Social Worker (Care and Support)

The work of the Care and Support Team focuses on children, young people, and their families where there has been a Social Work assessment and where they have been identified as needing additional services. This may be children in need of protection, care and support or families in the Public Law Outline (PLO) process or in court proceedings. There is a mixed skill base within the team of experienced Social Workers and Wellbeing Workers Day-to-day the team is well supported by 2 Team Co- Ordinator’s who assist with a number of tasks including, organising and minuting meetings, preparing chronologies and other general business support.

As a team we are committed to supporting the professional development and career progression of every team member. available. The Fostering Team oversees all aspects of the fostering role from recruitment and retention of mainstream foster carers, plus the assessment and support of friends and family that foster. Supervising social workers have manageable caseloads, receive a robust induction, have regular reflective supervision as well as additional support and mentoring when required.

What skills and passions will the job holder need:

• You will be able to provide appropriate support to children and families, using your enthusiasm and motivation to promote successful outcomes.

• You will be skilful and confident in your communication with others so as to sustain engagement with families in fluctuating circumstances, including where there is hostility and risk.

• You will be creative in your work with children and adopt the use of tools to encourage them to share their wishes and feelings.

• You will require a wide range of knowledge and skills to identify the full range of risks to children and help manage those risks; ensuring proportionate and timely intervention is provided. Help build family relationships and identify individuals support networks.

• You will need to adopt a strengths-based model of intervention and experience in using this model would be desirable.

What will the job holder do in the role?:

• To provide a social work service to individual children and young people with a view to keeping them safe and enabling them to achieve to their fullest potential within a setting that provides legal permanence.

• To work as part of a team, undertaking tasks on a duty rotational basis, and providing cover for absent colleagues.

• To foster and maintain good working relationships with colleagues and partners that enable the team to work effectively.

• To identify risk issues in relation to the circumstances of individual children, and to ensure that there is safeguarding in place in order to minimise risk