioneering collaboration between King's College London, and Guy's and St Thomas', King's College Hospital and South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trusts.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.

Name Kareena Miller

Job title Deputy Head of Social Work

Email address kareena.miller@nhs.net

Telephone number 0203 299 7145

Additional information

For informal discussions about the role please send an email