Social Worker- Looked After Children

Job Description

L2/L3 Social Worker- In Care and Life Beyond Care Teams

Permanent contract Full and Part time contracts available up to £45,442 (dependant on experience and pro rata for part-time) Countywide

Excellent relocation package up to £10k

"I am Kate Dexter, Assistant Director for Children's Social Care with the lead for Corporate Parenting in Norfolk. We have ambitious plans to shape how we work with families, placing practitioners and relationship-based practice at the heart of what we do. Through Vital Signs, our vision for children and young people in Norfolk, we work with family and natural networks to support families to build on their strengths and to achieve the best possible outcomes.

We believe it is vital that children are prepared and able to learn; build positive, long-term relationships and receive family-based care. Norfolk's social care model is a relationship-based, purposeful approach with social workers practicing in a trauma informed way, incorporating therapeutic approaches within their work with children, young people, their carers and families. Our approach to working with children in Care includes a new specialist service with clinicians and practitioners and a clinical psychologist working to support social care teams in meeting need and improving outcomes for young people Looked After in Norfolk.

I am seeking to recruit a L2 or L3 Social Worker for our in care and life beyond care teams who have a passion and drive for improving outcomes for children and young people for whom we are Corporate Parents. We are looking for a suitable candidate who is able to promote the needs and wellbeing of those young people reaching adulthood as care leavers, focusing on this significant transition and the need to ensure independence skills, suitable accommodation and education, training or employment, lifelong networks and transition planning all whilst upholding our duty to support.

We're looking for a Social Worker ready to take the next step in their career and wanting to make a difference to the children and young people of Norfolk.

With relevant professional vocational qualification in Social Work, you will have registration with Social Work England. You will have experience working within the Corporate Parenting area or transferable skills with the ability to motivate individuals and create high performing teams, you will bring strong leadership skills and will have managed performance during periods of change.

WHO CARES? WE DO. Join us. We're recruiting social workers now at Norfolk County Council. TV AD - YouTube

There couldn't be a better time to join Childrens Services at Norfolk County Council. Ofsted inspected our children services in November 2022 and published their report in January 2023. We are rated Good in all areas, following significant improvements, and the report recognised that we have transformed our children's services.

Read Ofsted's Inspection of Norfolk Children's Services November 2022 report

Key highlights from the latest report:

• Personal advisers and social workers have caseloads which 'enable them to build enduring and effective relationships with their young people and support them into adulthood'.
• Working in Norfolk you will be empowered to be tenacious and creative in using a range of tools and theoretical frameworks to help children through significant and traumatic experiences.
• Relationship-based partnership working is one of our strengths in Norfolk with an innovative system-wide approach to the delivery of services and a diverse range of multi-agency support services focused on building resilience and ensuring that needs are met quickly and at the lowest level.
• Our executive director of children's services (DCS) Sara Tough is an exemplary leader who champions the needs of children and young people with a strong senior management team who together provide continuity of management and strategic direction.

We want our people to be inspired and motivated to work well together, make the most of our workspaces, enjoy a healthy work-life balance, and deliver excellent services to Norfolk and its people. Flexibility is built into the way we work, with hybrid working a key feature for many roles. Our technology platform and equipment are first class, enabling you to connect and collaborate remotely. We ask that you have in place good Broadband connectivity.

Before you apply please see the full job description and person specification in the below link - this will help you to shape your application to demonstrate how you meet the criteria for the role.

Job Description and Personal Specification

Applications will be reviewed once submitted.

In return we will offer you:

• A supportive team who cares about your wellbeing and professional development
• We offer flexible working arrangements including condensed four-day week working, nine-day fortnights and other options
• We offer a generous annual leave entitlement - plus the opportunity to purchase up to two weeks of additional annual leave through our salary sacrifice scheme
• We offer maternity, paternity and adoption pay and time off to support you as your family grows. There is an independently run nursery within the Norfolk County Council grounds which offers priority spaces to our employees
• We offer support if you care for relatives or friends who are older, disabled or seriously ill
• We are committed to promoting the health, safety and wellbeing of our staff. We provide access to services that support your health and wellbeing, such as confidential counselling and advice, fast-track physiotherapy and NHS Health Checks for employees over 40.

We are recruiting experienced social workers to our teams countywide. We'd love to tell you more about being a Social Worker in Norfolk! Please call Deborah our Recruitment Business Partner on or email .

Applications will be reviewed once submitted.

Norfolk is a beautiful county, a real hidden gem with over 90 miles of unspoilt coastline, beautiful countryside, the unique Norfolk Broads, amazing wildlife, picturesque market towns and the fabulous seaside resorts of Hunstanton, Cromer and Great Yarmouth. At the heart is the vibrant city of Norwich with excellent shopping, a vast array of restaurants and a pub for everyday of the year. Travel links are extensive with direct rail links to London and Cambridge and Norwich International Airport with flights to Europe and beyond. Living and working in Norfolk - Norfolk County Council

We are committed to equality and inclusion and welcome applications irrespective of gender identity, disability, marital status, ethnic origin, age, pregnancy status, religion or belief, or sexual orientation. We are proud to have achieved Carer Friendly Employer Status, Disability Confident Leader Status, the Employer Recognition Scheme award for the Armed Forces Covenant and to be one of the authorities piloting the workforce race equality standard (WRES).