Social work jobs Social Worker

Fantastic opportunities have arisen for Social Work Practitioners here at Hemsworth and Featherstone.

Working with the permanent senior management team and ever increasing permanent workforce  social work in Wakefield is thriving.

Here at Wakefield we are looking for dynamic, enthusiastic and committed Social Workers to work with our children and their families in our Children’s Locality Teams based at Hemsworth.

We are dedicated to providing our Social Workers with a positive working environment, where they feel safe and supported. We are committed to staff development and progression.

Our caseloads have continued at manageable levels during the last twelve months, either remaining the same or reducing.

The DFE have given us excellent feedback around strong partnership working, significant change in culture and leadership and a culture of learning. The published Ofsted focus visit letter from November identified significant improvements, including a stabilised workforce and improved quality of practice in all areas.

What do some of our Social Workers say about working for Wakefield?

‘I have been impressed with how much room for career progression there is in the authority… the support I have received from my team has been amazing. I have a great team manager and supportive team… morale is good within the teams’.

‘I love working for Wakefield.... I have felt immense support from my team, my manager and service manager… I feel that there is lots of support and team spirit in Wakefield and it has been an excellent authority to work for’.

‘I have completed a wealth of training which has developed my knowledge and understanding of my role and responsibilities.  The learning academy also provides me with a positive ongoing learning environment’

So why choose Wakefield locality teams?

Here at Wakefield we know we are improving and are now some way into our improvement journey. We know this because:

• We have strong and supportive teams with effective leadership. We have permanent managers who are committed to promoting your development.
• We provide regular and reflective supervision to enable you to manage your caseload effectively and develop in your practice.
• Manageable caseloads – we strive to keep your caseload below 20 – and have measures in place to make sure it stays that way.
• We offer competitive pay rates with market supplements for every case holding social worker
• We have an innovative in-house Learning Academy, which will provide you with high quality and relevant training and development opportunities.
• We promote career progression to enable you to grow with us.
• We care about our workers and staff morale is good.

This gives us scope to be creative about how we want to shape our service. We have clear direction of where we want to be and we want you to be a part of this journey.

Who are we looking for?

Here we’re looking for only the best social workers – those with the skills, motivation, and passion to help us move forwards. But you also need to be:

• A qualified social worker with a range of experience and expertise; able to carry out the role and responsibilities of a key worker, for a caseload which will include complex and statutory work.
• Be responsible for analysing information to support the ongoing needs of children, young people, and their families and carers.
• An individual who can develop and maintain highly effective relationships with children and young people, families, colleagues and other partner professionals to ensure integrated, holistic, and informed care management and safeguarding.
• An apt communicator, including listening, building empathy, consultation, and negotiation, in order to ensure the best outcomes for our young people.
• A problem-solver and an individual who can think innovatively to identify appropriate social work interventions to promote positive change.
• Able to provide written and verbal reports which are concise, informative and based on analysis of complex evidence which can be used within the legal context.

If you think this is you, apply to join our team. Choose Wakefield.

If you want to find out more about the benefits to choosing Wakefield, visit our dedicated careers page here.

For an informal discussion please contact Louise Danks at ldanks@wakefield.gov.uk or on 07823520956.

To view the details relating to this position click the links below:

Social Worker Job Specification

Senior Social Worker Job Specification

The successful applicant will be required to complete a Disclosure Application Form and to provide criminal conviction information.

Wakefield Council is wholly committed to ensuring children and vulnerable adults are fully supported and safe. We are dedicated to the safeguarding of all children and vulnerable adults whilst promoting their welfare. We expect all staff and volunteers to share this responsibility.