At Bath & North East Somerset Council we have one overriding purpose to improve people’s lives.
If your passion is around collaborative work with young people, centred on building relationships in order to help them develop resilience and make changes in their lives, then we are the Local Authority for you. Our dynamic teams work with families from point of contact through to long term support and intervention. Our practice model is underpinned by relationship-based, systemic approaches to facilitate change, alongside trauma informed practice.
Bath and North East Somerset Children’s Social Care are an innovative small Local Authority focused on therapeutic assessment and support. Rated Good by OFSTED, with continued vision and drive to improve further.
An exciting opportunity has arisen for a qualified Social Worker to join our Adolescent and Child Experienced Team, which supports young people aged 11-18 who are vulnerable to or experiencing Child Sexual/Criminal Exploitation and County Lines. We are committed to being a dynamic and creative Local Authority, working hard to think differently about how we approach our work with young people and families. We are deeply committed to providing tailored high-quality services and well thought out interventions to families to keep young people safe. Our practice is values-driven with a strong ethos of child-focussed interventions.
About the role:
You will work in partnership with an enthusiastic team consisting of a Team Manager, Deputy Team Managers, Senior Social Worker Practitioner, qualified professional Social Workers, Child Exploitation Practitioner and Administrative staff.
This rewarding role will see you responding to, co-ordinating and delivering a range of social care services to children, young people and families in the Bath and North East Somerset. The role primarily relates to supporting young people who are experiencing extra-familial harm and a key part of our work involves building intensive relationships with young people and working in partnership with their families. We take a contextual approach to safeguarding and have well-established partnerships with agencies across health, education, support services and adult services to ensure we can respond as effectively as possible to the needs of children, young people, and their families. The role will include undertaking single assessments and section 47 child protection investigations. We work closely with our colleagues across the service.
The post holder will manage their own caseload, which will include children, young people and families with complex needs. You will be able to evidence a strong ability to analyse information and formulate outcome focused plans for children and families. Applicants must be confident in writing professional assessments/reports as well as presenting their evidence verbally. Applicants need to have very strong organisational skills to manage and prioritise their work effectively and in a timely way and will be committed to working as part of a team to support colleagues in delivering optimum services to children and families.
About You:
We are seeking applications from workers who have relevant experience and a specific interest in this area of work and are looking to enhance and further develop their skills and contribute to service development for vulnerable children.
You can expect:
* A comprehensive induction
* Managed caseload: supporting children in need, children subject to child protection plans, and children protected through legal proceedings. Caseloads are significantly lower than in other frontline teams to enable a model of working that focuses on being able to build strong relationships with children and young people.
* Regular supervision at a minimum of monthly one to one
* Weekly group reflective supervision to promote thoughtful and creative practice, supported by your peers and managers
* Monthly Peer Circles to ensure strong relationships and support between Social Workers across the teams, and opportunities to share good practice
* Extensive training opportunities, which include SARI workshops around culturally sensitive practice, opportunities to join a 6-month long training in Systemic Practice delivered by the Centre for Systemic Social Work, attachment-based workshops, and trauma-informed workshops
* Excellent administrative support staff supporting the team
* Tri-annual Social Work Conferences with guest speakers who are experts in the field. Examples of previous conferences have included Donald Forrester, Brid Featherstone, Rebecca Carr-Hopkins, ‘Annie; from Surviving Safeguarding, and Dr Karen Treisman
* Strong ASYE programme, with peer group meetings, regular workshops and training, and a protected caseload
* Paid Social Work England membership renewals
* Access to Research in Practice
* Laptops and iPhones to promote flexible working, to enhance your work-life balance
* Relocation Payments are available
* A stable leadership team
* A stable and committed team, with very low rates of agency workers, and low vacancy rates
* Good practice to be recognised and celebrated through a quarterly newsletter
To apply you will have:
* A relevant social work qualification
* Knowledge of the legislative framework and legal proceedings that governs children’s services
* Knowledge of theory and practice applicable to social work
* IT skills to enable operation of standard electronic systems
* Passion, commitment, and motivation to support the most vulnerable families in our area
If you are interested in this post and require more details or just to chat through the role and what’s involved, please contact Clare Luxton, Team Manager on 01225 395678 or email clare_luxton@bathnes.gov.uk
Interview date: TBC
No agencies please.
About Bath & North East Somerset Council.
Working at Bath & North East Somerset provides an opportunity to contribute to your community and make a positive impact on the lives of residents. Our values shape how we work to deliver public services, and how we communicate with the residents we serve. We care about the best outcomes for local people, through our public services.
Why Bath & North East Somerset Council?
We offer a wide range of benefits, to ensure that you are paid fairly for your work, have the flexibility to enjoy a great work/life balance, and have the support you need. Go to https://jobsandcareers.bathnes.gov.uk/why-work-us/our-benefits
At Bath & North East Somerset Council we have one overriding purpose to improve peoples live. Find out more about our values at https://jobsandcareers.bathnes.gov.uk/why-work-us/our-values
We aspire to have a diverse and inclusive workplace and strongly encourage suitably qualified applicants from a wide range of backgrounds to apply and join us. Find out more on our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion at https://beta.bathnes.gov.uk/equality-and-diversity
We are a Disability Confident Employer find out more at https://shorturl.at/ajrsW
The Council is committed to having a diverse and inclusive workforce. Applications for job-share, part-time and flexible working arrangements are welcomed and will be considered in line with business needs.
Please note that this role is subject to an Enhanced DBS Check.
Safeguarding Statement: The Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable groups and expects all employees and volunteers to share this commitment. As part of this commitment anyone working in a post with children or vulnerable groups will be expected to undertake an Enhanced DBS check with/without barred list checks.