Senior Practitioner

Milton Keynes; Milton Keynes; On-site; GBP 50,000 - 54,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Great holiday benefits

Local Government Pension Scheme

Family-friendly policies

Salary sacrifice car scheme

Blue Light Card discounts

Job summary

Milton Keynes City Council is seeking a Senior Practitioner to join the Family Support Team. You will manage complex children’s cases, provide expert social work guidance, mentor colleagues and contribute to service improvements while ensuring safeguarding and wellbeing of children and families.

The role is site-based in Milton Keynes, with interviews on 18 December 2026. A driving licence and vehicle access are required, plus DBS checks and Safeguarding compliance.

Qualifications

• Qualified social worker with current registration with Social Work England.
• Ability to assess complex family circumstances, identify risk and develop robust care plans.
• Experience supervising or mentoring social workers and other professionals.

Responsibilities

• Take responsibility for complex and sensitive children’s social care cases, completing effective assessments, care planning and interventions to support children’s safety, development and wellbeing.
• Provide expert social work advice and guidance, mentoring colleagues and supervising the casework of social workers, social work assistants, students and other professionals as required.
• Work with managers to resolve complex or contentious case issues, assess risk and ensure timely action to safeguard children and young people.
• Support allocation, prioritisation and planning of caseloads for a consistent and effective service.
• Lead or contribute to service development, quality audits, policies and procedures, sharing current legislation and good practice.
• Represent the Council in complex public and private law proceedings as required, including preparing court statements and giving oral evidence.

Skills

Mentoring colleagues

Risk assessment

Case management

Communication skills

Education

Degree in Social Work

Diploma in Social Work

Certificate of Qualification in Social Work

Job description

# Vacancies Senior Practitioner## Job IntroductionWe’re recruiting a Senior Practitioner to join our Family Support Team, helping children and families with complex needs achieve greater safety, stability and wellbeing. You’ll manage complex cases, using your social work experience to make confident decisions and deliver effective support for children and their families.You’ll also play an important role in strengthening practice across the team. You’ll provide professional guidance and mentoring to colleagues, support them with challenging casework and work closely with Team Managers to manage risk and resolve complex issues.This is a rewarding role for an experienced, qualified and registered social worker who wants to combine direct practice with developing others and contributing to improvements across the service.At Milton Keynes City Council, we’re working to make our city a better place to live. Our values of Dedicated, Respectful and Collaborative shape how we work with children, families, partners and each other.**Site-Based role**This is a Site-Based role, and you’ll be expected to work from the designated workplace.**Interviews for this role will be held on 18th December 2026**Please note, interviews are held in person.**Additional Payments**A **£6,000 Golden Hello payment** (pro rata for part-time roles).Paid as a one-off payment and **Retention Payment of up to £4,000 per year**, paid retrospectively in two equal instalments of up to £2,000.Payment of your Social Work England professional registration fee.***All subject to eligibility criteria***At Milton Keynes City Council, we aim to make a difference every day. We’re dedicated, respectful and collaborative. We act as one council, and we work hard to create cleaner, safer and healthier communities while tackling inequalities and supporting people to thrive.Find out more about working with us here: **www.mkcounciljobs.org.uk**### Main Responsibility* Take responsibility for complex and sensitive children’s social care cases, completing effective assessments, care planning and interventions to support children’s safety, development and wellbeing.* Provide expert social work advice and guidance, mentoring colleagues and supervising the casework of social workers, social work assistants, students and other professionals as required.* Work with managers to resolve complex or contentious case issues, assess risk and make sure timely action is taken to safeguard children and young people.* Support the allocation, prioritisation and planning of caseloads, helping the team provide a consistent and effective service.* Lead or contribute to service development, quality audits, policies and procedures, while sharing current legislation, research and good practice with colleagues.* Represent Milton Keynes City Council in complex public and private law proceedings where required, including preparing court statements and care plans and giving oral evidence.### The Ideal Candidate* A qualified social worker with a Degree in Social Work, Diploma in Social Work, Certificate of Qualification in Social Work or equivalent, with current registration with Social Work England.* Bringing strong specialist knowledge of children’s social care, you’ll understand relevant legislation, policy, research and good practice and know how to apply these to complex situations.* Confident when situations are challenging, you can assess complex family circumstances, identify and respond to risk, solve problems and develop robust care plans.* An effective and thoughtful communicator, you can explain complex or sensitive issues clearly, ask challenging questions when needed and work constructively with children, families, colleagues and professional partners.* Ready to share your expertise, you’ll support, supervise and mentor colleagues, help evaluate practice and contribute to a supportive culture where everyone can continue to develop.**Full UK Driving Licence and access to a vehicle**To be successful in this role, you’ll need a full UK driving licence and access to a vehicle. If we offer you the role, we’ll ask you to provide evidence of your driving licence and vehicle insurance, including cover for business use. We’re unable to confirm an appointment until these documents are received.**Safer Recruitment**Safer Recruitment applies to this role. This means that, before any appointment is confirmed, we’ll carry out a range of pre-employment checks to help ensure the safety and wellbeing of children, young people and vulnerable adults. These checks may include identity verification, where candidates will be required to provide original identification documents, including a full birth certificate, employment history and reference checks, qualification checks and an **Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check**, (unless you are currently registered with the DBS Update Service). check where required.### Package DescriptionIn addition to your salary, we offer a range of benefits including:* Great holiday benefits - most roles include 28 days annual leave every year on top of public (bank) holidays, increasing to 32 days after five years. In addition, there is a holiday purchase scheme allowing staff to purchase up to 5 additional days of leave each year.* Excellent pension - everyone who works for us can join the national Local Government Pension Scheme, widely regarded as one of the best available.* A full range of family friendly policies including enhanced maternity, adoption and paternity support.* Access to an award-winning employee benefits programme that includes a health cash plan, a low-cost bike purchase scheme as well as high street discounts and money off entertainment and travel.* Salary sacrifice car scheme - eligible employees can lease an electric or low-emission vehicle at a reduced cost through salary sacrifice, subject to National Minimum Wage and other eligibility requirements.* Blue Light Card - employees working within social care can qualify for an additional range of discounts from national retailers and local businesses.Why join us? Along with more on our Benefits, discover why Working at the City Council could be the right move for you here **Working at the Council | Milton Keynes****Roles are either ‘site based’ or ‘home based’.**Site based roles are mainly based at the workplace, with the option to work from home for up to two days a week, depending on service needs.Home based roles are mainly based at home, with the expectation of attending the workplace up to one day a week.The working arrangement for each role is set by the manager, based on service requirements.### About The OrganisationMilton Keynes City Council is a large, modern and financially stable employer with around 2,500 people working across our eight areas. Together we provide local residents and businesses with a wide range of important round-the-clock services and aim to make our city a better place to live.We work hard because of the demands placed on us, like protecting children from harm or preventing homelessness. However, working for the city is always rewarding and everyone has the opportunity to make a real difference.We’re very proud of our diversity and are committed to having a workforce that reflects the community we serve. Whatever your background, you will be welcome here if you share our values of being dedicated, respectful and collaborative.We offer great training and support and because of the size and scale of the organisation there are always new opportunities to explore when it’s time for a new role.If you’d like to know more about how we do things and what matters to us, take a look at our **short booklet** What makes us Milton Keynes City Council, see attached.Please note that this role is not eligible for visa sponsorship. Applicants must already have an independent and unrestricted right to work in the UK, without the need for employer sponsorship now or in the future.### Attached documents* What makes us MKCC 2026.pdf* JE0098 Senior Practitioner.docxApply+− OpenStreetMap contributors### Senior Practitioner* **Salary** £49,817 - £54,143 + Golden Hello for eligible candidates* **Frequency** Annual* **Job Reference** mkc/TP/237/2264* **Contract Type** Permanent* **Working Hours** 37* **Closing Date** 13 December, 2026* **Job Category** Children's Services* **Business Unit** Children's Services- Social Work - Family Support Teams* **Location** Civic Offices, 1 Saxon Gate East, Central Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, United Kingdom* **Interview Date(s)** 18/12/2026* **Posted on** 12 November, 2026