Social Worker - Children in Care

We Manage Jobs(WMJobs); Hereford; On-site; GBP 35,000 - 40,000; Full time

Job summary

Join Herefordshire Council as a Social Worker for the Children in Care teams and play a vital role in enhancing the lives of children and families. Enjoy a competitive salary with generous benefits, including a welcome payment and relocation support. Become part of a dedicated team focused on improvement and co-production, ensuring every child feels secure and valued. Experience a supportive work environment with opportunities for professional development and career progression.

Benefits

Generous holiday entitlement

Access to contributory pension

Flexible working options

Employee Assistance Programme

Professional development support

Career progression opportunities

Payment of professional membership fees

Welcome payment of £10,000

Relocation support of up to £10,000

Flexible working arrangements

Qualifications

• Relevant social work qualification and valid registration with the Social Work England.
• Experience working directly with children and families.
• Strong understanding of safeguarding and child protection issues.

Responsibilities

• Work directly with children in care, advocating for their needs.
• Collaborate with multi-disciplinary teams to deliver effective support.
• Maintain accurate case records and provide reports as needed.

Skills

Communication

Leadership

Empathy

Education

Degree in Social Work

Job description

About The Role
Job Title: Social Worker – Children in Care
Hours:37 per week
Salary:HC8 £35,235 – £39,513 (plus £5,000 market rate supplementper year £40,235 - £44,513)
Welcome payment: £10,000 (see attached guidance)
Relocation package of up to £10,000 available
Contract:permanent

Closing date:23/06/2025

Come and join us on our Restorative Journey of Improvement to gain the best for children and families in Herefordshire

The Role
Hi, my name is Dorine Rai and I am thePermanent Service Manager for the Children in Care Teams in Herefordshire.I am excited to be sharing some opportunities for you to come and join our Children in Care teams. We are making huge progress against our plans for improvement and are looking for passionate and committedSocial Workers for our Children in Care teamswho value the opportunity to work directly with children and families. We have a strong coproduction ethos in the service helping children feel a sense of belonging, security and supporting them to thrive and achieve.
If you would like an informal discussion about the role, please contact me by either phone call, 01432 260665, or via [e-mail]
Working within theChildren & Young People in Care Teamyou will thrive bringing your knowledge and experience to this supportive team, to make a difference. You will work closely with colleagues from multiple professions to ensure that the voice of the child is always heard.
This is an exciting opportunity to have a genuine impact on the local authority and help improve and protect the children and young people within it.
We recognise the importance of feeling valued as a Social Worker and ensure that we celebrate staff achievements, give shout outs to recognise good practice and promote a working environment where staff feel valued, supported and developed in their role. Good training opportunities are regularly provided.
Curious about what it’s really like to be a Social Worker with us?
Want to know what it really feels like to work with our passionate and dedicated Social Work teams? This short video gives you a glimpse into the heart of our service and shows why Herefordshire Council could be the perfect place for your next career move.
https://youtu.be/FSjU-FV5uic
We Offer
A competitive salary, generous holiday entitlement, and access to our contributory pension and staff benefits scheme, which includes:

• Social Worker starting salary:HC8 £35,235 – £39,513 per annum
• Market rate supplement: plus£5,000 per year
• Welcome payment: £10,000 for experienced social workers joining our children’s teams (see attached guidance)
• Relocation packages: support of up to £10,000
• Pension Scheme: Enrolment in the Local Government (LGPS)
• Professional development: protected time and budget to support social workers develop themselves and their careers.
• Career progression: clear pathways to progress to senior social worker level
• Generous Annual Leave:31 days (pro rata) plus bank holidays. You can also purchase an additional 10 days per annum
• Flexible working: flexi-time, job-share, part-time hours and, in some instances, home working
• Employee Assistance Programme: 24/7 access to support and counselling
• Payment of professional membership fees
• Pick your perks – our benefits include access to a range of retail, leisure, holiday and health benefits. This includes savings, cash back and discounts.

About Us

Herefordshire is a beautiful, historic county located in the heart of the Marches on the border with Wales. We are one of the most rural and sparsely populated counties in England with a wealth of unspoilt countryside, distinctive heritage, and lively and attractive market towns.

Our priority in Herefordshire is to keep children safe and give them a great start in life.It’s the priority for the council, our partners and for all of us who work with Children & Young People.
How do we do this?By having dynamic, dedicated, passionate and professional staff who work in a culture that focuses on what we can achieve with children, what they can achieve themselves, and the relationship we build with families and partners to enable this.We have invested heavily in training and developing staff in our relational practice approach with our improvement partner Leeds City Council, so it's an exciting time to join Herefordshire – we believe in investing in you so you can be the best you can be!
Herefordshire has a really strong team ethos. Our teams are passionate about the work they do and the positive difference they and the teams they are in make to people’s lives.This is all underpinned by the focus and support from their managers and the council as a whole.
We will deliver better support to our most vulnerable children and their families, develop stronger relationships with partners across the region, and beyond.
Therefore, we take our commitment to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults seriously and expect all of our staff, visitors and volunteers to share in this commitment.
Come to Herefordshire and join the journey.
Herefordshire Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children & young people and vulnerable adults. If you are offered this position, it will be subject to a Disclosure and Barring Service enhanced check and further pre-employment checks.
We welcome applicants whatever their personal characteristics or social identity. All requests for flexible working arrangements and reasonable adjustments will be considered.
The following candidates will be interviewed if they meet the essential criteria for the post they are applying for:

• Those who indicate that they have a disability. This is part of our commitment to the “Disability Confident” scheme;
• Those who indicate in their supporting statement that they serve in the Armed Forces, whether Regular or Reserve, those who have served in the past, or their families. This is part of our pledge to support the Armed Forces Covenant;and
• Those who indicate in their supporting statement that they are a Herefordshire care leaver. This is part of our commitment to supportingyoung people leaving our care.

Please refer to the Job Description and Person Specification for more details of this role.
To apply, please submit your CV and complete thesupporting statement within the application form, referring to the job description & person specification,detailing how you meet the specific requirements of the role.