Mid & East Devon Experienced Social Worker (Ref.3450)
- Devon
- Full Time
- £35,411 - £42,503 per annum
Are you an experienced social worker looking for a new challenge? Are you passionate about making a real difference to the lives of each family you work with? Would you like to be part of a team of like-minded people who are committed to working at their best every day? Then we would love to hear from you!
We’re seeking experienced social workers to support our children and young people in Mid and East Devon. This is a fantastic opportunity to build meaningful and positive relationships with children, young people, and families; working closely with them to achieve positive outcomes that are family led, built on strengths, and achieve safety and stability keeping them safe through their childhood and beyond. By working closely with children and families with a family-led and strengths-based approach, we can achieve positive outcomes for our children and offer a rewarding career for you.
If you’re looking to move to Devon, subject to qualifying conditions, we offer a relocation allowance of up to £8,000. There’s never been a better time to make the move!
About our Teams
Our Children and Families teams are responsible for managing child-in-need and child protection cases as well as cases in legal proceedings and looked after children. The casework is varied, and you will be working creatively to promote positive change within the home environment. Our Mid and East Devon teams of Social Workers, ASYE’s and Family Practitioners are managed and supported by Team Managers and Assistant Team Managers.
Our Initial Response team is responsible for carrying out Child and Family Assessments and, when necessary, section 47 Child Protection enquiries to decide whether a child is in need of support from our Children and Families teams, requires protection or should be taken into care. Our team of Social Workers, ASYE’s and Family Practitioners are managed and supported by our Team Manager and Assistant Team Managers.
Experienced Social Workers handle more complex children’s plans, and you will confidently carry out your duties to safeguard the wellbeing of Devon’s children. You may even support colleagues at the early stages of their social work career. Whether you’re interested in going into management or staying in frontline practice as an Advanced Social Worker, we will support you.
To find out more about working and living in Mid and East Devon, please view the attached Fact Sheet.
About us
We are on an exciting and ambitious journey of cultural change to embed restorative and relational ways of working. We believe that for the vast majority of families, the family home is the best place by far for children to live, with local, place-based support that includes help and support at the earliest opportunity from us and our partners. By making key changes and improvements, we have made sure that our social workers have access to better tools and technology: from mobile phones and laptops, to risk assessment training and care planning resources. Together, we've worked hard to get to know individual children better - understanding who they are and their needs, so we can implement appropriate interventions. By ensuring families have the necessary support, we can prevent concerns from escalating. We’re really proud of our workforce, and what has been achieved for children and families in Devon. Our social work teams are committed to providing the best service possible and are supported by our ambitious culture. We are keen to learn, grow and improve and we’re looking for people who share our values to join us.
For more information on working with us here in Devon, please visit ‘Working for Devon’ and Working in Childrens Social Care.
About you
You will be an advocate for the children and young people you are working with, ensuring each child has an active, up-to-date plan, and young people are supported as they transition to adulthood. You will need to have:
- a social work qualification and registered with Social Work England
- satisfactorily completed your Assessed and Supported Year in Employment (ASYE)
- experience working within social care, including working in a multi-agency and court environment
- a high-level of written and verbal communication skills*
- the ability to build effective professional relationships with children, families, and other professionals
- knowledge and understanding of the legislation, models, and theories relevant to children’s social work
- exceptional recording and planning skills
- a valid UK driving licence and access to a car*
If your experience as a social worker is within another sector (such as Adult Social Care), we can support you to transition into children and families social work through our six-month development programme, supported by our Social Work Academy!
* Exceptions may apply under the Equality Act
What we can offer you
As a place to live and work, Devon is hard to beat. We want you to grow and develop with us. In recognition of the vital contribution you will make, we offer an attractive package including:
- Ongoing learning and development opportunities through our Social Work Academy with dedicated support from our Restorative Practice Leads, as well as Research in Practice membership and full access to Devon Children and Families Safeguarding training programme.
- Dedicated support with regular supervision from line management so you can critically reflect on your practice on a regular basis. Group supervisions are also offered, allowing you to learn from your colleagues and grow the strength of your social work practice together.
- Continuing Professional Development Days in line with your personal Learning and Development Plan.
- Clear career pathway aligned to the BASW Professional Capability Framework (PCF) for Social Workers. Secondments and opportunities are also available to help you progress in your career.
- 25 days paid annual leave per year, rising to 30 days with 5 years’ continuous service, plus bank holidays.
- Up to £2,000 retention payment per year, paid in two 6 monthly instalments for those who have been working as a Social Worker in either Permanency & Transition, Children & Families, Initial Response and Disabled Childrens Service for a period of 6 months (pro rata for part time employees).
- Paid Professional Re-registration Fees.
- Relocation allowance of up to £8,000 (T&Cs apply).
- Access to our confidential Devon Wellbeing Hub and Employee Assistance Programme to support you to balance the demands of everyday life – available 24/7.
- Flexible working opportunities, including flexi-time and a degree of remote working (subject to the needs of the role - please discuss at interview).
- Excellent Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS).
- Links to staff networks and forums such as our LGBTQ+, BAME and Staff Diversity support networks.
- Cycle to Work Scheme.
- Devon Discounts Scheme which offers a variety of great savings.
To start your journey with DCC, click ‘Apply’ today! You will find a link attached to our Job Description. To arrange an informal discussion, please email CSWrecruitment@devon.gov.uk.