Locality Team Leader - Education Welfare Service

Education Authority; Derry/Londonderry; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 50,000; Full time

Job summary

A regional education service in Northern Ireland is seeking a Locality Team Leader to manage a team of Education Welfare Officers (EWO). The successful candidate will ensure effective service delivery that addresses the needs of pupils and families. Responsibilities include supervising officers, risk management, providing leadership, and engaging with various stakeholders. Candidates must possess relevant social work qualifications and have a strong understanding of the education system. This position requires leadership, problem-solving, and communication skills along with experience in supervisory roles.

Benefits

Professional development opportunities

Supportive work environment

Qualifications

• Experience managing teams in social work or education settings.
• Knowledge of statutory functions and legislation.
• Ability to manage staff safety and well-being.

Responsibilities

• Oversee and support a team of Education Welfare Officers.
• Implement an effective service delivery model.
• Advocate on behalf of the Education Authority.

Skills

Leadership

Complex problem-solving

Communication

Interpersonal skills

Education

Relevant social work qualification

Understanding of education system

Job description

JOB PURPOSE

The role of a locality Team Leader within the Education Welfare Service is to ensure effective service delivery by planning, coordinating and managing a team of Education Welfare Officers (10-15 staff) in their work with pupils of compulsory school age and their families. A Team Leader provides leadership and supervision to creatively overcome complex problems through their expertise, developing innovative practice with their staff to address the needs of the service user group. The Team Leader provides advice and guidance to various stakeholders on a range of complex and contentious matters requiring a high degree of support, persuasion and advocacy. The Team Leader acts on behalf of the Education Authority in carrying out its statutory function with regards to the legislation and the Court system. The Team Leader makes decisions within a legal and policy framework and provide feedback to senior management on conflicts that occur within these systems, ensuring that service delivery remains effective and efficient. A Team Leader is required to have the knowledge, skills and values to undertake work of a complex nature with a high level of expertise in both the area of social work and the education system.

MAIN DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

OPERATIONAL MANAGEMENT

Supervision and management of People

• Undertake the supervision of staff within Education Welfare Service Teams (between 10 and 15 Education Welfare officers) adhering to the current EWS supervision policy to ensure that staff case planning and assessment is targeted to the needs of the young person. This will include one to one supervision and group/peer supervision.
• Manage/supervise staff caseloads: Regular direct decision making as regards: prioritising referrals, RAG rating risk; allocation of referrals; transfer/closure of cases; ensuring recordings are accurate & up to date on Capita ONE system. Respond to regular FOI enquiries in timely way.
• Manage and support a mobile team of professional social workers in an Agile working environment to implement an effective service delivery model which incorporates the service’s and EA’s plans to improve outcomes for young people, parents, schools and communities.
• Supervise and support newly qualified social work staff employed as EWO’s who are undertaking their Assessed Year in Employment (AYE) in line with Northern Ireland Social Care Council (NISCC) requirements.
• Facilitate and support student social workers who undertake their practice learning opportunity within the Education Welfare Service (if applicable).
• Support Practice Teachers and On-site supervisors in facilitating social work practice learning opportunities.
• Manage, support and professionally supervise a cohort of EWO staff within a specialist area of the Education Welfare Service.
• Manage and review the EA agile working policy to ensure effective service delivery.
• Manage, oversee and supervise groups of staff to develop and carry out diverse, innovative and preventative work to resolve obstacles to education across a wide range of settings in the primary and post-primary education sector, in partnership with statutory, voluntary and community sectors. Share models of good practice with all relevant stakeholders.
• Oversee the completion of annual partnership agreements between EWO staff and schools, ensuring new EWO staff are introduced to key partners within the school, discussion of EWS outcomes from previous school year, agreed areas for development and attendance statistics for the school provided by the DE Tackling Educational Disadvantage team. Using the partnership agreement meeting to address any outstanding issues identified by the EWO or school.
• Adhere to the EA Staff Attendance Policy for all staff within Education Welfare Service Teams to support staff attendance and well-being and when required will make referrals to EA Occupational Health and liaise with the EA Disability Support Service to ensure appropriate reasonable adjustments are made for staff in the workplace.
• Implement the EA and Education Welfare Service Induction Policy for all newly appointed social work staff employed as EWO’s.
• Risk assess and manage staff safety in line with Lone Working policy, Agile Working policy and Unacceptable Actions policy.
• Ensure team members have knowledge of the EA Customer Standards policy and Education Welfare Service Customer Standards document and are adhering to the standards of service delivery required.
• Support and manage Education Welfare Officer’s wellbeing. Consider impact of deadlines, demands of job, complexity of job and prioritisation of the work.
• Ensure that parents and young people are offered appropriate support and advice from education welfare officers through appropriate intervention via the pathway through casework, supervision and individual support plans and regular review of these. Sign off and ratify all support plans. Oversee thresholds for referrals to Complex Case panels and Court Panels.
• Identify through EWO supervision and team meetings the training needs of EWO’s and help staff to source appropriate training to meet their Continuous Professional Development (CPD) requirements. Ensure EWO’s are meeting Service delivery targets as set out in the EWS Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and Outcome Based Accountability (OBA). Address identified pressures and report progress to the Assistant Head of Education Welfare Service.
• Ensure all EWO’s are registered with Northern Ireland Social Care Council (NISCC) and adhere to the NISCC code of conduct for social work/social care staff as well as the EA Dignity at Work Policy.
• Support social work qualified staff in EWS Teams to meet their Professional in Practice (PIP) requirements as per NISCC policies and procedures.
• Facilitate and support all social work qualified staff and social care staff who are employed by the Education Welfare Service to complete their 90 hours of Post Registration Training and Learning (PRTL) as required by the Northern Ireland Social Care Council (NISCC).
• Quality assure and countersign initial assessments and further assessments within set timeframes.
• Complete file audits to ensure that EWS policies and procedures are adhered to and all necessary documentation is contained on file.
• Implement effective and rigorous quality assurance systems to maintain high standards.

Creativity and Innovation

• Work with and support the Head of Education Welfare Service and Assistant Head of Education Welfare Service with regards to future strategic planning, monitoring and improvement of the service.
• Assist the Head of Education Welfare Service and Assistant Head of Education Welfare Service with the delivery of a clear regional framework for the training of Education Welfare Service staff and school staff.
• Deputize for Assistant Head of Education Welfare Service as required.
• Participate in cross disciplinary & Education Welfare Service working groups to support continuous improvement of the service.
• Develop links with other statutory/voluntary agencies to facilitate enhanced working relationships, communication, participation in multi-disciplinary initiatives and training from other agencies or organisations. Regularly make decisions and recommendations: on regional panels, implementation groups, intra and inter-disciplinary groups, within locality team.
• Sit on locality complex case panels where innovatory thinking is required for the resolution of complex familial situations with view to resolution for pathway forward ensuring the physical, mental, social, financial, environmental and educational wellbeing of children and their families is promoted. This will require high level knowledge of specialist areas within EA and across the statutory, voluntary and community sectors.
• Support the future education of expelled pupils, under the Education and Libraries (NI) Order 1986, through securing a new school placement or making application for EOTAS provision.
• Provide advice and guidance at a local level to schools, other EA Units, Health and Social Care Trusts and other stakeholders in relation to school attendance and issues relating to school attendance. Ensure Team is working in partnership with all stakeholders and, where appropriate, decisions and plans are made in a multi-disciplinary way.
• Represent the EA in the regional AYE multi-agency leadership group in developing standards and governance of AYE staff. Support EWO’s to meet Professional in Practice (PiP) requirements as per NISCC policies and procedures.
• Facilitate capacity building within schools on attendance related matters.
• Support the implementation of effective systems for communication and consultation with families, both internally and externally.

Contacts and Relationships

• Provide leadership and vision as a Locality Team Leader both within locality and across a regional service.
• Respond to queries and to provide advice, support and guidance to school leadership teams and parents/carers in relation to all the factors that can impact on a child’s attendance at school.
• Regularly Chair Team Meetings and disseminate relevant EWS information to Education Welfare Officers through team meetings, supervision, group supervision and other correspondence.
• Mediate and deal with complaints within the locality team and with families and stakeholders.
• Chair multi-disciplinary Education Planning Meetings under the Children (NI) Order 1995, and make decisions where thresholds are met to progress to Court Panel or Complex Case Panels.
• Participate in Education Welfare Service Court Proceedings Panels, making decisions as to whether the threshold for initiating Court proceedings has been met or not.
• Represent EA in Court in relation to parental prosecutions brought before the Magistrates Court and to answer questions in Court as directed by the District Judge.
• In collaboration with legal counsel, oversee and review the application of Education Supervision Orders and ensure that the directions of the Court are carried out by the EWO who is acting as supervising officer. In relation to a breach of the Order, ensure appropriate legal action is taken.
• Undertake work of a complex and diverse nature including Complex Case Panels.
• Liaise and collaborate with colleagues in other EA services to ensure a consistent, coherent and trauma-informed approach, facilitating, when possible, a team around the child to improve attendance and the educational outcomes for those children and young people referred to the Education Welfare Service for support.
• Work collaboratively with the Department of Education (NI), schools, Health & Social Care Trusts, other statutory and voluntary agencies on policy matters relating to attendance.
• To liaise with professionals in Health and Social Care Trust in relation to development of increased multi-agency working with regards to improving school attendance by developing local education partnerships.
• Assist the Head of Education Welfare Service and Assistant Head of Education Welfare Service in developing and building effective local education partnerships with other statutory agencies and organisations, in particular the Health & Social Care Trusts.
• Assist the Head of Education Welfare Service and Assistant Head of Education Welfare Service in effective engagement, capacity building and monitoring arrangements for the Service. Assist the Head of Education Welfare Service and Assistant Head of Education Welfare Service to ensure the structures and processes within the Education Welfare Service are optimal for effective planning and delivery of services in line with EA priorities and identified needs.
• Participate in review processes to enable the development, review and compliance of all quality assurance policies and procedures.
• Facilitate the development of staff skills to enable engagement and collaboration with parents/carers and other professionals.
• Provide advice, guidance, training and support to EA officers, schools, parents and other stakeholders to ensure awareness of research and development regarding school attendance.

Decisions

• Manage and quality assure referrals received by the Education Welfare Service and regularly review the unallocated and unworked referrals to risk manage and prioritise cases for allocation.
• Ensure that Education Welfare Officers have a working knowledge and are adhering to current legislation in relation to school attendance and regulations including child employment and are familiar with the relevant DE Circulars relating to school attendance.
• Ensure Education Welfare Officers have a working knowledge of other specialisms within Education Authority and partner services in the statutory, voluntary and community sectors.
• Ensure Education Welfare Officers complete the necessary paperwork and that reports are prepared and lodged with the Education Welfare Service Court Proceedings Panel according to the required timescales and standards.
• Ensure that decisions in relation to the outcomes of Education Welfare Service Court Proceedings Panels are actioned and summonses are issued as required.
• Be responsible for ensuring that Education Welfare Officers prepare Court reports in the approved format and appropriate timeframe for EA legal services and the Courts.
• Liaise with the Assistant Head of Education Welfare Service and legal team, when concerns arise with regards to a child of compulsory school age who is not registered at a school, to ascertain the need to issue a School Attendance Order.
• Under Article 49 of the Education and Libraries (NI) Order 1986, represent EA at Consultative Meetings, preparing and taking cognisance of the holistic profile of the individual pupils being discussed and will advocate for young people who have been suspended from school and who are at risk of expulsion from school.
• Represent EA at Family Support Hubs or co-ordinate the Education Welfare Service representation at these meetings.
• Represent EA at Children Diversion Forums (Youth Justice Agency) or co-ordinate the Education Welfare Service representation at these meetings.
• Complete referrals to the Community Paediatric Service to gain medical advice on the health of pupils.
• Represent EA at CYPSP Locality Planning Meetings to provide input into local strategic action plans.
• Provide the Head of Education Welfare Service and Assistant Head of Education Welfare Service with the necessary information to respond timely and accurately to subject access requests, complaints and other general queries to fulfill the necessary EA and Freedom of Information requirements.

Resources

• Maintain and manage a petty cash float for spending on small office items and a rewards/voucher scheme for pupils as requested by EWO’s.
• Oversee EWO staff mileage claim forms and be the countersigning officer for these forms.
• Oversee and countersign financial reimbursement claims from EWO’s.
• Approve and authorise translation and interpreter support for EWO’s as required for meetings and home visits and arranging for the payment of these invoices.
• Support the Assistant Head of Education Welfare Service with EWO recruitment and participate in the interview panel and selection process for new Education Welfare Service staff.
• Ensure a fire safety policy is in place for building and updated annually. Ensure that staff complete training annually and are familiar with fire evacuation procedure.
• Ensure files/mobile phones and laptops are maintained securely.