Best Interest Assessor – Senior Social Worker

We are currently recruiting a full time Best Interest Assessor/Senior Social Worker to join our Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards Team based within Adult Social Care. Working in collaboration with the Team Manager and other senior colleagues, the successful candidate will be required to manage the day-to-day delivery of the DoLS Service to Medway residents who are currently in hospital, nursing, or residential care.

You will be required to practice as a Best Interests Assessor to support Medway Council as a Supervisory Body to fulfil its statutory duties in relation to the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards, as prescribed by the Mental Capacity Act 2005 & Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards 2007 Codes of Practice, and in line with relevant guidance. You will also need to maintain an awareness of changes in theories, legislation, and Medway Council policies, local and agency practices, in order to disseminate knowledge and contribute to the delivery of a high standard DoLS service.

The successful candidate will need to develop and maintain a high level of skill, expertise and up-to-date knowledge of relevant legislation, policy and good practice in order to provide support and advice to others in relation to statutory interventions. They will need to work alongside Medway DOLS team colleagues and support other ASC staff with complex cases, providing both co-working and support and advice.

You will be required to undertake the triaging and authorisation of DoLS assessments, applying due professional care and consideration to ensure these are in line with statutory guidance and other relevant protocols. You will also be required to initiate and develop effective partnerships and joint working arrangements with other professionals and agencies, in order to ensure the comprehensive assessment of need, and the planning and delivery of appropriate services.

The successful candidate will need to support the development of knowledge and skills across Medway Adult Social Care in relation to Mental Capacity work and support the development of internal procedures and policies in order to enhance professional knowledge and development to impact upon the overall quality of practice.

You will be required to work autonomously within the role, demonstrating expert and effective practice in complex situations managing higher levels of risk.

In return we offer you:

• Generous annual leave entitlement
• Generous local government pension scheme package
• Access to wider training and development qualifications
• Flexible working scheme
• Travel plan discounts
• Car Benefit Scheme from Tusker
• Access to CAREFIRST advice & counselling service
• Employee discount scheme for national and local retailers
• The Government has introduced new ways of supporting parents with childcare costs. Further details are available here: - https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/

We're committed to making Medway carbon neutral by 2050. We have developed an action plan to ensure we play our part in addressing the climate emergency.  Our declaration fits into our http://www.mindfulemployer.net/ for information on how Medway Council put good practices in place to ensure employees and job applicants who declare mental health issues receive the right level of support.

We reserve the right to close this vacancy at any time prior to the closing date.