Social Work Assistant

Posted 12th Sep, 2024
Location
Bexley
Salary/rate
£27,855 – £29,139
Hours
Full-time
Working arrangements
Blended
Contract type
Permanent
Closing date
25th Sep, 2024
About the role

Main purpose of the job: 

  • This role is responsible for providing practical support for clients
  • This includes co-ordinating aspects of care packages, recognising where social work input is required and supporting clients to make informed decisions.
  • To be involved in the process of Care Management under the overall responsibility of the Team Manager and other colleagues.
  • To work to provide a sensitive, responsive and appropriate response to individual service users and their carers.

Major Duties and Responsibilities:       

  • Carry case Responsibility for children, young people and their families; provide advice, support and co –ordinate support packages as set out in care plan; contribute to assessments of social worker(s) responsible for cases.
  • Arrange or provide transport / escort for service users e.g. to health appointments, education: provide practical support to families and to young people formerly looked after by the Authority seeking to live independently in the community.
  • Undertake tasks to support case-holding social – workers including work with looked after children and those on the child protection register. 
  • Work with children and young people, families, carers and communities to help them make informed decisions, enabling them to clarify and express their needs and contribute to service planning.
  • Liaise with colleagues in own and other departments and external agencies in order to gather information relevant to assessment and care planning activities,
  • Maintain and update case notes and other records; write reports and give evidence in court on factual matters if required.  

Job Activities: 

  • Assisting Senior Social Workers / Social Workers in the process of assessment for those service users with complex needs.
  • Undertaking assessments where needs are clearly defined and arrange appropriate Care Plans.
  • Participating in the Child Care Duty system under the overall supervision of Duty Senior and to refer onto alternative sources of advice or assistance.
  • Participating in the process of implementation, monitoring and review, within Divisional guidelines, of Care
  • Plans and initiate appropriate action as required.
  • Operating within Directorate stated Principles, Polices and Guidelines including Equal Opportunities, Health and Safety and the Complaints Procedure.
  • Participating in the development and implementation of group work
  • Maintaining records, undertake reports in accordance with directorate policy and practice.
  • Working flexible hours in order to meet the needs of service users and carers.
  • To undertake any other duties appropriate to the post as may be required.

For an informal discussion about the role please contact Olaide Ajala, Assistant Team Manager, olaide.ajala@bexley.gov.uk

About you

Educated to a good standard in the English language verbal and written.

 

Relevant qualification eg child care/health and social care/youth work (SWA Pioneer role) commit to undertake training in Collaborative Problem Solving methods.

 

For the full list of essential and desirable criteria for this role then please refer to the Person Specification within the Job Description.

 

Appointment to this post will be subject to the outcome of an Enhanced Disclosure obtained through the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS)

 

This authority is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.

 

This post is considered by the authority to be a customer-facing position; as such it falls within scope of the Code of Practice on English language requirement for public sector workers. The council therefore has a statutory duty under Part 7 of the Immigration Act 2016 to ensure that post holders have a command of spoken English sufficient for the effective performance of the job requirements. The appropriate standards are set out in the JD/Person Specification. These will be applied during the recruitment/selection and probationary stages.

Additional Information

Anticipated Interview Date: Week beginning 30th September 2024

As a disability confident employer Bexley welcomes applications from people with all disabilities, including hidden disabilities and mental health conditions. We will interview any disabled applicant who meets the minimum criteria. If you require reasonable adjustments to be made to any part of the recruitment process due to your disability, please contact us on  recruitment@bexley.gov.uk

About Bexley

Bexley is well connected, there are good transport links to central London, the Kent countryside and the Coast! It is the best of both worlds. Our residents and workers can benefit from the new high-speed Elizabeth Line which goes from Abbey Wood, here in Bexley and all the way to Reading, Southeast England.

We are a diverse and growing borough. By 2030 our population will be over 260,000 and almost 300,000 by 2050. Almost 25% of our population is Black and Asian Multi-Ethnic. Bexley is one of London’s greenest boroughs and has recently been awarded Public Sector Campaign of the year by Sustainable City’s prestigious annual awards.

Our Approach to Children’s Social Care in Bexley

We believe that everyone in Bexley Children’s Social Care should have the opportunity to grow and develop, in every role and at every stage of their career and offer a wide variety of social work roles, both for qualified and unqualified practitioners. Bexley Children’s Social Care offers the opportunity to develop skills and knowledge in different areas of Children’s Services: we offer a comprehensive range of professional development opportunities and are committed to ensuring that Bexley is a welcoming and enjoyable place to work.

The children and families we work with, are always kept at the centre of our practice.  We believe: 

  • children should stay with their families whenever it’s in their best interests and safe to do so

  • where it’s not, we must act quickly through the courts to help children find a safe space 

  • success depends on positive, respectful relationships with families and with each other 

  • working with families is unpredictable, so we have to create a supportive environment for our teams 

  • the most effective practice is based on â€˜showing your working out’ â€“ so that even when things don’t go to plan, the thinking behind decisions is clear and defensible 

Working in social care in Bexley is endlessly rewarding. As well as helping some of the most vulnerable people in our borough, we invest in looking after you and your career. 

We offer excellent benefits, from competitive salaries and generous leave to flexible working and a wealth of health and wellness programmes. 

Our offer:

  • flexible working - including opportunities for hybrid working, job sharing, compressed hours, and career breaks 

  • a comprehensive range of training and professional development opportunities including access to research, group and e-learning, coaching and group supervision for colleagues in all roles and at every stage of their career

  • clear career progression pathways, within a nurturing environment, which allows social work to flourish. From opportunities to undertake social work qualification; our dedicated ASYE Academy; to our Leadership Academy offering bespoke development for our aspiring and existing leaders. There are also opportunities for practitioners to be involved in university research & academic delivery with our partner universities and students.

  • family leave - includes maternity, paternity, adoption and parental leave 

  • mental health and physical wellbeing - including access to our Employee Assistance Programme, help to quit smoking, access to private healthcare, free eye tests and discounted leisure offers 

  • financial wellbeing - excellent pension scheme, charitable giving options 

  • generous annual leave - 25 to 33 days, with the option to purchase extra leave plus an extra bank holiday at Christmas 

  • competitive pay - performance assessments with the opportunity for salary increments and transparent salary scales 

  • transport offers - cycle to work scheme, carpooling, subsidised parking and interest-free season ticket loans 

  • recognition - Thank you messaging to celebrate staff success and sharing of compliments received 

  • professional and personal development - training and workshops to help you thrive and a discount on most Learning and Enterprise College Bexley courses 

  • staff support networks - our networks support and encourage networking between staff with various events throughout the year 

  • employee volunteering - get out of the office and help a local project blossom 

  • MyChoice benefit scheme - your pick of perks from vouchers to car leasing 

  • local authority discount scheme - attraction and theme park discounts and local offers in partnership with KAARP .

We work together in a modern, well-equipped, energising environment that supports team working and collaboration across the service and with partners