You will play a pivotal role in ensuring that Child Protection Plans are developed, reviewed, and implemented to a consistently high standard. Through effective scrutiny and quality assurance oversight, you will monitor practice across the safeguarding partnership, ensuring statutory responsibilities are met, plans progress without unnecessary delay, and children remain at the centre of all decision-making.

Working as part of Coventry's Quality Assurance Service, you will contribute to the continuous improvement of safeguarding practice by identifying themes, highlighting areas of good practice, and providing constructive challenge when required. You will work closely with managers and practitioners across Children's Services and partner organisations to promote a culture of learning, accountability, and excellent practice.

At Coventry, our Family Valued approach underpins everything we do. We are committed to working with families in a collaborative, strengths-based way. As a Child Protection Conference Chair, you will be central to ensuring that children, young people, and families are meaningfully involved in the child protection process. You will actively promote participation and engagement, making every reasonable effort to ensure that children and families feel listened to, respected, and empowered to contribute to decisions that affect their lives.

Joining Coventry means becoming part of a service that is ambitious for its children and committed to delivering high-quality practice. You will have the opportunity to work within a supportive and forward-thinking organisation that values innovation, learning, and continuous improvement, while making a real difference to the lives of children and families across the city.

This post is exempted under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and as such appointment to this post will be conditional upon the receipt of a satisfactory response to a check of police records via Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS).

The successful applicant will need a relevant social work qualification and be registered with Social Work England.

This is a 30 hour a week post.

Who are we looking for?

• A recognised social work qualification and registration with Social Work England.
• Significant post-qualifying experience within children's social care and safeguarding services.
• Experience of providing management, supervisory, mentoring, or quality assurance oversight.
• Strong communication and relationship-building skills, with the ability to work effectively across a range of services and partner agencies.
• The ability to analyse complex information, assess risk, and make sound professional decisions.
• Confidence in providing constructive challenge and holding professionals accountable for delivering positive outcomes for children.
• Experience of monitoring, reviewing, and tracking plans to ensure progress is achieved and children's needs remain the focus.
• A commitment to hearing and promoting the voice of the child and ensuring children and families are actively involved in decision-making.

At Coventry, our family valued approach and relational practice are central to everything we do. We believe that meaningful relationships, collaboration, and a strengths-based approach help families create lasting change. We are looking for someone who shares these values and is committed to keeping children at the heart of every conversation, decision, and plan.

This is a fantastic opportunity to join a supportive and ambitious Quality Assurance Service, where your expertise, leadership, and professional judgement will help continue to shape excellent safeguarding practice and improve outcomes for children and young people across Coventry.

Guaranteed Interview Scheme

• As part of our commitment to inclusion, we offer guaranteed interviews for specific groups of people. To qualify, you'll need to meet the minimum requirements for the role and identify with one of the below criteria:
  • Members of the Armed Forces and veterans
  • Are currently in care or have previously been in care
  • If you consider yourself to be disabled or if you have a long-term health condition

For full details on the application process please read the attached document on our jobs page labelled 'Coventry City Council Application Process'. If there is any evidence of a candidate using AI to complete their application, then the application will be rejected unless the candidate can provide a justification which the Council considers to be reasonable.

If you would like to have an informal discussion or have ask any questions regarding this opportunity, please contact Joshua Burnall - Quality Assurance Service Manager. joshua.burnall@coventry.gov.uk

Interview date(s): 24th of September 2026

About Coventry

Coventry has a proud, innovative and creative spirit that throughout its history has seen communities come together to tackle problems and bring about real social change.

We are cutting-edge, challenging, youthful, vibrant and diverse.

At Coventry we are committed to excellence in everything we do. With around 5100 staff from a range of different backgrounds, our aim is to recruit and develop talented people who will focus on our customers, take responsibility, work together and find better ways of doing things.

To deliver the best services to our residents, we need the best people working for us to make a difference to our communities.

If you join us, we will provide a fantastic rewards and benefits package - to find out more please visit https://www.coventry.gov.uk/council-vacancies

Coventry City Council

Attached documents

• Independent Reviewing Officer Job Description and Person Specification_.pdf
• Coventry City Council Application Process April 2025.pdf