Advanced Practitioner

Leicester City Council; Leicester; Hybrid; GBP 42,000 - 62,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid working

Professional supervision

Career progression

Learning and development opportunities

Job summary

Leicester City Council is seeking an experienced Advanced Social Work Practitioner to join the Child in Need Team. You will provide professional leadership, guidance and support to colleagues while maintaining a caseload of complex and specialist work.

This role blends frontline safeguarding with service development, supervision and mentoring, aiming to improve outcomes for children and families. It offers hybrid working, strong partnership working, and opportunities to influence practice across

Qualifications

• Qualified Social Worker registered with Social Work England.
• Experience leading Child in Need and safeguarding work.
• Ability to manage complex cases and provide coaching to social workers.
• Strong communication, judgment and decision-making in high-pressure situations.

Responsibilities

• Provide professional leadership, guidance and support to colleagues while maintaining a caseload of complex and specialist work.
• Lead on complex assessments, planning and interventions to improve outcomes for children and prevent escalation of need.
• Coach, mentor and provide reflective supervision and case consultation to social workers.
• Quality assure assessments, plans and court-related work to ensure high standards and compliance.
• Chair professional meetings and contribute to multi-agency planning and decision-making.
• Support the Team Manager with workload allocation, performance oversight and risk management.
• Build strong partnerships with families and professionals to deliver strengths-based interventions.
• Contribute to service development and embed learning from audits and inspections.

Skills

Leadership & supervision

Coaching & mentoring

Relationship-based practice

Communication & decision making

Education

Qualified Social Worker (SW England)

Job description

Are you an experienced Social Worker ready to take the next step in your career. Do you have a passion for safeguarding children and improving outcomes for those at risk of significant harm. Can you inspire and support social workers to deliver high-quality child protection practice while building strong, effective relationships with children and families. If so, we would love to hear from you.

We are seeking an enthusiastic, skilled and motivated Advanced Social Work Practitioner to join our welcoming and supportive Child in Need Team at Leicester City Council.

This is an exciting opportunity to combine frontline practice with leadership, professional development, and service improvement. You will play a vital role in promoting high-quality, strengths-based social work practice whilst supporting colleagues to deliver outstanding outcomes for the children and families of Leicester.

Joining our Child in Need Team

Leicester is a vibrant and diverse city with strong partnerships across health, social care and the voluntary sector. Our Child in Need teams are committed to keeping children safe, strengthening families and delivering positive, lasting outcomes through relationship-based practice.

As an Advanced Social Work Practitioner, you'll support complex safeguarding work, provide practice leadership, and be part of a collaborative team where your expertise is valued and your development is actively supported.

We offer:

• A hybrid working role and flexible working arrangements
• A supportive and inclusive team environment.
• Opportunities to influence and shape practice across Children's Social Care.
• Access to high-quality learning and development opportunities.
• Professional supervision and career progression pathways.
• Strong partnership working with health and community services.
• The opportunity to mentor and develop the next generation of social workers.
• A rewarding role where you can make a genuine difference to children's and families lives every day.

About the Role

As an Advanced Practitioner within the team, you will provide professional leadership, guidance and support to colleagues while maintaining a caseload of complex and specialist work.

Key responsibilities include:

• Providing practice leadership and promoting high-quality, relationship-based social work practice across the Child in Need service.
• Managing a caseload of complex children and families requiring intensive support and intervention.
• Supporting and developing social workers through coaching, mentoring, reflective supervision and case consultation.
• Leading on complex assessments, planning and interventions to improve outcomes for children and prevent escalation of need.
• Providing expert advice and guidance on Child in Need, Child Protection and safeguarding practice.
• Quality assuring assessments, plans and court-related work to ensure high standards and compliance.
• Chairing professional meetings and contributing to multi-agency planning and decision-making.
• Supporting the Team Manager with the allocation of work, oversight of performance and management of risk.
• Building strong partnerships with families and professionals to deliver effective, strengths-based interventions.
• Contributing to service development, practice improvement and the embedding of learning from audits, reviews and inspections., Inspire confidence and professional excellence within the team.
• Drive high-quality outcomes for children and their families.
• Support colleagues to develop and flourish in their roles.
• Promote innovative and strengths-based ways of working.
• Contribute to a positive team culture focused on learning, improvement and outstanding practice.

For an informal chat about the role, contact: Sonum Hussain

• Is a qualified Social Worker registered with Social Work England.
• Has substantial experience working with children and families, including Child in Need and safeguarding.
• Has a strong understanding of children's legislation and statutory guidance including the Signs of Safety Model.
• Can confidently manage complex cases and support colleagues with practice development.
• Builds effective relationships with children, families and partner agencies.
• Is passionate about achieving positive outcomes for children through relationship-based practice.
• Demonstrates excellent communication, assessment and decision-making skills.
• Able to commute and work from one of our clusters within Leicester City.

You will also need a full driving licence, the right to work in the UK, and will require an Enhanced DBS check upon successful appointment.