Social Work Assistant, Pullar House, Perth - PKC14180

Main Purpose of the Role

Working within Perth & Kinross Council is more than a job, it's about being part of an organisation that puts people at the heart of all we do and provides opportunities to make a real difference by enhancing every life we touch. We currently have the following opportunity: Social Work Assistant (Fixed Term for 6 Months) - PKC14180 £34,424 - £37,784 Pullar House, Perth.

The Perth and Kinross Health and Social Care Partnership work with the residents of the Perth & Kinross area to provide independent living across all communities. A temporary vacancy for 6 months has arisen for a Social Work Assistant in the Perth City South Adult Social Work and Social Care Team, working 36 hours per week. This team manages long term, complex cases within the Perth City locality, and supports adults aged 16+ across all client groups requiring social work interventions, supports and services.

This is an excellent opportunity to join a well-established, highly skilled and motivated team, with excellent training, supervision and development opportunities. Benefits also include flexible working scheme, modern working practices, generous annual leave entitlement and pension scheme.

There is a wide variety of client groups within this geographical area. As a generic locality team integrated with the Health and Social Care Partnership you will implement and promote strategic multi-disciplinary approaches in supporting our clients in a person centred, holistic, whole family approach. Interesting and diverse practice opportunities for front line staff is provided via long term complex casework across all adult client groups within the Perth City area.

The successful applicant will assist in maintaining vulnerable people in the community by providing a range of social work and care management tasks in accordance with the New Care Standards and the SSSC Codes of Practice. These include carrying out Outcome Focussed Assessments, the negotiation of flexible packages of care, and the monitoring and reviewing of individual care packages delivered via Self Directed Support (SDS).

Please note, we are currently unable to offer sponsorship for this post.

Skills & Experience Required

The ideal candidate will be motivated and engaging, and possess excellent interpersonal and communication skills. Effective time management is essential for a successful autonomous worker to manage complex caseloads with the ability to be flexible and respond to crisis / competing demands being integral to the role. An understanding of Self Directed Support and how this is delivered is essential. The ability to integrate and cultivate successful links within the team, partnership as a whole and across key services is highly desirable. Knowledge of services demands, practice challenges and demographics within Perth and Kinross would be an advantage.

You must have experience and skills of client needs assessment and care package reviews. You will be required to demonstrate a sound knowledge and understanding of social work principles and values. You must have or be working towards SVQ3. This role requires you to be registered with the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC), if you are not yet registered, you can still apply, as long as you are willing to apply for registration within 3 months of starting with us and be registered within 6 months. You must have a valid driving licence as this post requires you to travel to a variety of locations across Perth and Kinross.

Working at Perth & Kinross Council

Our values and behaviours influence our work and support us in the delivery of our key priorities. In your application, and should you be invited to interview, you will be asked to describe situations that support the criteria required in the role and which also demonstrate our values and behaviours.

Here's what we can offer you:

• A generous annual leave package
• 6 days public holiday and an additional discretionary day
• Eligibility to join our pension scheme
• Family friendly and positive work/life balance policies such as Flexible Working, Maternity, Paternity & Adoption leave, time off for volunteering and our Wellbeing Framework
• Access to a range of benefits
• Paid SSSC annual membership for relevant positions

We recognise there can be benefits to flexible working and where individual jobs allow, we seek to support this. You are encouraged to discuss potential options with the recruiting manager, if this is of interest to you. A healthy work life balance is important to us and we provide supportive management and, where possible, flexible working arrangements to help you achieve that balance. You will have access to training and support for continued professional development.

This role requires you to be registered with the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC), if you are not yet registered, you can still apply, as long as you are willing to apply for registration within 3 months of starting with us and be registered within 6 months. All new employees have a four-month probationary period.

Next Steps

We would love to hear from you and would encourage you to get in touch with Melisa Meikle to find out more. External candidates are required to provide contact details for 2 referees, including email addresses. One of these must be your current or most recent employer. Internal applicants applying for secondment must obtain line manager approval through the secondment form available under My Forms – Secondment Request Form on MyView. Please note that secondment requests are considered on a case-by-case basis.

We welcome applications from everyone and as a Disability Confident employer, we guarantee to interview applicants who declare a disability and meet the essential requirements of the post. Please contact the hiring manager above or the Recruitment Team to discuss any reasonable adjustments. Appointments are based on evidence supplied during the selection process. Diversity is important to us and although some of our jobs may be perceived to be traditionally gender specific, we welcome applications from everyone and would encourage you to apply if you meet the job requirements. That includes welcoming applications from former armed forces personnel/reservists. Many of the skills picked up during your military career could be transferred directly into a role with local government.

Working with children and/or protected adults is regarded as a regulated role and under the Disclosure (Scotland) Act 2020 you will be required to join the PVG Scheme or undergo a PVG Scheme update check. If you have lived overseas for a period of 12 months or more (continuous or total) within the last 10 years, an Overseas Criminal Record Check will be required. You will be required to provide this check. A confirmed offer of employment and commencement in the post will be subject to the outcome of the above mentioned mandatory pre-employment checks (including references) and will also include eligibility to work in the UK, qualifications and fitness to undertake the post.