Senior Practitioner WCC615997

Job Details:

Salary range: £53,109 - £56,151 per annum 
Work location: 4 Frampton Street, London, London NW8 8LF
Hours per week: 36
Contract type:  Permanent
Vetting requirements: Enhanced DBS Check  
Closing date: 6 May 2024
Interview date: 15 and 16 May 2024
Contact details for an Informal Discussion: Rachel Pullen, Deputy Service Manager (Social Work) RPULLEN@WESTMINSTER.GOV.UK

About Us:

THE EXTRAORDINARY STORY OF EMPOWERED FAMILIES

Children’s Services at Westminster City Council is a world of extraordinary stories where compassionate people bring everything to their work, including their own experiences of parenting.

Take Melissa, a Senior Social Worker in our Assessment Team. She’s one of the first people families meet when accessing our services, so building rapport is critical. And that’s where Melissa’s life experience really counts. She had her first child as a young adult and knows just how judgemental others can be. 

Melissa has something unique to offer and it can’t be found in a textbook: her own experience of raising two children as a single parent. She’s committed to empowering others: giving them the skills, resources and confidence they need, from housing support to baby supplies. And if the family has older kids? Well, she’s been there too. Her youngest is now 15 and Melissa knows the challenges of helping young people navigate inner-city life.

Melissa first learnt her craft as a support worker, then completed her statutory training as social worker – all while raising her family single-handed. And she’s not done yet. Supported by her managers, she’s been training in systemic therapy and is already looking forward to her next development opportunity.  

Melissa’s more than a social worker; she’s a shining example to the families she works with every day.
 

The Role:

As a Senior Practitioner in our North West Locality Team, you can make your own powerful contribution to the lives of vulnerable children and their families.  As well as supporting managers in shaping the development of policy and strategy, you will be responsible for the day-to-day delivery of child protection and statutory safeguarding and care services. Supported by 20 other staff in total, including a systemic therapist, you will also work closely with multi-agency partners to ensure that we collaborate closely on child safety.

Although you will manage your own caseload of complex and challenging work, you will also act as a mentor and supervisor to other staff, helping them to strengthen the resilience of the families they support. We strive to create a diverse, inclusive and supportive environment where practitioners have the space to reflect on their moral purpose, be creative, be innovative, practise self-care and make a difference.  Learning and professional development is high on our agenda, so your focus on coaching and mentoring will be highly valued.
 

Please refer to the Job Description for more information.

About You:

We’ll expect you to demonstrate a high level of professional autonomy and authority. You’ll therefore be a qualified and registered social worker with extensive experience of children and families' work, and a good knowledge of systemic practice in relation to both supervision and direct work with families.  Knowledge of the Children Act and safeguarding issues is vital, as is experience of working under the Crime and Disorder Act in relation to preventing offending and reoffending by children and young people.

You’ll be capable of managing a complex workload to balance organisational and service-led demands. This will include the capacity to lead and inspire others, as well as the ability to collaborate with partners including CAMHS, systemic therapists, adult services, housing and schools. Excellent communication and presentation skills are vital.

The Council is committed to achieving diverse shortlists to support our desire to increase the number of staff from underrepresented groups in our workforce. We especially encourage applications from a global majority background and, while the role is open to all applicants, we will utilise the positive action provisions of the Equality Act 2010 to appoint a candidate from a global majority background where there is a choice between two candidates of equal merit. If you are from a Global Majority background, you can self-declare this to the hiring manager as part of our positive action commitments.

What We Offer:

Westminster is an amazing place. We are home to more than 200,000 residents from all backgrounds, over 50,000 vibrant and vital businesses and three-quarters-of-a-million people work in Westminster. Westminster City Council’s strategy is to work towards a Fairer Westminster. A Fairer Westminster is one in which our communities are at the heart of our decision-making and help to determine the city’s future. By working directly with our communities and other partners, we can build a more inclusive city that celebrates our diverse communities, and where residents, workers and visitors from all backgrounds will feel welcome and safe.

At Westminster City Council, we pride ourselves on being an inclusive workplace and employer of choice. We encourage and welcome applications from people from all backgrounds and aim to have a workforce that, at all levels, represents the communities we serve. We champion equality, diversity, inclusion and wellbeing and aim to create a workplace where everyone feels valued, has a sense of belonging and is empowered to be their best, that is the Westminster Way. To find out more about how we do this visit  https://www.westminster.gov.uk/health-and-social-care/public-health-strategy-policies-and-reports/equality-duties

As a forward-thinking Council we appreciate that people work in different ways, therefore our staff benefit from working a range of flexible working patterns as well as Agile working.

The Council is a Disability Confident Employer. If you have declared a disability in your application, we guarantee an interview if you meet the essential criteria of the job. If you are invited for interview, you will be asked if you need any reasonable adjustments in order to attend, and we will make these wherever possible.