Social Worker or Advanced Social Worker - Family Safeguarding

About the Job

Salary: £42,003 - £54,533 (inclusive of market supplement)
Contract: Permanent
Working Pattern: Full time, hybrid working 37 hours per week
Location: Durban House, Bognor Regis / County Hall, Chichester with countywide travel

"In West Team, you have a voice that is listened to and a management team that understand the saying 'one size fits all' doesn't always work with the children and family's we are working with. Management allows you to think outside the box, be creative and come up with ideas that help better support the family and children that we support and protect." - Jade, Social Worker with Family Safeguarding West Team.

Joining the Family Safeguarding team in Chichester or Bognor Regis, you will be undertaking meaningful evidence-based interventions that contribute to improved levels of engagement and safeguarding with parents and children. All of our staff are trained on the new Family Safeguarding model and motivational interviewing.

We are looking for passionate, motivated, and resilient social workers who are excited by a new way of delivering support to children and families to enable lasting change. You will have specialist knowledge of social work practice and expertise to take the lead in complex situations, with the support of our fantastic small practice teams. You will work within a positive, nurturing environment where successes are celebrated and individuals within the team are supported to grow and develop.

For further information about us and about working in Children's Social Care at West Sussex County Council, please visit Careers in children's social work in West Sussex.

How We Support You

"My managers have provided me with great support with case work, personal learning and when any personal circumstances have come up…I would thoroughly recommend being a social worker in West, it is a supportive and rewarding environment to be part of." - George, Social Worker with Family Safeguarding West Team.

At West Sussex County Council we recognise that it is our employees that are central to everything we do. We aim to create a supportive and dynamic working environment where you can achieve your full potential, gain a healthy work-life balance, and are rewarded for the work you do with clear pathways to achieve your future aspirations. A few examples of these include:

• Flexible and hybrid working options within your small practice teams, managed by a Team Manager and supported by Child & Family Workers as well as additional flexible administrative support from Coordinators embedded within the service.
• Regular group supervision and peer learning alongside specialist roles within the team to focus on the most vulnerable children.
• We pay your Social Worker England registration fee.
• Excellent learning and development provisions with 5 CPD and training days per year and access to Research in Practice and Community Care Inform.
• An excellent local government pension scheme
• Generous holiday entitlement of up to 29 days (plus opportunity to buy additional leave)
• Health and wellbeing benefits including access to our Employee Assistance Programme, Mental Health First Aiders and Voluntary Health Cash Plans.

• For a full list this can be found at our Rewards and Benefits page.

About You

Just some of the skills and experience you will need include:

• Analyse and interpret complex information and data, being able to prioritise needs and devise plans for intervention and provision.
• Proactively work as a member of the team to make accurate assessments of needs and negotiate and implement effective outcomes.
• Develop strong relationships, working alongside carers, colleagues and external agencies to deliver an effective service.
• Communicate clearly and effectively in both written and oral format, including the ability to explain complicated information to a variety of people and use negotiation and persuasion skills to encourage others to adopt a course of action they may not wish to take.

• A recognised Social Work qualification e.g. Degree in Social Work, Post Graduate Certificate in Social Work, DipSW, CQSW or equivalent as recognised by the relevant professional body.
• Completion of relevant post qualifying training.
• Registration with the relevant professional registration body and maintaining registration with that body.
• You will need to be able to travel independently around the county, including to areas that may not be easily accessible by public transport. Pool cars are available.

For a full list of key skills and experience please refer to the job description attached.

Further Information

The reference number for this role is CAFHE05719.

To apply, please follow the links below to upload your CV and application form . In your application form please outline your motivations for applying and explaining the skills and experience you can bring to the role (please refer to the key skills) ensuring that any gaps in employment are covered in your CV. Please ensure you have saved the job description attached to the main advert on our website as, once the job has closed, you may not have the opportunity to download again.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. This post is subject to Social Work England registration, an enhanced DBS check, 5 years referencing and a health check.

Equity, inclusion and accessibility is very important to West Sussex County Council. We welcome and encourage applications from everyone, as this helps us build a diverse and talented workforce, that reflects the communities we serve. We ensure our approach to recruitment is flexible and supportive to enable all applicants to be at their best and to ensure they have the best possible chance of success.

We operate a guaranteed interview scheme for applicants that have a disability, are a veteran or are a care leaver. More information can be found on our application help page.