Team Manager - Children in Care, Mid Essex

ESSEX COUNTY COUNCIL; Chelmsford; On-site; GBP 54,000 - 67,000; Full time

Job summary

A local government authority in Chelmsford seeks a Team Manager to lead a team of social workers, ensuring the delivery of high-quality professional services. Responsibilities include supervising staff, quality assurance of social work reports, and fostering collaborative relationships with community partners. The ideal candidate will have a recognised social work qualification and significant experience in a social care setting.

Qualifications

• Registered Social Worker with Social Work England.
• Significant experience within a Social Care setting.
• Experience supervising Social Work students or newly qualified professionals.

Responsibilities

• Lead a team of social workers providing high-quality services.
• Oversee quality assurance of social work reports.
• Handle complaints from service users in a constructive manner.

Skills

Leadership skills

Team motivation

Communication

Decision making

Inter-agency collaboration

Education

Recognised social work qualification (Diploma, degree or master's)

Job description

Fixed term contract, 12 months

Full Time, 37 hours per week

£54,001 to £66,899 per annum

Location:Chelmsford

Here in Essex, we continue to raise the bar about practice and our investment in our workforce is second to none. It’s an exciting time to join us. Not only have we been named Outstanding by Ofsted. We are also delighted and at the same time humbled to have been crowned Social Work Employer of the Year for the second time in the last three years!

Children and Families is recognised as a service in which social work can develop and prosper, with a culture of collaboration, integrity and compassion; promoting development and wellbeing of children, young people and their families; protecting them from neglect and abuse. Working together with partners delivering a range of early help, family support and effective social work interventions which build resilience, remove barriers and enable children and young people to look forward to a brighter future.

The Team Manager leads team, developing and promoting capabilities and holding them accountable for performance and delivering improvements. Working with the Service Manager, contributing to the development of strategy and ensuring a service which adapts responsively to change.

With proven ability to focus on results, develop innovative solutions and build strong working relationships, this leader will possess a deep understanding of working in a challenging social and financial environment.

Children in Care (CIC)

Our Children in Care teams work with children and young people up to the age of 18 who are in care – those who are either placed with foster carers or who live in residential homes. They work with the children and young people to ensure their experiences.

The role

• Lead a team of social workers to deliver a high-quality professional service with positive outcomes.
• Accountable for individual performance, quality assurance, resources and budgets.
• Accountable for the practice of social workers within the team, providing professional and practice supervision, using available tools to address underperformance and coaching to enhance the quality of the practice.
• Responsible for development of individuals to maximise the capability and performance across the team.
• Responsible for the oversight and quality assurance of a range of social work reports and court statements.
• Responsible for responding to complaints and other feedback from service users in accordance with policy and in a way that fosters positive relationships.
• Lead inter-agency collaborative working, where a social work perspective is used to inform and drive decision making. Establishing and developing effective approaches to integrated working with partners, communities and the voluntary sector, to achieve successful outcomes for service users.
• Develop the training and tactical service delivery plan for the team.
• Use expertise and professional knowledge to provide advice and guidance for complex cases in line with legislative and organisational standards.
• Specific individual and shared targets and objectives are defined annually within the performance management framework.

The Experience You Will Bring

• A recognised social work qualification i.e. Diploma, degree or master’s in social work, CQSW, CSS or equivalent, with current registration with Social Work England as a registered social worker.
• Evidence of continuing professional development, aligned to any relevant Professional Competency/Capability frameworks or Knowledge and Skills Statements.
• Significant experience within a Social Care setting with evidence of challenging social and family situations.
• Experience of supervision of Social Work students and/or newly qualified Social Workers, possessing strong leadership and behavioural skills, with the ability to forge a highly performing and motivated team from diverse backgrounds, to deliver local objectives and work to required professional standards.
• Developing strong relationships with partners, other agencies and the local community to achieve joint objectives and offer a supportive framework for children and their families.
• Recognise the financial implications of care packages commissioned.
• Evidence of clear decision making in order to highlight and limit the potential risks associated with intervention.
• Knowledge of relevant legislation and experience of legal processes including care proceedings