Social Worker

As a Social Worker working in the Birth to Settled Adulthood team, you will benefit from a strong supportive team culture centred around shared learning and reflective practice. You will be working in a new service where we aim to improve the way we support children and young people with complex needs or who are disabled as they grow into adults. We work with children and young people from birth to 25 years of age to ensure that our young people can progress smoothly at key stages of development in their life, so that by the age of 25 every young person eligible for support from the service will experience a smooth transition into adult services.

You will join a friendly, dedicated, talented and passionate team of social workers, family workers, students and apprentices who value getting things right for children and who use a strengths based restorative approach. Their passion and commitment to children and families is reflected in the performance data which is consistently good. Supervision is a priority, giving considerable focus and attention to ensuring the wellbeing of colleagues while remaining focused on achieving positive outcomes for our children and their family.  

 

What you will be doing: 

You will be working with Disabled Children with severe and complex needs including Autism Spectrum conditions.  Dorset Council sets out a threshold statement about the eligibility criteria for children and young people who are eligible to receive a service.

The team undertake Child and Family assessments of disabled children and their families, and includes:

• Work with families to address safeguarding concerns
• Work with Children in Care.

Where a child’s assessment identifies a need for additional support to enhance wellbeing and functioning, relating to needs arising from a disability, then ongoing support to meet this need can be provided either through child in need planning which may include short breaks out of the home or at lower level through direct payments.

Included in the team is a Direct Payment Team, Young Carers Service and a Paediatric Occupational Therapy Service.  In the last 12 months the service has developed and expanded to include a Preparation for Adulthood Team and  Key Worker Service.  All of the services are available to support children and young people who have eligible needs but not necessarily require a Social Worker.  You will be joining a stable service, where we have a culture of learning and sharing knowledge.

Much of our work is multi- disciplinary and requires a coordinated response between services. So this might be with Health, Children and Young People’s Continuing Health Care,  SEN Case Workers, Specialist Schools, and other clinical and therapeutic practitioners. We also work closely with our colleagues in Adult Services to ensure young people are supported to transition successfully into adulthood.

 

About you: 

You must have a Social Work qualification, be registered with Social Work England, and able to fulfil the travel requirements of the post.

The post is based in the Dorchester and West area, with our office base in Dorchester.

Applications are welcomed for full or part time candidates. Flexible working arrangements can be considered subject to the needs of the service. In person attendance to team and service meetings as well as other meetings as part of the statutory role is expected.

This post requires significant travel. You must have a vehicle (or transport we deem suitable) available for use as needed.

This post involves working with children and/or vulnerable adults and/or having access to significant information about them. It will be subject to a Disclosure and Barring Service check.

You must:

• have a degree in social work 
• be able to fulfil the travel requirements of the post
• have the right to work in the UK

For further information or to discuss the role, please contact  Katie Downes ([email protected]) or Natalie Starr ([email protected]).

At Dorset Council, it's not just about the work we do, it's about how we do it. Hear directly from our employees about what makes Dorset Council special in this short video:

At Dorset Council, we are working together to create a fairer, more prosperous, and more sustainable Dorset for everyone, now and in the future.

We:

• provide essential services that support over 300,000 residents
• work in partnership to make a real difference
• value every role and the impact it has on our communities
• support our employees to grow, develop, and thrive

You will:

• be part of a team that works together for a better Dorset
• have access to a range of benefits and support
• receive training and development opportunities to help your career progress

We are committed to building a diverse and inclusive organisation where different skills, perspectives, and backgrounds strengthen both our council and the communities we serve.

We welcome applications from everyone and are proud to be a Disability Confident Employer. If you declare a disability and meet the essential criteria for the role, we will offer you an interview. We also want our recruitment process to be accessible, if you need any reasonable adjustments, just let us know on your application.

This role is UK-based, and we will need to confirm your Right to Work as part of the appointment process. We use generic job descriptions and person specifications, so the job title in any attachments may differ from the advert. If needed, we will provide additional details in a context statement.

If you’re passionate about making a difference, we’d love you to join us.

Find out more about how to apply.