Children's Qualified Social Worker - Mainstream Fostering Team

Job IntroductionChildren’s Qualified Social Worker – Mainstream Fostering Team£42,652 - £45,271* per annum (Salaries include market factor where applicable)Children’s Experienced Social Worker – Mainstream Fostering Team £47,362 - £50,339* per annum (Salaries include market factor where applicable)12 month fixed term contract, or when post holder returnsDo you aspire to work for an ‘Outstanding’ Local Authority?And can you peel back the layers... Children and young people are at the heart of all we do. The qualities that are important to them are: Understanding that there are layers to a person, a practitioners ability to see the person as a 'whole' The ability to practice care and kindness Being able to really listen to children and young people - what are their views, hopes, aspirations and worries?The ability to communicate wellOur family are usually the people closest to us, those we care most about. Family life is not just about legal ties – it goes far deeper than that. It concerns our most important biological, social and emotional relationships. We hold the value that children and young people are best cared for by their birth families and extended networks, and this underpins our ‘family first’ ethos. Where this cannot be achieved, we seek to ensure that children and young people’s relationships are maintained in line with their best interests. Birth parents and extended networks are included within the decision-making processes and we provide alternative care which is nurturing and which fosters a sense of belonging.There has never been a more exciting time to join our service: alongside making a difference to the lives of individuals and families, we have adopted exciting new strengths-based approaches and are passionate about delivering continuous service improvement.In this role, you will be part of our innovative and forward thinking Fostering Service. This additional post has been created to allow us to expand on our current success and in recognition that we are an ambitious and aspirational service. We are looking for social workers who share our vision about providing an outstanding level of support to all our foster carers.Our team is very experienced, highly supportive, friendly and passionate about what we do. We work hard but also find time to celebrate achievements and good practice. The Mainstream Team work closely and cooperatively with colleagues within the Family Placement Team, with Social Workers and managers from other Children’s Service, and with Legal Services. The work is interesting, often complex and challenging but is crucial to achieving placement stability and permanence.Our brilliant practitioners are at the heart of our ambitious approach to improve outcomes for children and families in Telford and Wrekin: from tailored in-house training to the West Midlands Teaching Partnership, we ensure that our workforce have access to the best development opportunities.Here at Telford and Wrekin Council, we have been judged to be outstanding overall in terms of effectiveness (the only Authority in the West Midlands with this judgement) for the second time! Here’s just some of the great things Ofsted had to say when they visited us in April 2024:Children and families in Telford and Wrekin continue to experience exceptional social work practice when they are in care and as care leavers.Participation is a real strength and children’s and families’ involvement is threaded throughout service developments.Social workers know their children well and have developed effective relationships with parents.The virtual school is a significant strength in Telford and Wrekin.Care leavers benefit from an extremely comprehensive and generous local offer.Corporate parenting is a strength in Telford and Wrekin.The stability of the experienced workforce creates the perfect environment to benefit children and care leavers. As a result, social workers maintain relationships with children who know them over many years, which contributes to children’s feeling of belonging.Staff enjoy working in an environment where senior leaders are visible, and they feel valued.There has never been a more exciting time to join our service after the recent publication of our Ofsted Inspection!If you think you can meet the challenge and would like to find out more about this role, please see our recruitment web pages or contact by email Team Manager Samantha Beeston samantha.beeston@telford.gov.uk.gov.uk or by calling on 01952 383045.Please click on the links below to view the job description and person specification.At Telford & Wrekin Council, we know that having a diverse workforce is key to providing the best possible services to our community. We celebrate having a diverse and inclusive culture where people are able to be themselves at work, and everyone has a voice.Posts working with children or vulnerable groups will be subject to an appropriate criminal records check. It is an offence to apply for a role that involves engaging in regulated activity with children and adults in vulnerable circumstances if you are barred from working with one or both of these groups. A CV template is available if you do not already have a CV.We value our employees and offer staff rewards and plenty of opportunities for personal development and career progression including:Competitive rates of payAutomatic access to a secure, flexible and tax efficient Local Government Pension SchemeStaff benefits and discounts including salary sacrifice schemesFree on-site parkingGenerous leave entitlement (24 days rising to 32 days) plus 8 bank holidays and an additional concessionary dayFree access to our employee assistance programme and confidential counsellingFlexible and mobile working policy - we are well adapted to a hybrid model of working which includes a combination of time spent in the office and at home – our approach is to promote greater level of flexible working around personal and family commitmentsPrivate lettings are available from ‘Nuplace’ who give priority to social work professional Find out further information about working at Telford & Wrekin Council including our full list of benefits.Please note that Telford & Wrekin Council do not hold a sponsorship licence for visas.