Child Protection Permanency Caseworker

County of Weld; Greeley (CO); On-site; USD 45,000 - 62,000; Full time

Job summary

County of Weld in Colorado is seeking a Child Welfare Specialist to perform professional casework under supervision, delivering ongoing child protective services to families with open cases. The role focuses on safety, permanency, and well-being through structured plans and clear objectives, with a strong emphasis on reunification strategies and court testimony when needed.

Work is in-office with possible telework after training, requiring regular attendance Mon-Fri 8:00–5:00.

Qualifications

• Experience in professional social casework techniques and safety planning.
• Ability to build trust with families and collaborate with professionals.

Responsibilities

• Provide ongoing case management with families and other professionals.
• Access safety, permanency, and well-being through monthly in-person contacts.
• Monitor and assist families to remove barriers to permanency.
• Promote permanency goals with parents, relatives, or through adoption within 12 months.
• Prepare and present clear court letters and testimony when required.

Skills

Case management

Court reports writing

Clear communication

Bilingual English/Spanish desirable

Job description

Compensation Range

$32.99 - $42.88 --

Job Description Summary

Position closes 11/09

Apply learned and trained knowledge and abilities in professional casework under the direct supervision and oversight of identified Child Welfare staff. Provide ongoing child protective services to families with open cases including case management, ongoing safety management and treatment planning with the primary goal to strengthen the ability of families to protect and care for their own child/youth, prevent continued and future involvement with the child welfare system and ensure permanency planning. Promote safety, permanency, and well-being for the child/youth with a family plan that contains clear objectives, action steps and outcomes to facilitate reunification and the prevention of future out of home placement or ongoing child protection involvement.

Work office will be established, but employee may perform work on the Greeley Campus or at one of the other satellite offices when required. Reliable, predictable, attendance Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Attendance outside of standard business hours may be required depending on business needs. This position is in-person and may be eligible for occasional telework options upon successful completion of initial training and demonstration of high work performance. Work may involve time away from a standard office environment, which may consist of driving to and from home visits and in transporting children. Work may occur in situations in client's homes, which could be considered a hostile or unsanitary environment. After hours or on call work situations may occur on occasion to provide support to families that need services outside of normal business hours.

Entry level: $32.99-$42.88
Journey level: $33.28-$44.93

Ideal candidate traits:

• Keeps children's need for timely permanency at the center of decisions
• Builds trusting relationships with parents, children/youth, kin, and foster families
• Strong writer, able to produce clear, accurate court reports
• Comfortable testifying and presenting recommendations in court
• Works collaboratively with GALs, attorneys, therapists, and community partners
• Trauma-informed and culturally responsive
• Resilient and emotionally grounded in difficult situations
• Believes in families' capacity to change while staying focused on child safety
• Bilingual (English Spanish) desirable --

Job Description

Entry Level: A training level position with intensive supervision and/or coaching by the County Department in which assignments are limited to fifty percent (50%) of the county's average caseload or ten (10) assessments/cases at any given time, whichever is less, are planned and devised to develop and teach professional social casework techniques, basic foundations, and concepts appropriate to the assigned areas. The Entry Level position is not exempt from the minimum wage and overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Journey Level: A novice level position with intensive supervision and/or coaching by the County Department. Caseload will gradually increase throughout a 12-month period and will be capped to seventy-five percent (75%) of the county's average caseload or fourteen (14) assessments/cases at any given time, whichever is less. Trainings plans are devised to develop and teach professional social casework techniques, basic foundations, and concepts appropriate to the assigned areas. The Journey Level position is exempt from the minimum wage and overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Assessment and Case Management - 60%

• Provide professional ongoing case management by working with family and other professionals to develop and modify treatment plans that address the safety and risk issues identified during the intake assessment.
• Access safety, permanency, and well-being through monthly face to face contacts and engagement with child/youth, parents, and caregivers.
• Monitor and assist the family in identifying and eliminating barriers to case and/or treatment plan progress and timely permanency.
• Promote and advocate for achieving permanency with parents or with relatives or through adoption within 12 months of the case opening.
• Testify at corresponding hearings in a clear and concise manner.
• Complete court letters thoroughly, accurate, and timely.
• Complete all case documentation accurate and timely. This includes records of contact, safety and risk assessments, case closure, and other case related documentation.
• Provide resources and referrals of families to other community agencies and services.
• Serve as liaison with other community agencies to facilitate services.
• Place and monitor children into out of home placements such as foster or kinship care when in need of emergency substitute care.
• Has clear and necessary communication with the care providers to ensure they have the information needed to care for the children properly.
• Maintain contact with the care provider throughout the duratio