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Form of work
SalaryAbout the role:
The role of Senior Advice Worker – Social Work will be the Advice Service specialist and subject expert in social work and kinship care.
You’ll provide 1:1 advice directly to kinship carers on all issues that impact on their caring role. You’ll specialise in providing advice and information to enable kinship carers to navigate the social care system helping them to understand regulations, policy and guidance relating to their caring role and personal situation, and to address challenges they may be facing. This will sometimes involve talking to kinship carers in high crisis.
As subject expert, you’ll provide expert input to the development of written information and resources and the development and delivery of specialist training for kinship carers.
You’ll be one of the key social work subject experts for kinship, providing insight and up to date information on policy updates and contributing to helping to ‘change the system’ for kinship carers in England and Wales.
What you'll be doing:
Respond to all referred enquiries in line with Kinship service framework and standards; this may be both general kinship care enquiries and specialist education enquiries.
Meet response and performance targets as directed.
Maintain appropriate boundaries and effective control of the enquiry to deliver targeted support.
Adapt communication style to respond appropriately to differing needs.
Address all safeguarding concerns in line with policy.
Provide expert, people centred advice, guidance and information to kinship carers about their rights, with significant expertise in social work and children’s services.
Act as subject expert on kinship care and social care as part of Knowledge Board.
What you'll need to demonstrate:
Qualified social worker with relevant social work practice experience in local authority children’s services.
Excellent understanding of the policy and legal framework around kinship care in England and Wales (or with an ability to quickly gain a working understanding of the policy framework in both nations).
An in-depth understanding of the issues facing looked after children.
Experience of giving both telephone and written advice.
Experience of assessing needs of service users with complex financial, legal, benefit and social care needs and providing appropriate advice and information to address.
Role information:
- Location: Home-based (with travel and work in London) or hybrid office-based (Vauxhall)
- Working hours: Full-time - 35 hours/week (flexible, working minimum of 28 hours/week considered)
- Salary: £35,000 per annum pro rata if part-time (plus £3,226 London weighting, if applicable)
- Contract: Permanent
- Benefits: 30 days' annual leave plus bank holidays (pro rata) and pension
To apply:
Please apply by submitting a CV and answering five short questions via our recruitment platform, Be Applied. You will have a maximum of 250 words per answer.
- Give an overview of your social work practice, highlighting areas of experience that make this role a great fit for you.
- What is your understanding of the policy and legal framework around kinship care in England and Wales and how have you applied this in a work setting previously
- Describe the key issues affecting kinship families and how you’d use your experience to assess the needs of service users
- Describe three things which you will bring from your professional practice to an advice context and that will make a positive difference for kinship carers
- Please describe an example of where you have developed content (workshops / podcasts / online copy / factsheets / resources or other) to provide information which increases understanding and knowledge of education systems or processes
The interview process will be one stage online (on Zoom).
Application deadline: 9am on Monday 26 February 2024
Interview date: Monday 4 March 2024 (Zoom)
