Kirklees is on an ambitious journey and we have grown our social work service. We are seeking to recruit an experienced Social Worker to join the Childrens Emergency Duty Team based within the Front Door. The Emergency Duty Service ensures that Kirklees Council can fulfil its statutory duties to provide urgent social care for children and those in need of emergency housing accommodation, outside office hours. Working on a rota, EDS workers give priority to those people at greatest risk and provide social work assessments and emergency help until the next working day when daytime services will take over.

You will assess and prioritise the urgency of a service request and either arrange for an assessment to be undertaken having regard to emergency service priorities, or pass onto day teams the next working day. You will provide reports to daytime services for the next working day. You will have responsibility for prioritising work out of hours to ensure that the most vulnerable are prioritised.

You will be an experienced senior practitioner or equivalent who can work across service areas in an independent manner.

Requirements For The Job

Social Work qualified and SWE registered and successful completion of Senior Practitioner progression process

Significant experience of working with children, young people and their carers

Working knowledge of relevant legislation and ability to apply legislation to practice

Able to transfer knowledge and skills into new situations

IT skills to support accurate and timely case recording

This is an exciting time to be part of this team where we are building our multi -agency team working closely with colleagues in the police, health, education and other key agencies. In addition to this, we have expanded the early help offer in the front door to ensure appropriate outcomes for children and their families are achieved.

Our last Ofsted inspection in July 2019 highlighted our progress stating:

‘progress has been achieved through increased corporate commitment and investment in services, clear and focused leadership, strengthening of partnerships for example the duty and advice team, and improved workforce stability and engagement.

Children who need help and protection are now recognised, and risk of significant harm is quickly responded to. ”

We are not complacent and continue our hard work on our improvement plan to ensure that we offer the best service to children and families in Kirklees.

We are looking for candidates who have the potential to lead and inspire a multi-disciplinary team ensuring good quality services to children and families. Candidates will need to demonstrate the ability to work in a fast paced environment as part of a multi- agency team. You will need to demonstrate an ability to foster positive working relationships with a range of different agencies. You will need to be able to work within a quality assurance framework and to provide good quality support and supervision for staff. Above all, you will need sound, consistent decision-making skills under pressure.

Kirklees Front Door has recently been part of a “Sector Led Improvement Front Door Health Check”. The feedback we received based on the findings were positive: “The confidence and enthusiasm in those practitioners who engaged with us shone through and they left us with a strong sense of shared vision and commitment to the children, young people and families in Kirklees. There is great cohesion in the vision, and this is led by strategic leaders but understood by all including partners. The partner relationship is a real strength, they understand fully the governance system; partners are fully engaged and there is great trust in the partnership arrangements. We got a clear sense of good morale and that people felt supported and valued with workers reporting they felt “cared about”.

Our Offer to You

“Senior managers have successfully recruited and retained social workers……. Kirklees Council nurtures and develops its new social work staff.” (Ofsted 2019)

Childrens social work in Kirklees is underpinned by a culture of restorative practice with high quality relationships at the heart of our approach. We will ensure that you have high-quality professional development and receive high standards of induction, supervision and management.

We have a bespoke learning and development offer at all levels of social work allowing you access to professional development opportunities enabling you to develop and progress your career. Our well-established career structure also supports us to develop our own managers and leaders.

We will provide you with a comprehensive induction programme, dedicated supervision, and a range of comprehensive Continuous Professional Development opportunities.

You must hold a recognised Social Work Qualification and be registered with Social Work England.

An enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check is required for this job. Please note that a conviction may not exclude candidates from appointment but will be considered as part of the recruitment process.

If you wish to discuss this opportunity with Service Manager Theresa Racz or Team Manager Sarah Goodall on 01484 221000

In order to be shortlisted for this job please demonstrate how you meet the Person Checklist as detailed on the attached Job Profile - this information needs to be inserted under the 'Relevant skills, experience and behaviours' section on the Application Form.