Children's Assessment Team Manager

Surrey County Council; Woking; Hybrid; GBP 54,000 - 59,000; Full time

Job summary

A local government organization in Woking is seeking a Team Manager for their Children's Assessment Team. This role offers the opportunity to manage a team, support families, and work in a flexible environment. Candidates should have a Qualified Social Work degree and at least four years of post-qualified experience. Benefits include generous leave and professional development resources. The application closes on December 14, 2025.

Benefits

28 days annual leave, increasing to 31 days

Employee Assistance Programme

Lifestyle discounts

Learning and development resources

Refer a friend payment

Qualifications

• Four years post-qualified experience.
• ASYE completed within two years of qualifying.

Responsibilities

• Manage the Children's Assessment Team in Woking.
• Support families using motivational approaches.
• Supervise and develop your own team of social workers.

Skills

Qualified Social Work degree

SWE Registration

Driving licence

Supervising experience

Education

Qualified Social Work degree

Job description

• Category: Qualified Social Work - Children's
• Contract type: Permanent
• Working hours: 36 hours per week
• Posted on: 25 November 2025
• Location: Woking, Surrey, GU21 6JD

Description

We have a great opportunity for a Team Manager to join our Children's Assessment Team based in Woking.

When not working with our residents in the community, we are keen to support agile working with a combination of home and office working. We are keen to get the balance right of providing flexibility but ensuring you feel connected to your team and the service.

The salary range for Team Managers is £54,636 - £58,953 per annum based on a 36 hour working week.

Our Offer to You

• We pay your Social Worker England Registration fee
• 28days annual leave, rising to 31days after 5years' service (plus bank holidays)
• Option to buy up to 10 days of additional annual leave
• An extensive Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support health and wellbeing
• Up to 5 days of carer's leave per year
• Paternity, adoption and dependants leave
• A generous local government salary related pension
• Lifestyle discounts including gym, travel, shopping and many more
• 2 paid volunteering days per year
• Learning and development hub where you can access a wealth of resources
• Refer a friend payment of £1,000 as a thank you for finding the right Social Worker

Our Progress

We are proud of our recent Good Ofsted judgement, which marks a significant milestone for Surrey. The report highlights how strong assessments in Surrey consider children's histories and involve social workers spending time alone with children to understand their experiences. "Our strong training and development offer in Surrey "helps to equip staff with the understanding, knowledge and skills that they need to practice in a kind, sensitive, motivational and respectful way and that staff feel highly valued, are proud to work for children's services." You can read the full report HERE.

If you are considering your next professional opportunity and looking for an ambitious and highly motivated employer who is continuously striving for better services for children and young people, then our Surrey Children's Services would love to hear from you.

Joining Surrey as a Team Manager will be an opportunity to be part of a culture in which children and families are supported in a spirit of partnership that encourages them to develop their own solutions while receiving the help and support, they need to address their complex situations. You will also nurture and grow your own team of social workers and practitioners using a motivational interviewing approach, which contributes to Surrey's continued journey to "outstanding".

About Working in Assessment

The first contact any family or professional has with our assessment service sets the tone for our entire working relationship with them. Our practice across the whole service is based upon consent, strong relationships with families and with partners who are also supporting our families. Using motivational approaches the assessment social worker engages with both the family and the network supporting them to understand the presenting worries and work out whether a statutory social work service is required. If not, a plan to support the family at a lower level of need will be put in place to meet the need of the child and family.

In Surrey, you will have a sense of belonging within your individual team but also the wider service areas and directorate. You will receive high quality supervision, as there is a firm commitment towards dedicating time that focusses on the work you do with children and families, to enable you to work creatively and holistically in providing support and protection to children whilst also paying attention to your wellbeing and career development. This allows you to feel continuously fulfilled in your role and have a pathway to achieve your future aspirations.

Wherever you are in your career journey, Surrey is committed to supporting and nurturing you so that you can be the best version of yourself.

Our Surrey Children's Service Academy currently has over 60 courses available and offers a bespoke learning programme so you can be at the forefront of best practice. Modules such as motivational interviewing and our total respect course allow you to feel empowered in having essential conversations whilst still ensuring a child centred approach.

Your Application, Our Inclusive Approach

In order to be considered for shortlisting, your application will clearly evidence the following skills and align with our behaviours :

• Qualified Social Work degree and SWE Registration
• Car driver with a valid UK license
• ASYE completed, within two years of qualifying
• Four years post-qualified experience
• Evidence of supervising (students and practice educator) or supervising other qualified staff

To apply you will need to upload your CV and answer the following questions (no more than 200 words per question):

• Please tell us what has motivated you to apply for this role?
• Please tell us about the key skills and experience you will be able to bring to this role.
• Working in an Assessment team can be quite fast paced, unpredictable and often requires multi-tasking. Using an example, please tell us how you cope under pressure?

Surrey has both urban and rural areas and Social Workers will be expected to have a valid driving licence to drive in the UK, access to a vehicle and be willing to travel across a wide geographical area. Reasonable adjustments where needed will be made for successful applicants who have a disability or long term health condition to enable them to fulfil the requirements of the job.

Before submitting your application, we recommend you read the job description and Our Life at Surrey handbook to get an insight into working at Surrey.

Next Steps

If your application is shortlisted, you will be invited to a short virtual call to explore your answers to the application questions (lasting approx. 15- 20 mins) If successful following this, you will be invited for an in-person interview, allowing you to meet the team, check out your potential office and get a feel for what your journey might look like.

We are committed to inclusive recruitment. That's why, if you're invited to a face-to-face interview, we'll share the themes of the questions with you in advance. This way, you can prepare and feel comfortable, allowing you to confidently discuss your skills and experiences.

The job advert closes at 23:59 on the 14th of December 2025.

Contact Us

Our friendly teams could talk your socks off when it comes to all things Social Work. We'd love to hear from you and find out more about what you're looking for so if you'd like to talk to us please just drop a quick message to [e-mail] and we'll get a call arranged.

An enhanced DBS 'Disclosure and Barring Service' check for regulated activity (formerly known as CRB) and the Children's and Adults' Barred List checks will be required for this role.

Local Government Reorganisation (LGR)

Surrey County Council is undergoing Local Government Reorganisation, moving from a two-tier system to two new unitary councils in April 2027. If you are employed by Surrey on 1st April 2027, your role will transfer with current terms and conditions to one of the new organisations, supporting local devolution and greater powers for our communities.

We are a disability confident employer which means if you have shared a disability on your application form and have evidenced you meet the minimum criteria, we guarantee you an interview.

Your skills and experience truly matter to us. From application to your first day, we're committed to supporting you with any adjustments you need, we value inclusion and warmly welcome you to join and help build a workplace where everyone belongs.