SENIOR PRACTITIONER

CARE PLANNING AND COURT TEAM

STAFFORDSHIRE, B79 7BZ

SALARY:  £37,890 – £41,881 PER ANNUM

 37 HOURS PER WEEK – PERMANENT

Staffordshire County Council’s Care Planning and Court Teams hold responsibility for a high number of Children in care and proceedings in the Family Court.  There is a clear emphasis on placement stability and sound Permanency Planning, as well as reunification support.  

You will be responsible for assessments, and statutory responsibilities for Looked after Children.  You will have responsibility for assessing and planning for children in the care of the Local Authority who can return home, placement with friends or family, and long-term fostering.  Children allocated to you will be at a more complex level than those of less experienced workers.

You will be expected to co-work children with less experienced / non-social work qualified members of the team and to take responsibility as part of that process for sharing and developing their learning. 

This role involves taking a lead role within the Team for researching and developing evidence-based practice and sharing this with other staff.  You will offer advice, consultation and support to team members on aspects of case management.  You will represent the Team at meetings/forums as deemed appropriate by the Team Manager / Team Coordinator.  You may be required to take part in the delivery of training to staff across the Directorate with line management agreement. 

The ability to engage and communicate with children is essential and to support children in care to reach their full potential.   You will need to work closely with colleagues in Safeguarding, Fostering, Adoption and Friends and Family Teams. 

If you are confident and have the skills and experience to manage a busy caseload then this is an opportunity to join a busy and supportive team who are committed to producing high quality work within a service which has a clear focus on achieving positive outcomes for children and young people.  

For an informal discussion please contact:

Sara Dowding, Team Manager               T.  01827 475555

Closing Date:          27.11.2020

Please be aware, only application forms completed online will be accepted. We will not accept CV’s or Word application forms.

This Authority is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people/vulnerable adults and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.

This position is subject to a criminal records check from the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly CRB) which will require you to disclose details of all unspent and unfiltered spent reprimands, formal warnings, cautions and convictions in your application form.

This position will have access to the Public Sector Network, to meet government security standards we will request a basic criminal convictions certificate and other background checks prior to appointment for the successful candidate

To apply for this post click on the ‘Apply’ button below.

By clicking on the apply button you will be redirected to Staffordshire County Councils online application website. Please note, you are only able to view the Job Description and Person Specification on the WM Jobs  board NOT via Staffordshire County Council's online application site.  

To submit your application you will need to register an account on the website (NB this is a separate login to WM Jobs). 

We collect personal information from you when you register with us to make an application. Information we collect includes name, email address and other contact details. We will use this information to communicate with you generally and to assess your application.

By clicking on the Apply button and submitting your application form, you are giving your consent to the processing of your personal data in the ways described Here

If you experience any technical issues accessing or completing the application form please contact recruitment@staffordshire.gov.uk

Our Values

The County Council has adopted a set of values that seeks to achieve the best outcomes for its citizens, communities and employees.

Our People Strategy sets out what we all need to do to make Staffordshire County Council a great place to work, where people are supported to develop, flourish and contribute to our ambitious plans. 

Our values are at the heart of the Strategy to ensure that the focus is on what is important to the organisation and the people it serves:

• Ambitious - We are ambitious for our communities and citizens
• Courageous - We recognise our challenges and are prepared to make courageous decisions
• Empowering - We empower and support our people by giving them the opportunity to do their jobs well.

Benefits for working for us….

We recognise that it is our employees that are central to everything we do. We aim to create a supportive working environment where employees can achieve their full potential and achieve a healthy work-life balance.

In addition to your salary, as a member of staff, you will have access to a range of benefits including:

• An excellent local government pension scheme
• Generous holiday entitlement from 24 up to 33 days (plus 2 extra statutory days and bank holidays) depending on job role and length of service
• The option to buy up to an additional 2 weeks annual leave
• A range of flexible working options, depending on your job role, which includes agile working, flexible retirement
• Family Friendly Policies - maternity, adoption, paternity and parental leave
• Volunteering Scheme
• Training and development opportunities, including coaching and mentoring
• Access to health and wellbeing support (including Occupational Health, Physiotherapy and Counselling Services)
• Eye care vouchers
• Car lease scheme / cycle & car loan scheme / employee car share scheme
• Bus and rail travel discounts