Role: Senior Practitioner

Team: Specialist Safeguarding Unit

Location: Uttoxeter

Salary:  Grade 10 - £37,890 - £41,881 per annum

Working Pattern: 37 Hours per week | Permanent | Full time | Flexible working – happy to discuss options

Our team

We’re a great bunch here in Uttoxeter safeguarding and we’re looking for a Senior Practitioner to come and work with us to make our team even better! We work together across the different teams well, sharing best practice and our knowledge and experience to continually improve the way we do things. We also deal with some issues you might not in other areas, such as forced marriage and child exploitation and so joining our team will give you a complete view of all subjects that social work touches on.

Our safeguarding teams are all about early intervention and providing specialist services for children and young people with acute needs, including situations where there are child protection concerns. By joining us you would be playing a crucial role in delivering positive outcomes for the children and families of Staffordshire.

Our role

As Senior Practitioner in our Safeguarding teams you’ll be responsible for the usual areas of safeguarding such as:

- Undertaking initial visits, child social work assessments and S47 enquiries

- Managing child in need and child protection plans and direct work with children

- Care proceedings work and some work with looked after children

You’ll also:

- Take the lead in research and developing evidence-based practice, sharing your findings with the team

- Represent the team at meetings and forums

- Look after children that have more complex needs

- Coach and mentor less experienced colleagues to make sure we are developing the team as much as possible

Making sure you are well supported and given the opportunity to develop and progress is a high priority at Staffordshire. Whether that’s taking steps to develop your management skills; sitting on a fostering panel or working with the Youth Offending Team we want you to gain varied and valuable experience here at Staffordshire.

How we work

As part of our transformation we have embedded a new, restorative practice model which our current staff feel is proving to be very effective. Restorative approaches are widely accepted as being a highly successful way of achieving better outcomes for our children, young people and their families.

About you

You’ll be:

- A qualified social worker with minimum 2 years post qualifying experience

- Be registered with Social Work England

- You’ll have a full UK driving licence and your own vehicle to be able to get to all your children easily

You’ll be someone who likes to take the lead on more complex social work issues, assisting in developing other in the team and keeping yourself up to date with all relevant developments in the profession.

Our benefits

Our people are central to everything we do and so we’ll make sure you’re well supported and given the opportunity to develop and progress. We‘ve also recently launched our new aspiring team managers programme and you can find out more about this on our website https://www.childrenssocialcarecareers.co.uk/

We’ve created a supportive working environment here at Staffordshire County Council because we recognise the benefits of enabling our employees to achieve their full potential whilst enjoying a healthy work-life balance. We’ve achieved this by offering more flexible working practices and supplying the tools and equipment to enable more smart and agile working.

And here’s just some of the benefits we have here at Staffordshire:

• 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
• An excellent local government pension scheme
• 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

So, how do I apply?

Just click on the ‘Apply’ button. If you do have technical issues please contact recruitment@staffordshire.gov.uk and the team will help you.

Closing Date: Sunday 28 February 2021
Interview Date: Following application we’ll contact you to arrange asap

For more information about the role, an informal discussion or should you have any requirements to assist you in applying for this role please contact: laura.chetta@staffordshire.gov.uk

Our recruitment process

As you’ll know safeguarding and promoting the welfare of our children and young people/vulnerable adults is important to us and that’s why this position is subject to a criminal record check from the Disclosure and Barring Service. If applicable you should disclose details of unspent and unfiltered spent reprimands, formal warnings, cautions and convictions in your application form.

How will we store your details?

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