Senior Practitioner - Family Support Team

Senior Practitioner - Family Support Team

Salary: £45,441 - £49,498 + £4k market Supplement (all will be pro-rota depending on hours worked)

Location: Civic Office

Contract Details: Permanent full time

Job Introduction

Joining a service where all senior and frontline managers are in permanent positions and our entire workforce is made up of less than 10% agency is something we are proud of. Our collaboration and no blame culture has created this stable workforce. We are one service, all dedicated and willing to go the extra mile to do all we can to keep children and their families together.  

We appreciate our Senior Practitioners as they play a key role where they mentor, coach and supervise our aspiring social workers whilst still providing support to some of the most vulnerable children and young people of Milton Keynes. It will be down to your expert knowledge and skills which will make you best placed to assess and manage high levels of risk, be solution focused in your approach to put effective safety plans in place. Here at Milton Keynes City Council, we invest in specialist assessments and therapeutic interventions to identify and address the root causes of the challenges families may be facing. You will have these resources at your fingertips to be able to create the best possible plans. 

Flexible working arrangements, a smart phone, laptop, clinical supervision, senior management training & development opportunities and we offer a £4000 market supplement (pro rata) are a few of the benefits you will have access to when you work with us as a Senior Practitioner. 

Role Responsibilities

• Being a Senior Social Worker to a maximum of 18 children and young people who are subject to Child In Need, Child Protection and/or Child Looked After plans as defined in the Children Act 1989.  
• To complete a range of assessments which will inform care plans, including Children and Families Assessments, Risk Assessments, Parenting Assessments and Sibling Assessments.  
• Represent the Local Authority in public and private law proceedings which will involve giving oral evidence court, writing court statements, care plans and complying with the directions as set out in court orders.  
• Chair Child In Need, Core Group, Professionals & Strategy Meetings as part of a multi-disciplinary team which will inform assessments and care plans for children and young people.  
• Work closely with colleagues to fulfil duty responsibilities as advised by the Team Manager during office hours.   
• As a Senior Practitioner you will offer support and supervision to colleagues within your team and wider FST’s to effectively respond to crisis situations. 
• Contribute to raising and maintaining standards of professional social work within a social work team, develop areas of specialist practice, offer expert advice and supervision to less experienced staff 
• Delegate on behalf of the Team Manager. 

Ideal Candidate

• A qualified Social Worker (holding a social work degree or equivalent) registered with Social Work England with at least 3 years post qualifying experience. 
• Someone who thinks outside the box, is able to challenge others and make evidenced based decisions.   
• Enthusiastic and committed to building a culture based on excellence and collaboration.
• Someone who can work on their own initiative.
• Someone who has leadership and management skills to support others in developing risk management skills .

If you would like to learn more about this role, please contact: SWrecruitment@milton-keynes.gov.uk or go to our website:  (mkcounciljobs.org.uk)https://www.mkcounciljobs.org.uk/cs-care