Lead Child Protection Practitioner

Warwickshire County Council; Nuneaton; On-site; GBP 32,000 - 54,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Supportive managers

Social Work England fee reimbursement

Volunteering & Wellbeing Day

Generous annual leave

Refer a Friend package

Job summary

Warwickshire County Council is seeking a Lead Child Protection Practitioner to join our new Multi-Agency Child Protection Team. Based in the North of the county with office time at Nuneaton Justice Centre and South locality offices, the role offers cross-agency collaboration with Social Workers, Police, Health and Education colleagues.

You will lead meetings, oversee enquiries, and guide families through safeguarding processes while supervising staff and sharing expertise across teams.

Qualifications

• A qualified Social Worker with at least 3 years post-qualification experience in frontline child protection.
• In-depth knowledge of child protection law, statutory requirements, and safeguarding practices.
• Skilled at working with families, including those showing resistance or hostility.
• Ability to make decisions independently, manage risks, and oversee high-risk cases.
• Experience supporting staff through complex assessments and casework.
• Collaborative approach, working effectively with other agencies to deliver high-quality support for children and their families.

Responsibilities

• Lead Child Protection Meetings, including Strategy Meetings and Child Protection Conferences across all teams.
• Oversee Section 47 enquiries, develop and review child protection plans
• Provide advice and support to Social Workers, Family Practitioners, and students
• Conduct reflective supervision and group sessions within the team.

Skills

Frontline child protection

Independent decision making

Risk management

Collaborative multi-agency work

Staff supervision

Education

Professional Social Work qualification

Social Work England registration

Job description

About the Team:

A decisive, multi-agency system where practitioners have the expertise, experience, time and support to identify actual or likely significant harm quickly and accurately and take rapid and effective protective action, whether the harm is inside or outside the home. Where work and interventions are meaningful and practice feels clear and compassionate for children, their parents and their family networks.

Now is an exciting time to be part of our team as Warwickshire begins to embed our Families First teams who support the young people in our County. Our approach is about locality working, multi disciplinary and multi agency teams that support the whole family. Building strong partnerships with local services, Health, Police and Education.

Our Offer to you includes:

• Supportive managers who provide recognition and a robust supervision policy focussed on wellbeing and workload.
• Full reimbursement of Social Work England annual fee.
• A Volunteering & Wellbeing Day in addition to generous annual leave and an additional day at Christmas.
• We also offer a Refer a Friend package for some roles. Terms and Conditions apply

About the Role:

We are looking for a full-time, permanent Lead Child Protection Practitioner to join our new Multi-Agency Child Protection Team.

This will be based in the North of the county, with the office base being Nuneaton Justice Centre but with an expectation that you will also spend time in the South locality offices.

As a Lead Child Protection Practitioner, you will be part of a team that includes Social Workers, Police Officers, Health colleagues, and Education Officers. You will use your skills and experience to identify and assess risk, make child protection decisions, and guide families through the process with a supportive and collaborative approach. You will work closely with the Family Help Lead Practitioner and provide consultation, oversight, and supervision relating to child protection decision making across the team.

You will:

• Lead Child Protection Meetings, including Strategy Meetings and Child Protection Conferences across all teams.
• Oversee Section 47 enquiries, develop and review child protection plans
• Provide advice and support to Social Workers, Family Practitioners, and students, helping to develop practice skills.
• Conduct reflective supervision and group sessions within the team.

Up to £53,769 per annum (Includes a £3,500 pro-rated annual market supplement which is subject to pension, tax and NI deductions Ts&Cs apply). Plus, Relocation Allowance up to £8,000 may be available if the relevant policy criteria are met. Ts&Cs apply)

Key Requirements:

• A qualified Social Worker with at least 3 years post-qualification experience in frontline child protection.
• In-depth knowledge of child protection law, statutory requirements, and safeguarding practices.
• Someone skilled at working with families, including those showing resistance or hostility.
• An ability to make decisions independently, manage risks, and oversee high-risk cases.
• Experience supporting staff through complex assessments and casework.
• A collaborative approach, working effectively with other agencies to deliver high-quality support for children and their families.

Applicants for the role will need a professional Social Work qualification and Social Work England Registration.

Working for Warwickshire – This is the difference you make:

Warwickshire County Council is a place where everyone feels valued, included, safe, supported, and welcome. Our people are at the heart of this vision, could you be one of them!

At Warwickshire County Council we are committed to ensuring Warwickshire’s economy is vibrant and supported by the right jobs, training, skills and infrastructure. Our people vision for Warwickshire County Council is a great place to work where diverse and talented people are enabled to be their best.

Your future matters to us, we provide a generous pension scheme which includes an employer contribution rate of typically around 19 percent per month, to help support your financial security during retirement. The scheme also offers a valuable package of benefits for members and their dependants. To find out more please visit: Warwickshire Pension Fund homepage – Warwickshire Pension Fund.

The benefits we offer include agile working, a valuable part of the pay and reward package for employees working in local government, generous annual leave entitlement, plus bank holidays and an additional day at Christmas, and access to Vivup benefits and discounts platform.

Additional Information:

Warwickshire County Council are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults. Please be advised successful applicants will be subject to a range of pre-engagement checks, including a relevant Disclosure and Barring Service check (DBS). In accordance with the DBS code of practice and our own policy, should an individual have a declared criminal offence an individual assessment will be completed. Warwickshire County Council adheres to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.

The Fluency Duty is outlined in the Code of Practice on the English language requirements for public sector workers. The Fluency Duty for this role is Required. You must be able to speak and provide advice in accurate spoken English to the public.

This role requires employees to undergo Non-Police Personnel Vetting (NPPV). This process ensures that individuals who are not police staff but have physical or remote access to police premises, information, intelligence, financial, or operational assets are assessed for their reliability and integrity. This assessment determines their suitability for clearance to work within police premises.

Closing Date: 28th of September
Interview Date: 1st of October

Warwickshire County Council is committed to equality of opportunity for all employees and is keen to address areas of under representation in its workforce. See more