Social Work Educator - Think Ahead

Are you a critically reflective Social Worker, looking to take the next step in your career, and/or wanting to complete a qualification while working?

Cambridgeshire County Council Learning and Development Team is looking for a  Adult Social Work Educator (Think Ahead). You will have extensive experience in Social Work practice and/or have experience of being a Social Work Practice Educator (PEPS 2) and/or ASYE assessor; or willingness to undertake your PEPS qualification. You will understand how professional learning happens in the workplace and the elements of support that can help sustain this. You will need an understanding of project planning and quality assuring of assessment. You will be analytical and have strong communication skills both verbal and written.

We are partnering with Think Ahead - a charity that works with NHS and Local Authorities mental health services to strengthen the contribution of Social Work. We'll be taking on four trainee Social Workers (participants) who will join the organisation in August 2024. This is a great opportunity for an experienced Social Worker to take on the role of Social Work Educator (Think Ahead). You will be leading/identifying case work around mental health so some experience in this area would be desirable.

In this role you will:

• Join a network of leaders across the country promoting and strengthening Social Work.
• Lead and develop four talented participants, who are passionate about mental health and Social Work.
• Develop your skills in practice, supervision, and education.
• Get fully funded CPD training with Middlesex University.

For more information or to chat about this opportunity please contact: Lee.Taylor@cambridgeshire.gov.uk

Appointment to this post will be subject to the outcome of an Enhanced Disclosure obtained through the Disclosure and Barring Service. The Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.

We value our colleagues in Cambridgeshire County Council and have developed a number of benefits:

• Flexible working
• Flexible Bank Holidays
• A comprehensive wellbeing package
• Our Cambs Rewards employee discounts
• A comprehensive pension scheme
• IDEAL staff equality, diversity and inclusion network.
• Camweb our staff intranet helping to keep you informed
• An employee recognition scheme

This is a full-time fixed term position for 14 months (for internal candidates this can also be offered as a secondment opportunity). You will manage a unit of four participants who are placed within one of our Community Adult Teams. You will retain a frontline role, share a service user caseload, and act as their leader and role model.  You will be leading/identifying case work around mental health so some experience in this area would be desirable. You will provide practice education of outstanding quality. You'll work with an academic tutor and assess participants' ability to put Social Work theories, interventions, and legislation into practice. This post will sit within our Adult Learning & Development team working closely with the Team Manager from the community team.

You will join a group of unit leads delivering a prestigious, high-profile initiative across the country (to date, Think Ahead has worked with more than half of NHS Trusts and over a third of Local Authorities). You'll receive CPD training to develop your expertise in evidence-based interventions and leadership skills.

You will be an experienced Social Worker who inspires others and delivers change. You will have a passion and commitment for supporting and developing learners as they begin their Social Work career. You will advocate good practice and allow practitioners to reflect on their practice creating a learning environment which enables them to increase their skills and knowledge as they work with increasingly complex cases.

Cambridgeshire is a great place to work and live with a diverse population, an urban centre in Cambridge, historic Isle of Ely, Huntingdon and St Ives as well as more rural landscapes.

Our four values are central to our culture, driving everything we do.

We are proud to serve the diverse communities of Cambridgeshire and want our workforce to be reflective of this diversity, which we firmly believe benefits our colleagues, the organisation and our communities. If you don't meet every single requirement in the job role but think this could be you, please don't be put off.   We are committed to building a workplace that is compassionate and inclusive as well as diverse, so if you think you could be a good candidate for this role please consider applying and speak to the recruiting manager if you have any questions.

Our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy, along with our employee network 'IDEAL' and self-organised peer support groups help us to foster an inclusive, supportive and safe working environment where people feel valued, respected, and empowered.  We collect relevant diversity data for monitoring as part of the recruitment process to understand the diversity of our applicants and monitor any trends throughout the recruitment processes so that we can take meaningful action.

We are proud to be a Disability Confident Employer. We fully support providing reasonable adjustments throughout our recruitment process, as well as when you join us, and we encourage candidates to contact the Hiring Manager, whose details can be found in the advert, to discuss any adjustment needs. Some examples of adjustments could include additional time to complete an assessment or printing a document on pastel coloured paper with larger font size and line spacing. We would value talking about what might be possible to enable you to join us and thrive, so if there is something that would help you to do your best during your journey with us, please get in touch.

Visit our jobs and careers section to find out more about our wide range of learning and development opportunities; apprenticeships; our wellbeing package; staff benefits; our commitment to equality, diversity and Inclusion. 

https://www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/council/jobs-and-careers