As a Senior Practitioner within the Referral and Assessment Team your focus will be on our initial involvement through new referrals, child in need, child protection and initial court proceedings, including; strategy discussions, initial Child Protection Conferences, Child In Need Planning and taking court actions by way of Emergency Protective Orders if required. The other main responsibilities for this role will include:
Supporting children and young people by undertaking child protection investigations alongside safety and contingency planning.
Building strong and respectful working relationships with families, their support network and our partner agencies.
Work on cases with increased complexity, including court work and pre-proceedings experience.
Contribute to team management, deputising for the team leaders and potentially supervising work of an ASYE or students.
Ensuring that children and young people are actively involved in our work and their voice is captured in our case recording.
Actively taking part in reflective supervision and group supervision.
As a Senior Practitioner within the Referral and Assessment Team you will have proven and extensive experience encompassing two main areas, firstly the support and development of peers within the team and secondly the skills and knowledge in working with families. To do this you will need to possess the following qualities:
An effective communicator.
Resilient worker, able to work effectively in a team or on your own, taking ownership and responsibility for the cases you are assigned.
Confident and competent with relevant statutory and regulatory framework and have knowledge of an appropriate range of professional interventions.
Evidence of championing inclusion and diversity whilst making a positive difference to the lives of children and young people.
Solution focused person with the ability to deal with sensitive issues.
Achieving for Children (AfC) is a community interest company (a not-for-profit social enterprise) created in 2014 by the Royal Borough of Kingston and the London Borough of Richmond to provide their children’s services. In 2017, the Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead joined AfC as our third owner.
We deliver the full range of children’s services for the three councils. Achieving for Children is a great place to work for those looking for a new challenge. Our offer to you includes:
A role in an organisation that is supportive
An induction offer that starts before you join and includes a welcome event on your first day of employment.
29 days annual leave, increasing to 33 days after two years and 35 days after four years
Local Government salary and pension scheme (LGPS or Teachers Pension)
Hybrid or mobile working and the technology and equipment to facilitate this
Positions available in three of the most desirable boroughs in the south - discrete relocation packages are available for selected roles
Travel assistance package for business use, including car and cycle mileage reimbursement, annual season ticket loan or business Oyster cards
Two days accredited Signs of Safety Foundation Training
12 protected Development Days each year for all staff
Access to a huge range of additional professional development opportunities as part of our regional Social Work Teaching Partnership
On occasions we are in the position to offer some additional financial payments for particularly hard to place roles in selected service areas of AfC.
If you would like to have an informal chat about working with us, please email recruitment@achievingforchildren.org.uk