Senior Practitioner - Children with Disabilities

Luton Borough Council; Luton; On-site; GBP 41,000 - 45,000; Full time

Job summary

Luton Borough Council is seeking a dedicated Social Worker to support children with disabilities. In this pivotal role, you will conduct assessments and work with multidisciplinary teams to ensure the protection and development of vulnerable children and their families. The position offers competitive pay, excellent benefits including annual leave and training opportunities, and a chance to make a significant impact in the community. This role is perfect for compassionate professionals eager to make a difference.

Benefits

25 to 32 days' annual leave

Buying annual leave scheme

Career Pathways

Pension scheme with generous contributions

Generous relocation package

Employee Assistance Programme

Flexible working options

Unlimited access to development courses

Staff offers including discounts

Friday Funday Socials

Qualifications

• Extensive post-qualification experience in social work.
• Ability to manage complex cases with minimal supervision.
• Comprehensive understanding of legislation within Children and Family Services.

Responsibilities

• Conducting assessments, statutory visits, and parenting evaluations.
• Planning and implementing tailored multi-agency interventions.
• Collaborating with internal and external partners for joint casework.

Skills

Social Work

Assessment Skills

Intervention Planning

Team Collaboration

Empathy

Job description

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About the job

Salary: £41,511 - £44,711 a year plus £5,500 market supplement and £963 essential car user allowance (subject to criteria)
Hours per week: 37
Contract type: Permanent

The Children with Disabilities (CWD) service offers a comprehensive service to children with significant learning disabilities, physical disabilities and life limiting health conditions. We put children, young people and their families at the heart of everything we do.

Are you passionate about making a difference in the lives of children, young people, and families? Do you thrive in complex, dynamic environments and bring experience, dedication, and compassion to your work? If so, we'd love to hear from you.

In this pivotal role, you will work closely with children, young people, families, and multidisciplinary teams to provide vital support and protection for those with complex needs and risks. Your responsibilities will include:

• Conducting assessments, statutory visits, and parenting evaluations.
• Planning and implementing tailored, multi-agency interventions.
• Mentoring and coaching less experienced team members.
• Collaborating with internal and external partners for joint casework.
• Driving the development of best practices and procedures aligned with Social Work Professional Standards.
• Supporting management in achieving key performance targets.

Please note this role does not attract sponsorship.

About you

To excel in this role, you will bring extensive post-qualification experience in social work, coupled with the ability to make sound professional judgments and effectively manage complex cases with minimal supervision.

Your expertise in analysing situations, assessing intervention needs, and anticipating critical issues will be key to delivering impactful support.

You should have a comprehensive understanding of legislation and statutory responsibilities within Children and Family Services, as well as a clear grasp of child development, family dynamics, and the unique challenges faced by vulnerable or disabled children.

Additionally, your awareness of the effects of social deprivation and your ability to respond with empathy and professionalism will enable you to address the needs of those you support effectively.

About us

Our ambitious Luton 2040 Vision - that no-one in Luton will have to live in poverty - is at the heart of everything we do. We recognise that our people are remarkable, talented, committed and passionate about serving our residents.

The people of Luton depend heavily on this council - and that means our workforce! Are you ready to realise the remarkable and help us deliver our vision?

Application process

Because of the nature of this job, it will be necessary for the appropriate level of criminal record disclosure to be undertaken. This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and therefore applicants are required to declare all unspent cautions and convictions; and also any adult cautions (simple or conditional), and spent convictions that are not protected as defined by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (as amended in 2020). A person's criminal record will not in itself prevent a person from being appointed to this post. Applicants will not be refused posts because of offences which are not relevant to, and do not place them at or make them a risk in, the role for which they are applying. However in the event of the employment being taken up, any failure to disclose such offence, as detailed above, will result in dismissal or disciplinary action by the Authority.

Additional information

We offer a range of excellent staff benefits which include:

• From 25 to 32 days' annual leave: linked to length of service and grade
• Buying annual leave scheme: buy up to 20 days additional annual leave
• Career Pathways: step up in your career or move into a specialist area
• Pension scheme: with generous employer contributions of up to 20.2 per cent (at July 2023) and 3x salary death in service grant
• Generous relocation package: up to £8,000 (subject to eligibility)
• Employee Assistance Programme: a free, 24/7 confidential counselling and wellbeing support service available to all employees, their partner or spouse and dependent children over 16 still living at home
• Work/life balance: flexible working options including working from home where possible. We welcome requests for flexible working arrangements including part-time hours and alternative working patterns
• Training and support: unlimited access to development courses, mentoring and support and clear career pathways
• Staff offers: includes discounts on your MOT, gym and fitness, restaurants and salons
• Arriva Travel Club: great value savings on local bus travel
• Friday Funday Socials - One Friday every 2 months where we encourage our staff to get together to socialise after work