Strengthening Families Practitioner - North

Recruitment Hub; Wellingborough; On-site; GBP 26,000 - 34,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

28 days annual leave

Bank Holidays (pro rata)

Additional 5 days after 5 years

Life cover 3x salary (LGPS)

Ill-health pension protection

Employee Assistance Programme

Employee discounts

Flexible and family working

Career development

Subsidised town centre parking

Job summary

Northamptonshire Children’s Trust is seeking a Strengthening Families Practitioner to join our Family Support Services in the North Northants locality (Wellingborough or Kettering). The role offers an 18-month fixed-term contract and involves delivering intensive support to families with complex needs using a Family Help approach and multi‑agency collaboration.

You will assess needs, plan tailored interventions, and lead Team Around the Family meetings while maintaining safeguarding commitments

Qualifications

• A Level 3 qualification in working with children, young people and families or substantial experience in this area.
• Experience delivering preventative work with children and families.
• Commitment to safeguarding and promoting welfare of children and young people.

Responsibilities

• Carry out whole-family needs and risk assessments and develop tailored support plans.
• Coordinate services and partner agencies to ensure families receive the right support at the right time.
• Work in families' homes using creative, evidence‑based interventions to bring about positive change.
• Write assessments and support plans, building positive relationships with families.
• Lead Team Around the Family meetings and contribute to safeguarding processes and multi‑agency meetings.
• Provide practical advice on parenting, child development, housing and employment support.

Skills

Interpersonal skills

Communication skills

Organisational skills

Evidence-based interventions

Partnership working

Creativity

Initiative and teamwork

Education

Level 3 qualification in working with children, young people and families

Job description

Our benefits

We are committed to continuous improvement, building a skilled, knowledgeable, and flexible workforce alongside promoting innovation and creativity whilst keeping children, young people and families at the heart of all we do.

We really value our workforce and offer you a great benefits package including:

• 28 days annual leave, plus 8 Bank Holidays (pro rata for part time) and an additional 5 days, after 5 years
• Local Government Pension Scheme plus immediate life cover (3 times your annual salary from day one) and ill-health pension protection.
• Opportunity to purchase up to 25 days annual leave
• Employee Assistance Programme - We have an employee support programme run by Health Assured, an independent, external organisation. Health Assured is available for you and your immediate family members, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year and includes telephone counselling, legal advice, bereavement support and medical information.
• Employee discounts with local and national retailers, days out, finance, health and beauty, travel and eating out plus lots more.
• Flexible and family working arrangements including enhanced maternity benefits
• A permanent, supportive and inclusive management team where you will be empowered to make good professional decisions
• Extensive Learning & Development and career development opportunities
• Subsidised town centre car parking scheme

About the role

Do you have the skills and experience to build positive, trusting relationships with parents, children, and young people-helping them make positive changes and improve life opportunities?

We have an exciting opportunity for an enthusiastic, self-motivated individual with excellent interpersonal, communication, and organisational skills to join our dedicated team as a Strengthening Families Practitioner.

Strengthening Families is part of our Children and Family Support Services. Using a multi‑agency approach, the service offers intensive support to children, young people and families with identified complex needs, to support and empower them to achieve good outcomes. The service delivers a range of interventions from direct work with families using a Family Help approach, to parenting and domestic abuse groups, and works collaboratively with partners to create a supportive team around the family to help families to sustain changes.

You’ll be based in one of the Family Hubs in the North Northants locality (Wellingborough or Kettering) working as part of a hard‑working team committed to improving outcomes for families.

We welcome interest from both new applications and those who applied previously as long as the gap between applications is more than 3 months.

Tthis is an 18 month fixed term contract until March 2028

What will you be doing?

You will:

• Carry out whole-family needs and risk assessments and develop tailored support plans.
• Coordinate services and partner agencies to ensure families receive the right support at the right time.
• Have extensive, hands‑on experience in preventative work with children and families facing escalating, complex needs.
• Work intensively with families in their homes, using creative and evidence‑based interventions to bring about positive change.
• Have excellent communication skills, written and verbal. You must be able to write assessments and support plans by building positive relationships with families.
• Provide practical advice and interventions around parenting, child development, household routines, and access to health, housing, and employment support.
• Participate in safeguarding processes, case reviews, and multi‑agency meetings and have a good understanding and experience of partnership working.
• Work on your own initiative and as part of a team
• Lead Team Around the Family meetings
• Your work will make a real difference‑helping families overcome challenges and achieve better outcomes for their children.

About you

• You're passionate about supporting families and have:
• Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal-you can build strong relationships and write clear assessments and support plans.
• A good understanding of evidence‑based interventions and how they support positive change.
• Experience of partnership working and the ability to collaborate effectively with other professionals.
• Flexibility and creativity in the support you offer to families.
• The ability to work on your own initiative and as part of a team.
• A Level 3 qualification in working with children, young people, and families or substantial experience in this area.
• Commitment to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people.

If you're ready to make a difference and meet the qualifications, knowledge, and skills outlined in the job specification, we'd love to hear from you.

This role is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and therefore subject to an enhanced DBS certificate. It is also a regulated activity and will be subject to a Barred List check

About us

At Northamptonshire Children’s Trust, children, young people and families are at the heart of everything we do. Every decision we make and every action we take is guided by our commitment to delivering high‑quality services that make a lasting difference to the lives of children, young people and families across Northamptonshire.

We know that our people are our greatest strength. Our workforce is at the centre of our success, and we are committed to creating an environment where colleagues feel valued, supported and empowered to do the best job of their lives every day. We foster a culture built on kindness, collaboration and trust, where achievements are recognised, ideas are welcomed and innovation is encouraged.

We are proud of the positive impact we make together and delighted that our work has been recognised by Ofsted, with an Outstanding rating for Leadership and Management and Good ratings across Help and Protection, Children in Care and Care Leavers.

At NCT equality, diversity and inclusion are part of us and in everything we do, to enable all colleagues to develop and thrive in our organisation. We are a Disability Confident employer and have a commitment to care leavers, who we guarantee an interview if they meet the essential criteria.

If you are passionate about making a difference and want to be part of an ambitious, supportive and forward‑thinking organisation, Northamptonshire Children’s Trust could be the place for you.

Supporting Children – A Career That Matters

Attached documents:

• JD_PS Strengthening Families Practitioner 2810 (3).pdf – Job Description and Person Specification