Senior Practitioner- Fostering Kinship Team

Wmjobs; Birmingham; Hybrid; GBP 40,000 - 52,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Retention payment up to £5,000

30 days annual leave (plus holidays)

Free on-site parking

Employee benefits scheme

Flexible and hybrid working

Local Government pension scheme

Job summary

Birmingham Children’s Trust is seeking a Senior Practitioner to lead the Kinship Support team, overseeing assessments and support to kinship carers and children in care. You will work with a team of social workers to ensure quality practice and positive outcomes.

The role is hybrid and based in Birmingham, offering opportunities to develop practice, influence kinship policy, and contribute to safeguarding and family-centred care.

Qualifications

• Experience leading social work practice at an operational level and providing supervision.
• Broad understanding of kinship fostering and Special Guardianship Order (SGO) regulations.
• Knowledge of national policy and developments in kinship care.
• Commitment to positive outcomes for children and young people with strong leadership capabilities.

Responsibilities

• Lead operational management of a kinship-focused service, ensuring high-quality assessments and support to foster carers.
• Provide supervision to a small team of social workers and support continuous professional development.
• Engage in quality assurance and improvement workshops to enhance practice.
• Manage resources to achieve fostering service aims within the Trust.

Skills

Kinship fostering

Social work leadership

Performance management

Regulatory knowledge

Education

Social Work qualification

Job description

Are you passionate about making a difference in the lives of children and families? Do you have the drive to support and empower young people to achieve their full potential? If so, Birmingham Children’s Trust wants you!

At Birmingham Children’s Trust, we are dedicated in providing outstanding care and support to children and families across Birmingham. Our mission is to ensure every child has the opportunity to thrive in a safe, nurturing environment. We are a dynamic and forward-thinking organisation, committed to innovation and excellence in social work practice.

A rare opportunity has emerged for a permanent Senior Practitioner role within Birmingham Children's Trust's Fostering Service. With national reforms underway and an increased focus on kinship care, it is truly an exciting time to be involved in this area. The Trust has demonstrated a strong commitment to ensuring more children can remain within their family network, a goal that aligns with the evolving landscape of kinship support. If you are passionate about making a difference and eager to be part of these positive changes, this could be a fantastic chance to join us!

The Kinship Support Teams undertake support and supervision of carers following approval as foster carers.

Reporting to the Team Manager Kinship Support team, you will be one of two Senior Practitioners that lead this dedicated and experienced team, providing operational management oversight and professional support to social workers.

You will play a key role in ensuring the delivery of high-quality assessments that identify the strengths, needs, and support requirements of kinship carers, helping to create stable, nurturing environments where children can thrive and achieve the best possible outcomes.

The Kinship support teams consists of 6 Social Workers, 2 Senior Practitioners, and a Social Work Assistant. The service is well established and known for its supportive and collaborative culture. As part of the wider Fostering Management Team, you will join an experienced, permanent leadership group that works closely together and warmly welcomes new colleagues and will be supportive of a secondment and growing and recognising our talented social work staff.

At the heart of this role is a commitment to ensuring that the welfare, safety, and individual needs of children in care remain central to all aspects of fostering support and practice.

Key Responsibilities

In this role, you will:

• Work alongside the Team Manager to operationally manage a child-centred service that complies with all relevant legal, regulatory, and statutory requirements, delivering high-quality assessments, effective support to foster carers, and improved outcomes for children.
• Provide management oversight and supervision to a small number of social workers, ensuring the delivery of high-quality practice and fostering continuous professional development within the team.
• You will take part in quality assurance and practice workshops to continuously improve practice
• Effectively manage allocated resources to deliver the aims and objectives of Birmingham Children's Trust, while contributing to the development of innovative approaches to fostering services.

About you

• Ability to lead and develop social work practice at an operational level through effective performance management.
• Able to demonstrate a good understanding of Kinship fostering and SGO regulations, which equips you to analyse and intervene effectively.
• Have up to date knowledge of national policy, strategy and developments regarding kinship care to promote a culture of continuous learning and development of social work practice within the kinship area of practice.
• You will bring a commitment to achieving positive outcomes for children and young people, alongside the ability to provide effective leadership, support, and professional challenge to your team.

Experience of working with children and families within a safeguarding environment is desirable. You will be responsible for quality assuring practice across the team, ensuring compliance with fostering regulations, statutory guidance, and quality standards, while promoting a culture of continuous improvement and high-quality service delivery.

You will also play an active role in the ongoing development of the service, supporting on key areas of work such as the continued development of our kinship local offer and initiatives to strengthen the recruitment, support, and retention of our foster carers.

This is an excellent opportunity for an experienced and motivated Senior Social Worker who wants to step up into a first line management role, who is passionate about kinship and fostering services and committed to delivering the very best outcomes for children, young people, and their families.

We have been rated as ‘Good’ by Ofsted, following a 2023 inspection. This is a fantastic achievement for Birmingham Children's Trust, with many positive highlights focusing on areas including the quality of staff leadership, partnership working, safeguarding and corporate parenting.

This is a hybrid role based in Birmingham so you must have the correct right-to-work documents to work in the UK. Sadly, we do not support those who require sponsorship or on a VISA.

Additional Information

Interviews will be held in person on12 November 2026.

Our Benefits

• You will receive a retention payment of up to £5,000 (terms and conditions apply).
• A generousannual leave packageof 30 days annual leave, plus bank holidays, rising to 33 days after 5 years of service and 35 days after 10 years of service.
• Free on-site parkingat our offices on One Avenue Road (Aston) and Lifford House (Stirchley). We also provide onsite electric car charging ports which are free to use!
• Full access to our amazinginternal employee benefitsscheme including, Occupational Health services, Rewards Schemes, Benefits discounts (including the Blue Light Card), Health & Fitness and Personal Wellbeing support and much more!
• Flexible and hybrid working policy- we are well adapted to a hybrid model of working which includes a combination of time spent in the office and at home and we offer a variety of working patterns.
• Pension Scheme - You will receive a generous local government career average pension scheme in line with the local government pension scheme.

For further information, feel free to contact Natasha McKenzie (Team Manager) [e-mail]

Help us to change children and young people’s lives

At Birmingham Children’s Trust, we are committed to making a positive impact on the lives of over 10,000 children and young people in our city every day. Our mission is to support the most disadvantaged children and young people in Birmingham, ensuring they are safe, happy, and healthy.

Why Join Us?

• Impactful Work- be part of a team that makes a real difference in the lives of the city’s most vulnerable children.
• Supportive Environment- enjoy a supportive and collaborative work culture where your contributions are valued.
• Career Development- benefit from tailored development programs, supportive supervision, and a range of learning opportunities to enhance your skills and advance your career.
• Generous Benefits- take advantage of our competitive reward package including generous leave allowance, Local Government pension scheme, and additional benefits.

Our Values

We approach our work with care and compassion, actively listening to the needs of the children and young people we serve. We involve them in the decisions that affect their lives, ensuring their voices are heard and respected.

We are committed to using our resources wisely, ensuring that every penny is spent where it counts the most. We foster collaboration among schools, health professionals, and the police, working together to create a supportive network for our young people.

We believe that when we work as one cohesive team, the children and young people of Birmingham are more likely to thrive. Our unified approach ensures that we provide the best possible support and opportunities for their growth and development.

Join us and together, we can create a brighter future for all.

Safeguarding

At Birmingham Children’s Trust, we are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people.

Depending on the role, you may be asked to undertake the appropriate level of Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check to assess your suitability for working with children and young people.

The level of check (Standard, Enhanced, or Enhanced with Barred List) is determined based on the specific responsibilities of the role and the level of contact with children and young people.

We are committed to the fair treatment of all applicants, including those with criminal records. Having a criminal record will not necessarily bar an individual from working with us. This will depend on the nature of the position and the circumstances and background of the offence.

Please note that we reserve the right to close the job early should we reach the required number of applications, therefore please ensure you submit your application and supporting statement early to avoid any disappointment.