Early Help Practitioner

Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 32,000 - 42,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Structured supervision

Flexible working

Local government pension

Wellbeing support

Job summary

Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea is seeking an Early Help Practitioner on a 12-month FTC to work with families across the borough, helping children build safety, stability and confidence from an early stage.

You will deliver direct support, carry out whole-family assessments, chair meetings and coordinate with schools, Children’s Social Care, health, CAMHS and voluntary partners to unlock positive outcomes.

Qualifications

• Experience supporting children, young people and families in complex situations.
• Solid safeguarding principles and thresholds of need.
• Ability to conduct whole-family assessments and plan interventions.
• Commitment to equality, trauma-informed practice and continuous professional development.

Responsibilities

• Provide direct early help support to children, young people and families.
• Carry out whole-family assessments capturing strengths and needs.
• Create outcome-focused plans with each family.
• Deliver one-to-one emotional, practical and motivational support.
• Act as link worker for asylum hotels and resettled Afghan families.
• Support Homes for Ukraine guests and households in temporary accommodation to access education, healthcare and community resources.
• Participate in the Early Help duty rota and respond to emerging needs.
• Collaborate with schools, Children’s Social Care, Health, CAMHS and voluntary sector partners.
• Chair family meetings and contribute to multi‑agency planning.
• Maintain clear, analytical case notes with the voice of the child at the centre.

Skills

Experience with vulnerable families

Safeguarding knowledge

Trauma-informed approach

Strong communication

Job description

Job Description

Support children and families facing complex challenges – a role rooted in care and practical action. As an Early Help Practitioner on a 12 month FTC, you’ll work directly with households across Kensington and Chelsea, helping families build safety, stability and confidence from an early stage. You'll be part of a team committed to stepping in early, turning complex challenges into genuine opportunities for positive growth.

Working Style

You’ll usually work from home for no more than one day a week, with the rest of your time spent working in the borough or visiting families placed outside the borough. This may include time in the office, accommodation sites, family homes, asylum hotels, schools or local community settings, as part of a dedicated team making a real difference to people’s everyday lives.

What You’ll Be Doing

Your focus will be providing direct early help support to children, young people and families experiencing complex and overlapping vulnerabilities across our No Recourse to Public Funds and Refugee Services. Managing a caseload, you’ll carry out whole-family assessments that capture strengths, cultural backgrounds and migration-related needs, creating outcome-focused plans alongside each family.

Your day will involve delivering one-to-one emotional, practical and motivational support using strengths-based approaches. You’ll act as a designated link worker for asylum hotels and support resettled Afghan families, Homes for Ukraine guests and households in temporary accommodation to access education, healthcare and community resources. You’ll also play an active part in our Early Help duty rota, ensuring timely responses to emerging needs.

Collaboration is central to this work. You’ll partner with schools to improve attendance and reduce barriers to learning, while maintaining strong working relationships with Children’s Social Care, Health, CAMHS and voluntary sector organisations. You’ll chair family meetings, contribute to multi‑agency planning and maintain clear, analytical case notes that keep the voice of the child at the centre of every decision.

What You’ll Bring

You’ll bring experience supporting children, young people and families facing complex challenges, including households with No Recourse to Public Funds, asylum seekers, refugees or families in temporary accommodation. You have a solid understanding of safeguarding principles, thresholds of need and preventative early help practices.

You’re someone who can build trusting relationships with sensitivity to cultural, linguistic and migration-related factors. You’re confident conducting whole-family assessments, applying trauma-informed approaches and contributing effectively to Team Around the Family meetings alongside multi‑agency partners.

With clear written and verbal communication skills, you can manage your caseload independently while maintaining accurate case notes and short reports. Background knowledge or training in early help, youth work, family support, refugee services, education or safeguarding will be highly valued.

Most importantly, you’re someone who brings a clear commitment to equality, fairness and continuous professional development, with a genuine desire to support families through challenging times.

Why Join Us

At RBKC, we’re all in – investing in our people, our communities and our future.

You’ll join an expanding, supportive service where learning and reflective practice are embedded into daily routines.

We offer a competitive salary at Grade E, structured supervision and ongoing training in trauma‑informed practice, safeguarding and migration support.

Working in a supportive environment, you will have access to flexible working options alongside local government pension schemes and comprehensive wellbeing support. This post offers the opportunity to contribute to an evolving early help service where your frontline work directly informs service improvement.

About Us

Kensington and Chelsea is home to diverse communities, thriving businesses and unique local places. Everything we do is focused on supporting our residents, strengthening our approach and creating a fairer borough.

As a competent and caring Council, we take pride in our work every day, ensuring our services are delivered with care and competence. We listen to our residents, act with integrity and work together to build a borough that is greener, safer and fairer for all.

In this role, the 'we’re all in' mindset is central to everything you do. Getting stuck in is the mindset for getting things done here, whether you are working in the office, visiting asylum hotels, meeting teachers in schools or sitting with families in their homes. Navigating migration challenges, displacement and trauma is not always smooth sailing, but every ounce of effort pays off. When you commit fully, complex challenges become genuine opportunities for positive growth for both families and the wider community.

Interview And Role Requirements

Interviews will be held in person on Wednesday 7th October 2026.

20-minute assessment with a 60-minute formal interview.

This role requires an Enhanced Children and Adults DBS.

Benefits

• Structured supervision and ongoing training in trauma-informed practice, safeguarding and migration support.
• Flexible working options alongside local government pension schemes and comprehensive wellbeing support.
• Competitive salary at Grade E.
• We are committed to fair, transparent, and consistent pay practices. New hires will start at the minimum of the advertised salary range.
• Employees receive annual salary increases until they reach the top of the pay scale. In addition, employees will receive any agreed cost of living pay rises.

We are committed to promoting equality and respecting diversity and welcome applications from all sections of the community.

We are a Disability Confident Employer – committed to ensuring that our recruitment and selection process is inclusive and accessible.