Senior Practitioner - Fostering

Leaders in Care; England; On-site; GBP 39,000 - 59,000; Full time

Job summary

Leaders in Care is recruiting a Senior Practitioner to join the Kinship Support Team within a Children’s Trust in the West Midlands. In this leadership role you’ll provide operational oversight and supervision to a small team of social workers, ensuring high-quality assessments and child-centred practice that complies with kinship fostering, SGO regulations and current national policy.

You will drive quality assurance, support professional development, and manage resources to improve outcomes

Qualifications

• Experience leading and developing social work practice at an operational level.
• Strong understanding of kinship fostering and SGO regulations; up-to-date with national policy.

Responsibilities

• Provide management oversight and supervision to a small team of social workers.
• Ensure high-quality assessments identify carers’ strengths, needs and support requirements.
• Support child-centred practice that meets legal, regulatory and statutory requirements.
• Contribute to quality assurance activity and practice workshops.
• Encourage professional development and continuous improvement across the service; manage resources and develop innovative fostering support approaches.

Skills

Leadership experience

Operational management

Supervision of social workers

Education

Social Work qualification

Registration with social work regulator

Tools

Kinship fostering knowledge

Job description

Senior Practitioner – Kinship Support

West Midlands | £33.33 per hour

Are you an experienced social worker with a passion for supporting kinship carers and improving outcomes for children? Ready to take the next step into a supportive leadership role?

Leaders in Care is recruiting a Senior Practitioner to join an established Kinship Support Team within a Children’s Trust in the West Midlands.

With national reforms bringing an increased focus on kinship care, this is an exciting opportunity to help children remain within their family networks and support carers to provide safe, stable and nurturing homes.

The role

• Working alongside the Team Manager and another Senior Practitioner, you’ll provide operational oversight and professional support to an experienced team supporting kinship carers following their approval as foster carers.
• Your responsibilities will include:
• Providing management oversight and supervision to a small number of social workers. Ensuring high-quality assessments identify carers’ strengths, needs and support requirements.
• Supporting child-centred practice that meets legal, regulatory and statutory requirements.
• Contributing to quality assurance activity and practice workshops.
• Encouraging professional development and continuous improvement across the service. Helping manage resources and develop innovative approaches to fostering support.

What you’ll bring

• Experience of leading and developing social work practice at an operational level.
• A strong understanding of kinship fostering and Special Guardianship Order (SGO) regulations. Up-to-date knowledge of national policy and developments in kinship care.
• The ability to offer effective leadership, professional challenge and practical support
• . A commitment to keeping children’s welfare, safety and individual needs at the heart of practice

The team

You’ll join a well-established, collaborative service comprising six Social Workers, two Senior Practitioners and a Social Work Assistant, supported by an experienced fostering leadership team.