Childrens Advanced Social Work Practitioner Mental Health

Westfield Secondary School; Sheffield; On-site; GBP 34,000 - 48,000; Full time

Job summary

Sheffield City Council is seeking an experienced Advanced Social Work Practitioner to support children with disabilities and complex mental health needs. The role involves delivering high-quality social work, ensuring safety, stability and positive outcomes across family homes, residential placements and specialist settings.

You will lead complex assessments, manage safeguarding plans, support PLO processes and coordinate multi-agency planning with CAMHS and NHS England.

Qualifications

• Social workers with strong safeguarding background and experience in statutory children's social care.

Responsibilities

• Undertaking complex assessments and analysis of risk.
• Managing Child in Need, Child Protection and Child in Care plans.
• Supporting Public Law Outline (PLO) processes and care proceedings.
• Leading safeguarding investigations and interventions.
• Managing care plans for children in care and ensuring permanence planning is progressed appropriately.
• Coordinating multi-agency planning with CAMHS, NHS England, Integrated Care Boards and specialist providers.
• Undertaking Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) work where required.
• Providing professional leadership and guidance within a highly specialised area of practice.

Job description

We are seeking an experienced and passionate Advanced Social Work Practitioner to join our dedicated Children with Disabilities Mental Health Team. This is an exciting opportunity to work with some of the most vulnerable children and young people, supporting those with complex mental health needs and disabilities across a range of settings, including family homes, residential placements and specialist mental health hospitals.

As an Advanced Practitioner, you will play a key role in ensuring that children and young people remain at the centre of all planning and decision-making, delivering high-quality social work practice that promotes safety, stability and positive outcomes.

About The Role

You will provide specialist social work support to children and young people experiencing complex mental health difficulties, working collaboratively with families and partner agencies to develop and implement robust care and safety plans.

• Undertaking complex assessments and analysis of risk.
• Managing Child in Need, Child Protection and Child in Care plans.
• Supporting Public Law Outline (PLO) processes and care proceedings.
• Leading safeguarding investigations and interventions.
• Managing care plans for children in care and ensuring permanence planning is progressed appropriately.
• Working closely with specialist mental health hospitals and inpatient settings.
• Coordinating multi-agency planning with CAMHS, NHS England, Integrated Care Boards and specialist providers.
• Undertaking Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) work where required.
• Providing professional leadership and guidance within a highly specialised area of practice.

About You

We are looking for social workers who have a strong safeguarding background and significant experience of working within statutory children's social care services.

• A recognised Social Work qualification and Social Work England registration.
• Extensive experience of safeguarding practice.
• Experience undertaking assessments, risk management and care planning.
• Experience managing Child in Need, Child Protection, Public Law Outline and care proceedings work.
• Experience supporting and managing plans for children in care.
• A good understanding and practical application of the Mental Health Act 1983.
• Excellent communication, analytical and partnership-working skills.

Desirable Experience

• Experience working with children and young people with complex mental health needs.
• Experience of working alongside specialist mental health hospitals and inpatient services.
• Experience supporting children and young people with disabilities.
• Knowledge of Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards.
• An Approved Mental Health Professional (AMHP) qualification.

Why Join Us?

This is a unique opportunity to work within a specialist service that is committed to improving outcomes for children and young people with disabilities and complex mental health needs. You will join a supportive team environment that values professional development, partnership working and innovative practice.

If you are passionate about safeguarding children, championing their rights and delivering excellent social work practice in complex circumstances, we would love to hear from you.

We are investing in our workforce and are promoting opportunities to our under-represented groups. We value equality, diversity and inclusion and are focused on increasing the diversity of our workforce, particularly the number of Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic, Disabled and LGBTQ+ people, so that our teams reflect the communities in the city we serve. We are also supporting staff with unpaid caring responsibilities to work flexibly.

It is a great time to join us and we welcome your application.

Under the Guaranteed Interview scheme, applicants who are disabled, care leavers, or armed forces veterans will be guaranteed an interview if they meet the essential criteria and indicate their eligibility on the application form. Sometimes, if lots of people apply, we might not be able to interview everyone who qualifies for the Guarantee. In these cases, we’ll interview the candidates who best meet the essential criteria for the job.

Full-time employees work 37 hours for 52 weeks of the year and we offer a generous holiday entitlement. We are open to discussions about a wide range of flexible working opportunities which benefit you and the Council, including reduced hour contracts, working part time or as a job share.

If you are appointed to this role, your starting salary will be at the bottom of the grade. If you provide payslip evidence that your basic pay is greater than the bottom of the grade, we will consider starting you at the point of minimum advantage within the grade.

Equality of pay is extremely important to us. All roles at Sheffield City Council are going through an evaluation process which may result in changes to some pay arrangements from 2026. Find out more on our Sheff news page.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all individuals, ensuring a safe and supportive environment for everyone and where appropriate to the role the successful applicant will be required to undertake relevant safeguarding checks.