Forensic Inpatient Social care Team Manager

LSCft; Preston; On-site; GBP 49,000 - 57,000; Full time

Job summary

Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust (LSCFT) seeks an experienced Forensic Inpatient Social Care Team Manager to lead the Discharge Pathway Facilitators at Guild Lodge in Preston. This Band 7, full-time post offers a permanent contract.

You will provide senior clinical leadership and team management, drive clinical care improvements, and work with partners to identify discharge barriers, ensuring timely, safe hospital discharges and robust social care input across the MDT.

Qualifications

• Registered Social Worker with Social Work England
• Evidence of continuing professional development
• Degree qualification in relevant subject or demonstrable evidence of equivalent experience

Responsibilities

• Provide senior clinical leadership and team management.
• Lead the Discharge Pathway Facilitators (Inpatient Social Workers) within Guild Lodge.
• Work with MDT and external partners to identify barriers to discharge and ensure timely discharge planning.
• Ensure adherence to social care legislation, safeguarding, and mental health provisions.
• Promote patient participation and advocacy within individualised care planning and service development.

Skills

Leadership

Team management

Discharge planning

Clinical governance

Education

Degree qualification in relevant subject

Evidence of continuing professional development

Registered Social Worker with Social Work England

Job description

Forensic Inpatient Social care Team Manager

Band 7

Main area Mental Health Grade Band 7 Contract Permanent Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week Job ref 351-BAY1098-ZK

Site Guild Lodge Town Preston Salary £49,387 - £56,515 Per Annum Salary period Yearly Closing 13/10/2026 23:59

Our Vision is to provide the best mental health, learning disability, autism, community, and physical health services for the populations we serve.

As an integrated Trust, Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust (LSCFT) delivers a comprehensive range of services, including:

• Primary and secondary mental health care for children and adults, including specialist inpatient child and adolescent mental health provision, perinatal mental health, and forensic services with low and medium secure care.


• Specialist mental health inpatient care for individuals with learning disabilities, alongside specialist community support for children and adults with learning disabilities and autism, including intensive support.


• Extensive community physical health and well-being services for children and adults, covering prevention, treatment, rehabilitation, and long-term condition management.

The Trust was first established in 2002 and employs approximately 7,500 staff who provide care from more than 400 sites. The organisation offers opportunities for medics, mental health, general nurses, children’s nurses, allied health professionals, psychology, administration and clerical staff, apprentices and volunteers, as well as those specialising in learning disabilities and community physical health services.

Provide a specialised social work approach within LSCFT’s forensic inpatient setting Guild Lodge, providing safe and effective delivery of social care to patients, promoting the use of evidence-based practice through the provision of specialist knowledge and skills.

Have an understanding of the impact of social care issues upon mental health needs, and address these issues through support and signposting for example housing; debt counselling; supported employment; self-help groups and advocacy.

The post holder provides senior clinical leadership and team management, ensuring high-quality forensic inpatient social care while driving service improvement and operational delivery.

Utilise specialist social work knowledge and skills to promote effective liaison, working relationships and operational links as appropriate.

Champion adherence to relevant legislation relating to social care, community care, safeguarding, mental capacity, mental health, human rights and restrictions to liberty.

Champion patient participation within individualised care planning and service development initiatives, and to support a culture of participation within the wider team, service and partner services, promoting the provision of independent advocacy where applicable.

Work closely with the social care partners, commissioners and outside agencies, Provide support to facilitate hospital discharge/signposting.

Main duties of the job

An opportunity has arisen to join Secure Services Guild Lodge as Forensic Inpatient Social Care Team Manager. The post holder is required to be a qualified Social Worker with Social Work England registration.

The Forensic Inpatient Social Care Team Manager is a new post created to provide line management and clinical leadership to the team of Discharge Pathway Facilitators (Inpatient Social Worker) at Guild Lodge. Inpatient Social workers are integral members of the Multi-Disciplinary Team. The Post Holder will work in close partnership with a range of agencies and organisations internal and external to LSCFT to offer social care input They and take a lead role from pre-admission by completing a holistic social work assessment, identifying any social work needs, undertake family work, and support with discharge planning. This includes early identification of barriers to discharge, taking action to prevent any unnecessary delay to discharges.

The post holder must be a qualified Social Worker with Social Work England registration.

Working for our organisation

LSCFT values diversity and inclusion, recognising that talent from varied backgrounds creates a flexible, creative, and effective workforce. We actively challenge discrimination and welcome applications from all, regardless of age, disability (including those with experience of accessing or caring for someone who has accessed mental health or learning disability services), ethnicity, gender, religion, belief, or sexual orientation.

Our aim is to reflect the communities we serve, so we particularly encourage applications from under-represented groups. If you'd like to discuss your application, please ask.

We also welcome individuals with lived experience relevant to the role or service area, as your insight brings authenticity to our services.

LSCFT support flexible working, we believe that a positive work/life balance benefits NHS employees through improved health and wellbeing. We would consider working patterns such as term time, part time, compressed hours and flexi-time.

The wellbeing of our people is at the heart of everything we do. We offer a wide range of resources, tools and support to help you thrive both in and out of work.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

For more information about this vacancy please review the attached job description and person specification.

Person specification

Qualifications

• Registered Social Worker with Social Work England


• Evidence of continuing professional development


• Degree qualification in relevant subject or demonstrable evidence of equivalent experience relevant to field of practice.

Knowledge

• Expert knowledge on mental health issues and how these impact on the individual, carer’s and the wider community.


• Expertise in current best practice in Forensic Mental Health , and awareness of relevant government directives and legislation


• Ability to work autonomously and set own and others’ priorities

Experience

• Extensive experience of working at band 6 or equivalent experience.


• Recent relevant experience of leading a staff.Able to demonstrate a history of participating in clinical care improvement initiatives.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.