Newly Qualified Social Worker

• Hold a Social Work degree or equivalent (e.g. CQSW, DipSW) specialising in children’s services within the last two years or expect to qualify within the next year. You must also be registered with Social Work England or expect registration upon qualifying.
• You must hold a full, valid, UK driving licence (or be able to convert your current licence) AND have access to a vehicle.
• Have experience of working with children and families, knowledge of childcare legislation and Local Safeguarding Children Partnership procedures, particularly in relation to child protection and child in need. Be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the theoretical underpinning of social work practice and models used.
• Have an awareness of the cultural, racial, linguistic, and religious backgrounds of children, young people, and families applying inclusion principles in practice across your work.
• Hold strong assessment skills, capable of analysing information to make sound decisions which offer support and are impactful and be able to demonstrate this via examples.
• Have excellent prioritisation and time management skills to ensure the successful delivery of competing and changing work demands and be able to demonstrate this via examples.
• Be proficient in IT, with sound knowledge of Microsoft Outlook, Word and database applications to ensure clear, accurate and age-appropriate communication with children, families, carers and external agencies/other service providers that support collaborative ways of working both orally and in writing.

In addition, we also expect you to share our commitment to our values [https://eism.fa.em2.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/CandidateExperience/en/sites/lcc/pages/1004] and to delivering accessible and inclusive services which meet the needs of all of our residents. You will be asked to demonstrate your understanding of these commitments as part of the selection process.

Reasonable adjustments will be considered for applicants with a disability. We are a Disability Confident Employer [https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/disability-confident-campaign].

Leicestershire Children and Families Services

In all service areas you are expected to work closely with colleagues across team and agency boundaries to ensure that families get the most appropriate level of support. Staff workloads are manageable and are monitored and managed closely. Managers and staff all have regular monthly supervision, and you will be supported in your practice by an experienced management team.

As an organisation, we are committed to a strong and skilled workforce providing high quality services to the children and families of Leicestershire, following our relationship-based Signs of Safety practice approach.

We are committed to doing our very best for vulnerable children and families; working to make a positive impact on their lives so they can achieve their potential and flourish.

We are proud of our continuous improvement plan - ‘Achieving Excellence through Purposeful Practice [https://www.leicestershire.gov.uk/sites/default/files/2024-04/Achieving-Excellence-through-purposeful-practice.pdf]’ which sets out our key values, behaviours and ambitions. We have embedded the Signs of Safety approach throughout our services and this approach mirrors our values of Aspiration, Being Curious, and Collaboration. We are focused on working with families and the networks of family, friends, and professionals around children, to work in collaboration to achieve shared goals.

We are committed to our vision of becoming a trauma informed responsive department where we believe we are “stronger together”. Our culture is one of partnership, where we look for solutions and recognise the potential impact of trauma on the children and families we work with and on our staff. We will strive to create a safe, compassionate, healing environment demonstrated through relationships based on trust, respect, hope, and empathy. We will achieve this through a spirit of curiosity, by nurturing connections through relationships, making a deliberate effort to know and understand people, and by providing hope for growth and recovery.

We support and empower our staff to be the best that they can be. We will give you the support and resources that you need to work in collaboration with children and families.

We want all our staff to be inspired to go the extra mile. We are doing our best to create a culture where practice excellence can flourish. We want to learn from what works, as much, if not more, than from when things go badly. We are ambitious to create a true learning organisation, so …

• We run several conferences each year for staff to come together, reflect and learn.
• Every team sets aside time for team learning each month.
• You will receive consistent, regular, and reflective supervision including group supervision support.
• Twice a year our senior leaders take a week out and spend time with Social Workers, observing practice and talking to young people, parents, and carers about their experience of services.
• All Social Work England registered workers have three extra Continuous Professional Development days each year.
• Our highly valued training offer supports career progression and includes Practice Educator Awards and Aspiring Managers Program.
• We have an experienced team dedicated to supporting practice excellence.
• Our Practice Development Group is well established for practitioners to collaborate on practice development.
• We have a Critical Incident Response service for staff which provides independent therapeutic support within 48 hours.
• We have an excellent Wellbeing Service providing specific support to staff when needed, but also offer events throughout the year.

For further information, please visit:

• Children and Family Social Worker Recruitment [https://www.leicestershire.gov.uk/jobs-and-volunteering/working-for-the-council/children-and-family-social-worker-recruitment]
• Working With Us in Children’s Social Care [https://www.leicestershire.gov.uk/sites/default/files/2026-04/working-with-us-in-childrens-social-care.pdf]
• Social Worker Benefits [https://www.leicestershire.gov.uk/sites/default/files/field/pdf/2022/2/28/Social-worker-