Children's Social Worker (Safeguarding & Family Support Service)

The Role

Are you passionate about making a positive difference in children's lives in Southwark?

If yes, we have the perfect role for you!

We are looking to recruit social workers for our Safeguarding & Family Support Service and help play a key role in ensuring children in Southwark are safe and happy at home. If you're a qualified social worker with a passion for empowering children and families, we want to hear from you!

This role is full time, 36 hours per week .

About us:

Our Children's Services is dedicated to providing outstanding support to vulnerable children and families in Southwark. Our systemically-informed, relationship-based approach prioritises the needs of each child, working purposefully with families to manage risk, promote positive outcomes, and create lasting change.

Our most recent Ofsted inspection was graded as ‘good’ in all areas. The children in our care said we are a “special council and are like a family to them”.

About the team:

You will be joining a friendly team of dedicated professionals who share your passion for positive outcomes for children and families.

We want you to thrive in your role whilst being supported through regular one to one and group supervisions alongside having access to key development and training opportunities to grow as a social worker.

About the role:

We aspire to keep your caseloads manageable, allowing you to dedicate your full attention to the children and families who need it most. As a Social Worker or Senior Social Worker, you will:

• Build positive relationships and work directly with children, their families and partner agencies – all under the guidance of our experienced Team Managers.
• Run child in need and child protection plans, tailored to each child's unique needs and be the driving force behind positive change.
• Experience of CP, CIN and Court work.

For more information, please see the Job Description and Person Specification located at the bottom of the advert.

About you:

• Current registration with Social Work England and a recognised social work qualification
• Have passed your ASYE year
• Ability to build positive relationships
• Have knowledge of childcare legislation, child development, and risk/protective factors
• Experience in direct social work interventions, investigations, assessments, and care planning
• Ability to produce high-quality reports and manage complex information
• Strong communication, analytical, and decision-making skills
• Commitment to anti-discriminatory practices and promoting equality

How we can support you:

We have a diverse range of training courses, practitioners and teams to help support you so you can provide the best outcomes. We have Family Support Workers, a Keeping Families Together team, a Parenting Assessment Team that conducts specialised court assessments and a SWIFT / clinical service that specialises in delivering intensive therapeutic services to families.

We also have Practice Group Coordinators offer administrative support, including providing training on our database.

Pay and rewards:

In return for all your hard work, skills and experience, you will receive:

• A competitive base salary
• For roles in our Assessment & Intervention and Safeguarding & Family Support teams, we are offering for a time limited period a Welcome Payment of £2,500 for joining Southwark (£1,250 when you start and £1,250 after you pass your probation), followed by a retention payment of £3,000 per year for your first two years, and £4,000 after three years.
• Strong supportive senior management team
• Regular one to one supervision
• Professional development & training opportunities
• Clear career development pathways
• Agile and flexible working arrangements

Contact details:

• If you would like an informal conversation about this role, please contact Antoinette Johnson via email at [email protected]

Benefits and more information:

In your role, we want you to feel supported, challenged and rewarded. You will benefit from our family-friendly policies including flexible working, home working, and a local government pension scheme, plus many other staff benefits. You will join a motivated, driven and supportive team that strives for excellence and values its members. You will also be part of a successful and high-achieving development team that is making a real difference to the lives of residents in the borough. For more information about the wide variety of benefits you can take advantage of please visit our Staff Benefits page.

Recruitment Timetable

• Advert close date: We will be reviewing applications on a weekly basis
• Interview date/s: we have weekly interview slots available.

Guaranteed Interview Scheme:

As part of our commitment to inclusion, we offer guaranteed interviews for specific groups of people. To qualify, you'll need to meet the minimum requirements for the role, and identify with one of the below criteria:

• Members of the Armed Forces and veterans
• Are currently in care, or have previously been in care
• If you consider yourself to be disabled or if you have a long-term health condition

We are an organisation who is passionate about our people and understands that richness of diversity is a requirement to provide the best possible services to our communities. This is demonstrated through our council-wide ambitious commitment to tackle racial inequality in our communities and workforce through our Southwark Stands Together programme . We particularly welcome applications from members of the Black, Asian and ethnic minority communities to increase representation at senior management level in the Council.