Children's Senior Social Worker Family Safeguarding

www.findapprenticeship.service.gov.uk - Jobboard; Greater London; On-site; GBP 52,000 - 57,000; Full time

Job summary

A local authority in the UK is seeking experienced Senior Social Workers to join their Family Safeguarding Teams in East and West Surrey. In this role, you will manage a diverse caseload, work closely with multi-agency teams, and contribute to positive outcomes for children and families. The position offers a salary range of £52,884 - £56,175 plus a generous financial package with additional benefits including a generous pension and relocation support.

Benefits

Competitive relocation package

Social Worker England Registration fee covered

28 days annual leave

Access to car lease scheme

Employee Assistance Programme

Local government pension scheme

Lifestyle discounts

Paid volunteering days

Learning and development resources

Paternity and adoption leave

Qualifications

• Must hold a valid driving licence to drive in the UK.
• Experience in social work with children and families.
• Understanding of Family Safeguarding practice model.

Responsibilities

• Manage a caseload of children in need and those subject to protection plans.
• Collaborate with multi-agency teams to address family issues.
• Conduct assessments and provide intervention plans.

Skills

Relationship Building

Motivational Interviewing

Multi-agency Collaboration

Crisis Management

Education

Qualified Social Worker

Registered with SW England

Job description

We have opportunities for Senior Social Workers to join our Family Safeguarding Teams based across East Surrey covering the Reigate and Weybridge areas and West Surrey covering the Woking and Guildford areas.

The salary range for Senior Social Workers is£52,884 - £56,175 per annum. This is inclusive of a newly created market supplement of £5,000.

We also offer afinancial package of up to £6,000 which is payable in 3 instalments across your first 18 months in post.

Our other rewards and benefits include:

• A competitive relocation package of up to £8,000
• We pay your Social Worker England Registration fee
• 28days annual leave, rising to 30days after 5years' service (plus bank holidays)
• Access to our car lease scheme
• Option to buy up to 10 days of additional annual leave
• An extensive Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support health and wellbeing
• A generous local government salary related pension
• Lifestyle discounts including gym, travel, shopping and many more
• 2 paid volunteering days per year
• Up to 5 days of carer's leave per year
• Learning and development hub where you can access a wealth of resources
• Paternity, adoption and dependents leave
• Refer a friend payment of £1,000 as a thank you for finding the right Social Worker

About Surrey

Our Surrey Children's Services are actively working towards becoming a high-performing local authority, evidenced by the fact we are now starting to realise the positive impacts of the Family Safeguarding practice model in action with reductions in the number of children subject to child protection plans. We are working hard to sustain and develop our progress and this is driven by the efforts of every member of our social care workforce from our business support and family support workers to our frontline practitioners through to leadership- all working together to create and sustain the right conditions for a positive culture and well-supported workforce equipped to deliver consistent and good quality social work practice for our children and families.

Our Progress

We are proud of our recent Good Ofsted judgement, which marks a significant milestone for Surrey. The report highlights that our social workers are "skilled at building relationships with children who are subject of children in need or child protection plans. Creative direct work helps them to build a rounded understanding of children's daily lives." "They also build positive relationships with parents, enabling honest and sometimes difficult conversations." Overall "Staff are well-trained and committed, feel highly valued and are proud to work in Surrey."

About our Family Safeguarding Service

Within Family Safeguarding we use motivational interviewing, multi-agency approach under the Family Safeguarding model, where Social Workers, Family Support Workers, Domestic Abuse Practitioners, Recovery Workers, Mental Health Practitioners, and Psychologists collaborate closely to address family issues efficiently, reducing the need for referrals to other agencies.

We strive to provide a supportive and dynamic work environment for our employees, that fosters growth, maintains work-life balance, and rewards efforts. We guarantee 5 days of CPD and have access to excellent research and development tools such as Community Care Inform, Care Knowledge and Research In Practice.

Why choose Surrey?

Surrey is a large and ambitious local authority meaning we can draw from a range of available resources to support the delivery of our services to children and their families, but that's just part of it. It's our staff that truly make the difference day in day out and we'd like to share with you some of their insights as to why they choose to be part of Surrey Children's social care workforce.

Our staff highlighted that you can expect…

• Positive Team and Colleague Relationships - You'll have the opportunity to be part of a team that thrives on positive working relationships
• Flexibility and Work-Life Balance - We are committed to agile working and trust you to adapt your schedule to suit your needs, balancing this against the need to visit your children and families.
• Opportunities and Support for Professional Development - You can benefit from a structured environment that encourages growth and development. You'll have access to ongoing training opportunities including our coaching and mentoring scheme, a well-structured progression pathway and reflective and task focused supervision.
• A Sense of Belonging and Familiarity - You'll be part of our welcoming and approachable social work family where you'll be able to draw on the knowledge of established team members to support your understanding of the local area and available resources
• A Focus on Wellbeing - The job you do is serious therefore we take your well being seriously and recognise the need for reflective supervision where wellbeing is front and centre of the conversation

Our Inclusive Approach

To apply you will need to upload your CV and answer the following questions:

• 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.
• What is your understanding of Surrey's Practice Model for family safeguarding? Can you describe the strengths and challenges of this model?

Next Steps

If your application is shortlisted, you will be invited to a short first round virtual interview to explore your answers to the above questions (lasting approx. 15- 20 min). 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 25th August 2025.

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

You will need to be a qualified social worker, registered with SW England.

Surrey has both urban and rural areas and locality based 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.

Local Government Reorganisation

Surrey County Council is preparing for Local Government Reorganisation which will allow us to implement the Government led policy of devolution, which is all about giving more powers to local areas.

Currently, Surrey has a two-tier council system, with 11 district and borough councils and a county council, all responsible for different services. All these councils will be reorganised into a smaller number of new unitary councils which will come into effect in April 2027. At this point, this role will be transferred, with all existing terms and conditions intact into one of the new unitary councils.

Our Commitment

Surrey County Council is proud to be a Disability Confident Employer. A guaranteed interview will be offered to all disabled applicants where:

• The candidate has evidenced the minimum criteria for the role through their application
• The candidate has chosen to share that they have a disability on the application form

Our application form and onboarding process will provide an opportunity to request any reasonable adjustments for the interview and/or the role.

We want to be an inclusive and diverse employer reflecting the community we serve and particularly welcome applications from all underrepresented groups. We look forward to receiving your application, please click on the apply online button below to submit.