Social Worker - Adult Early Help Team

Cambridgeshire County Council; St. Ives; On-site; GBP 32,000 - 42,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

6 CPD days per year

Refer a Friend £350

Pension scheme

Annual leave

Job summary

Cambridgeshire County Council is seeking a qualified social worker to join the Adult Early Help (AEH) Team. You will contribute to a prevention-focused approach, screen referrals, and support carers, ensuring timely access to the right services across Cambridgeshire.

You will collaborate with multidisciplinary colleagues, follow Care Act principles, and promote wellbeing through strengths-based practice. A great place to work with development opportunities and inclusive culture.

Qualifications

• Qualified Social Worker with current Social Work England Registration.
• Good working knowledge of the Care Act 2014 and Mental Capacity Act 2005.
• Experience of multi-disciplinary working to enable best outcomes for individuals.
• Strong communication skills and a confident telephone manner; ability to work on your own initiative.

Responsibilities

• Triaging referrals sent to adult early help.
• Screening and triaging referrals to ensure timely responses.
• Working within a 'front door' team and supporting colleagues.
• Contributing to safeguarding referrals and identifying risks to vulnerable adults.
• Working with unpaid carers to understand needs and plan conversations.
• Signposting to preventative and community services.

Skills

Interdisciplinary collaboration

Strong communication

Assessment & planning

Care Act 2014 knowledge

Mental Capacity Act knowledge

Education

Bachelor's degree in Social Work

Job description

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a qualified social worker to join our fast-paced and supportive team. The role is full time and permanent, within our Adult Early Help (AEH) Team. As part of our wider Prevention and Early Intervention Service, you will play a key role in promoting independence, wellbeing, and positive outcomes for people across Cambridgeshire Our multidisciplinary teams are made up of Social Workers and Adult Support Coordinators with a wealth of experience and diverse backgrounds. We foster a collaborative and supportive environment where colleagues work together to support individuals, families, and carers, whilst sharing knowledge of preventative and community-based services available across the county. This role is a rewarding opportunity for a social worker who enjoys working in a dynamic environment, values strengths-based practice, and is passionate about helping people access the right support at the right time. As a council, Cambridgeshire County Council supports staff to identify their professional development needs and offers a wide range of training and apprenticeship opportunities We are proud to serve the diverse communities of Cambridgeshire and want our workforce to be reflective of this diversity, which we believe benefits our employees, the organisation and our communities Interviews will be held during the week commencing 16 November 2026., The Adult Early Help Team is often the first point of contact for adults aged 18 and over who are seeking support from Adult Social Care. The team undertakes assessments, supports unpaid carers through strengths-based conversations and planning, and helps individuals access the right support at the earliest opportunity. Working within the team's duty function, you will be responsible for effectively screening and triaging referrals, ensuring timely responses and appropriate pathways to support.

Overall, this is a prevention-focused social work role, aimed at helping people access the right support at the earliest opportunity and avoiding unnecessary escalation to long-term statutory services where appropriate., We value our colleagues in Cambridgeshire County Council and have developed a number of benefits in addition to the basics like annual leave, sick pay, pension and mileage…

• Triaging referrals that are sent to adult early help
• Supporting your team colleagues in working within a 'front door' team
• Developing community action plans
• Working with unpaid carers to understand their needs and undertake carers' conversations and planning.
• Contributing to safeguarding referrals and identifying risks to vulnerable adults.
• Assessing and applying the principles of the Mental Capacity Act, including consideration of an individual's ability to make decisions.
• Using a strengths-based approach, exploring personal networks, community resources and voluntary sector support before considering formal services.
• Working closely with colleagues in:
• Adult Social Care
• Health services
• Prevention and Early Intervention services
• Ensuring people receive timely signposting to appropriate preventative and community services.
• Supporting the Care Act principle of "prevent, reduce and delay" the development of care and support needs.
• A comprehensive wellbeing package to cover all aspects of wellbeing, both in and out of work, which can also be accessed by your family
• 6 days of protected time each year to support in maintaining your Continuous Professional Development
• A pay progression scheme to enable you to accelerate through the pay grade as you gain experience and skills
• A Refer a Friend Scheme where if you refer another Social Worker to us who is subsequently employed by us as a result of that introduction, we'll pay you an introduction fee of £350
• Access to development opportunities, apprenticeships and qualified coaches to support your personal and professional growth, Our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy, along with our employee network 'IDEAL' and self-organised peer support groups help us to foster an inclusive, supportive and safe working environment where people feel valued, respected, and empowered. We collect relevant diversity data for monitoring as part of the recruitment process to understand the diversity of our applicants and monitor any trends throughout the recruitment processes so that we can take meaningful action.
• You must be a Qualified Social Worker with current Social Work England Registration

You will need a good working knowledge of the Care Act 2014 and Mental Capacity Act 2005. Experience of multi-disciplinary working to enable best outcomes for individuals is key. It is imperative that you have strong communication skills, a confident telephone manner and can work on your own initiative. Good planning and organisation skills will be key, and you should be used to working under pressure to meet deadlines, allowing flexibility and resilience.

Cambridgeshire is a great place to work and live with a diverse population, an urban centre in Cambridge, historic Isle of Ely, Huntingdon and St Ives as well as more rural landscapes.