Training and Development Officer

As the Training and Development Officer you will lead the planning, commissioning, coordinating, and reviewing of training and development opportunities for the Children’s Services workforce in Wandsworth. Your role will be pivotal in ensuring that the workforce is well-equipped to meet the requirements of legislation. You will focus on delivering and commissioning training that promotes effective practice in safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children.

You will creatively contribute to practice improvement that has been identified through quality assurance mechanisms; and a keen interest in the learning and development cycle and evaluation of impact of this on practice with children and families. You will be a creative and passionate individual who relishes working in a fast paced and innovative context, enjoys workforce challenges and is skilled in building relationships across services with practitioners, managers and senior leaders.

This role is key to supporting the development of high quality CPD, practice improvement and training opportunities for our Children’s Social Care and Early Help workforce. Your objective will be to enhance the skills and knowledge of the workforce, ensuring they are capable of providing high-quality services that safeguard children and support their welfare. You will aim to achieve a well-trained and competent workforce that can effectively respond to the needs of children and families in Wandsworth.

As the Training and Development Officer, you will be responsible for identifying and analyzing training needs based on statutory requirements and best practices. You will develop strategies and plans for workforce training, collaborate with partners for data analysis and research, and arrange training programs within the available budget. Ensuring quality assurance systems for training events and reporting on outcomes is essential.

You will engage with staff and managers to support the transformation of learning into practice, using a creative and blended approach that includes e-learning and classroom-based methods. Collaboration with CSCA members to align training needs and delivery programs is crucial. You will keep your knowledge up to date with new developments in law, policy, and practice innovations, promoting a learning and development culture.

Advising and supporting managers, contributing to performance reviews, and evaluating innovative solutions for quality and value for money are key aspects of the role. Additionally, you will contribute to change programs within the service, promote equality, diversity, and inclusion, and monitor the training budget while pursuing opportunities for external funding.

Essential Qualifications, Skills and Experience:

• Comprehensive knowledge and understanding of the Children’s Social Care, Health and Education sectors, including relevant statutory duties and responsibilities; national and local policy; and associated workforce training and development requirements.
• Good knowledge of different training methods, techniques and delivery models; including evaluating outcomes from training and supporting the effective transfer of learning into the practice environment.
• Evidence of commitment to continuous professional development for self and others.
• Demonstrable understanding of how the principles and provisions of the Equalities Act relate to this post.
• Significant experience of using standard IT packages and the ability to support others in their day-to-day use.

Closing Date: 2nd June 2025. Shortlisting Date: 3rd and 4th June 2025. Interview Date: 11th June 2025. Test/Presentation: Short presentation.

Richmond & Wandsworth Better Service Partnership are committed to making our recruitment practices as inclusive as possible for everyone. We are committed to promoting equality and diversity and developing a culture that values differences, recognising that employees from a variety of backgrounds bring important and positive contributions to the Councils and can improve the way we deliver services. We are proud to be a Disability Confident employer. If you require any reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment and selection process, please let us know.

We are also committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people/vulnerable adults and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Some posts may be exempted under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and as such appointment to these posts will be conditional upon the receipt of a satisfactory response to a check of police records via Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS).

We offer a wide range of benefits designed to attract, develop, and reward our employees such as 40 days annual leave (including Bank Holidays), flexible working and a generous pension plan.