Advanced Practitioner - Children Looked After Team

We Manage Jobs(WMJobs); Metropolitan Borough of Solihull; On-site; GBP 47,000 - 50,000; Full time

Job summary

Solihull Council is seeking an Advanced Practitioner for the Children Looked After Team. This role involves leading social work practice, managing a caseload of complex cases, and ensuring high-quality support for children and families. The ideal candidate will possess significant experience in children's disability social work and be passionate about improving outcomes for young people.

Qualifications

• Social Work qualified and registered with Social Work England.
• Substantial post-qualifying experience working with children and families.
• Ability to build strong relationships with stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Ensure high quality and effective social work practice within the team.
• Lead and develop the professional practice of team members.
• Manage complex caseloads and oversee family support workers.

Skills

Management experience

Communication skills

Knowledge of social work legislation

Education

Social Work qualification

Job description

Advanced Practitioner – Solihull Children’s Services – Children Looked After Team

Band F – £47,754 - £49,764 per annum.

Hours: 37

At Solihull Council, we pride ourselves on being a Council that is small enough to care, but big enough to make a difference.

We are on a transformational journey, designed to improve the experience of the children and families we work with.Children’s Services is our top priority within our Council Plan, and we are placing children at the heart of all that we do.

To support us on our journey, we have created new roles of Advanced Practitioners across the teams and have vacancy in our Children Looked After Team.

We are looking for an exceptional candidate who is passionate about improving the lives of children, young people and their families at this exciting time, here in Solihull.

You will be responsible for ensuring high quality and effective social worker practice within your team and will lead and develop the professional practice of team members and model and facilitate restorative practice.

As Advanced Practitioner you will hold a reduced caseload of complex and challenging children and will line manage family support workers within the social work team.

You will support best practice development, through sharing expertise and providing support and development for other practitioners. You will use your social work expertise and a clear child focus to secure the best for our children, young people, and families.

Due to our investment and commitment to ensuring additional resources are in place, our Social Workers have genuinely manageable caseloads, to ensure the best possible outcomes for our children, young people and their families.

You will be Social Work qualified, registered with Social Work England and you will have substantial post qualifying experience of practice with children,families and their carers.

You will also have:

• Significant management experience working within a pressurised children’s disability social work environment.
• Knowledge of relevant up to date relevant social work legislation, statutory guidance, theories and research and how it impacts on practice.
• Excellent spoken and written communicate skills, to enable you build strong relationships with children, young people and their families / carers, as well as wider partners and voluntary agencies.
• A full driving license and access to a car, though reasonable adjustments will be made for disabled applicants, where required.

We are ambitious in Solihull and are building a stronger Solihull for our children, families and workforce. Connecting Families is the name of Solihull Children’s Services practice framework.At its core Connecting Families demonstrates the beliefs, values and principles of restorative practice and gives us a consistent relationship-based way of practicing to improve outcomes for children, young people and their families.

We believe that families and their connected networks are of primary importance and are the most important influence on improving outcomes for children.We believe that children and their family networks are experts in their own lives and that children and their family networks have strengths, on which they should be empowered to build and draw on through effective family decision making.

If you have a specific question regarding this vacancy please contact:

Jamie Owen – Operations Manager - [e-mail]

Closing Date: 25 June 2025

Interview Date: 3 and 4 July 2025

This post will require an enhanced DBS and barring list check.

This is an essential car user post as the demands of the job make it operationally essential and there is a contractual requirement to make a suitable vehicle available to ensure the requirements of the job can be carried out effectively.

Applicants must be able to drive, have a driving licence and be a car owner/have access to a suitable vehicle however for disabled applicants, reasonable adjustments will be made where required.

This post is covered by the Fluency Duty, as outlined in the Code of Practice on the English language requirements for public sector workers.

Solihull Council is proud to be an Equal Opportunities Employer.We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees - a place where we can all be ourselves and succeed on merit.

Solihull Council has a responsibility for, and is committed to, safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults at risk, and requires all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.

Attached documents
Job Description & Person Specification