Children's Social Worker, First Response

Children's Social Work Matters; Rotherham; On-site; GBP 34,000 - 40,000; Full time

Job summary

Rotherham Council’s Directorate – Children and Young People’s Services invites applications for a Permanent, Full Time First Response Social Worker. The role delivers assessments, safeguarding investigations and early intervention within a fast-paced, multi-agency team in Rotherham.

The post focuses on putting children at the heart of every decision while delivering high-quality practice, managing caseloads, and working with partners to secure safe outcomes for children and families.

Qualifications

• Must have experience working with children in a social work setting.
• Excellent assessment skills with strong analytical ability.
• Experience with safeguarding investigations within a multi-agency context.

Responsibilities

• Carry out assessments for new children entering the service, including pre-birth assessments.
• Contribute to Section 47 investigations and initiate care proceedings as needed.
• Attend Public Law Outline (PLO) processes and legal gateway meetings.

Skills

Assessment skills

Court work

Safeguarding

Caseload management

Multi-agency collaboration

Team player

Prioritisation

Education

Social Work Degree

Job description

Directorate – Children and Young People’s Services

Permanent, Full Time, 37 hours per week

Now is the time to come and work for Rotherham Council Children and Young People’s Service. For more information about Rotherham Social Care jobs, please visit: https://www.rotherham.gov.uk/childrens-social-work-jobs

About The First Response Service

We will deliver on our promise to our children – will you?

If you’re passionate about children, come and work with us. Here, we focus on children not cases and keeping them at the heart of every decision leads to better outcomes.

First Response is a unified service made up of the Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH), four duty teams, the Out of Hours service, EVOLVE (exploitation), and ENGAGE (crisis support).

We are committed to giving children the very best support while also investing in our staff. We provide opportunities for social workers to grow, reach their full potential, and strengthen their skills particularly in analysis and managing a caseload so they can deliver high-quality, effective practice.

We are proud of our relationships with our partners who are co-located with us and part of the team. We make the most of their input, holding daily multi agency meetings in response to domestic abuse, ensuring quick safety planning for children, as well as having easy access to partners for strategy meetings, and information sharing when needed.

The duty teams carry out assessments for all new children entering the service and work across the borough. We operate on a four-week duty rota, with each team covering one week on duty followed by three weeks dedicated to completing assessments and related tasks.

As the team manages all incoming assessments, no two days are ever the same. The role includes Section 47 investigations, initiating care proceedings, accommodating children, completing assessments (including pre-birth assessments), and attending legal gateway meetings as part of Public Law Outline (PLO) processes.

The work is varied, complex, and fast-paced, but highly rewarding.

‘My experience in Rotherham as a newly qualified social worker could not have been better, the support and guidance provided by the social workers and managers has helped to build my confidence and skills in order to ensure the best outcomes for the children I work with’.

About You

• You will care.
• You will make sure children are at the heart of all you do.
• You will ask the right questions to make the best plans for children.
• You will have experience of working with children in a social work setting.
• You will have excellent assessments skills where analysis is key.
• You will be able to organise your daily workload independently.
• You will have some experience and understanding of court work.
• You will be a team player and value the strength that your colleagues bring to the team.
• You will have experience of carrying out safeguarding investigations as part of a multi-agency partnership.
• You will be able to demonstrate initiative and work flexibly to ensure children receive a service that matters.
• You will be able to negotiate tactfully when dealing with potential conflict.
• You will be able to forge positive working relationships with partners.
• You will be capable of accurate reporting and the communication of sometimes complex information to a variety of audiences.
• You will be passionate about maximising a child’s life chances.

If you have any questions regarding the role, please email Service Manager Joanne McCartan: [e-mail]

Closing date: 15th Nov 2026

Shortlisting: 16th Nov 2026

Interview date: W/C 23rd Nov 2026