Family Help Senior Practitioner Social Worker - Ref: CH07926

Walsall Council; Walsall; On-site; GBP 53,000 - 56,000; Full time

Job summary

Walsall Council in the United Kingdom is seeking a Senior Practitioner Social Worker on a 12-month fixed term to drive practice development within a pilot team using systemic approaches. The role emphasizes mentoring and supporting colleagues to improve outcomes for families facing neglect, with a focus on hands-on leadership and therapeutic elements.

You will be part of a leadership team, ensuring service quality and a learning culture, with commitments to manageable workloads, training, and

Qualifications

• Senior Practitioner level role focusing on practice development.
• Experience in mentoring and coaching within a social work team.
• Leadership responsibilities within a learning organisation.
• Training in Systemic Family Practice is provided.

Responsibilities

• Provide mentoring, coaching, and practice expertise to your team.
• Ensure outstanding support for children and families through leadership.
• Contribute to a learning organisation with accountable relationships.
• Access to training in Systemic Family Practice.

Skills

Mentoring

Coaching

Leadership

Systemic Family Practice

Job description

Family Help Senior Practitioner Social Worker (12 months fixed term) - CH07926

G11: £53.051 - £56,293 per annum.

Central & South Unit 4 Family Help

Be at the heart of practice development

About the Job

We have a really exciting opportunity within a new pilot team, where our practice is shaped and underpinned by Systemic ideas whilst spear heading a new approach to working with families where Neglect is the main focus. Neglect has been practiced the same for a long time within social work, we want to drive forward something different incorporating new ideas and approaches to working with families where neglect is the primary concern. This means shaping a new bespoke framework for families which could include more hands on support, utilizing the GCP 2 tool as a way of measuring and evaluating progress, but also incorporating the therapeutic support for the parents involved, as a way to peel back the layers, and help the family reach a new script, helping them move from first order change to second order change.

As senior practitioner you are at the heart of practice development offering mentoring, coaching, support and practice expertise to your team. This will allow you to inspire others within their careers and practice with families.

Within the role of senior practitioner you will be responsible for ensuring we continue to provide “Outstanding” support for our children and families, through the support you provide the practitioner within your team.

You will part of a leadership team that has created a learning organisation that has effective and accountable relationships with each other and with partners (Ofsted, 2025).

To provide the right conditions for you, we are committed to manageable workloads aiming for an average of 12 children, high support from managers, essential paperwork only, enabling technologies, and all social workers will receive training in Systemic Family Practice.

Wellbeing is at the heart of our work. We offer specialised clinical supervision, a 9-day fortnight to support work/life balance, flexible working and specialist employee assistance and therapeutic support when it is needed. We know we need to make social work a career people want to stay in.

In this role you will be supported to identify your specialisms and areas of interest, and access to training to develop your expertise in these areas. This forms a part of our ongoing commitment to your development, with opportunities to progress into, Consultant Social Worker, Lead Child Protection Practitioner or Team manager roles.

We are committed to anti-discrimination and equality and to developing a workforce that reflects the communities we service.

This post is covered by the Government’s Code of Practice on the English Language Fluency Duty for public sector workers. The post holder will be required to communicate verbally with customers and provide advice and/or information in accurate spoken English.

Walsall Council takes seriously the responsibility to safeguard and promote the welfare of all the children, young people and vulnerable adults entrusted to our care and it is our expectation that all staff will share this commitment. We will ensure continuous development and improvement of robust recruitment processes and procedures that promote a culture of safeguarding amongst our workforce. Completion of an enhanced Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) check is a requirement for working with children, young people and vulnerable adults.

We kindly request that recruitment agencies do not contact us regarding this job vacancy. We are not accepting agency applications or referrals at this time.

At Walsall Council, we appreciate that AI can be a useful tool for ideas or guidance. However, we encourage you to make sure your application reflects your own voice and experiences. Over-reliance on AI can make responses feel less personal, and we really want to understand what makes you unique. Your experiences, skills, and perspective are what set you apart, so please ensure your application as a whole – particularly your ‘Supporting Information’ – reflects your own voice.

Walsall Council’s Children’s Services are the only Ofsted ‘Outstanding’ local authority in the Black Country. During a visit in May 2025, Inspectors described Walsall Council as a place where children were at the heart of. The council’s journey of continuous improvement started in 2017 and has since transformed into a service with a clear vision, clear priorities and a clear plan, all informed by the views of our staff and children. Staff are at the core of delivering great outcomes for children and young people in Walsall, which is underpinned by our Walsall Right 4 Children vision. The latest Ofsted inspection demonstrated that staff in children’s services are proud to work for Walsall Council and feel supported to do great work.

Closing Date: 5th October 2026.

Interviews will be held on 9th October 2026.