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Social Care and Occupational Therapy Assessor - Prisons and Approved Premises
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Staffordshire County Council,
Are you passionate about promoting independence, wellbeing and positive outcomes for adults? We're looking for a Social Care Assessor / Occupational Therapy Assistant to join our Prisons and Approved Premises Team, supporting adults across custodial settings in Staffordshire.
Our specialist team ensures that people living in prisons and approved premises have access to the same care and support opportunities as those living in the wider community. You'll work with individuals with a range of needs, helping them identify their strengths, maintain their independence and achieve the outcomes that matter most to them.
Staffordshire has the largest prison population in England and Wales, with seven prisons and approved premises across the county. This creates a unique and rewarding opportunity to develop specialist skills while making a real difference to people's lives.
This is a hybrid role, working full time Monday to Friday, 8:30am to 5:00pm and is for a fixed term of 2 years.
You'll have opportunities for some remote working, alongside regular visits to prison sites, approved premises and hospital settings across Staffordshire. You'll also attend office-based team meetings and collaborative working days, helping you stay connected with colleagues while enjoying the flexibility of hybrid working.
We're looking for someone who:
- Has experience of working with adults with care and support needs.
- Can undertake strengths-based assessments and support planning.
- Has excellent communication and partnership-working skills.
- Is organised and able to manage a varied caseload.
- Is passionate about promoting independence, choice and control.
If you're looking for a unique and rewarding role where you can make a genuine impact, we'd love to hear from you.
Main Responsibilities
In this role, you'll complete strengths-based Care Act assessments, reviews and support plans, manage a varied caseload, work closely with partner agencies, and contribute to occupational therapy interventions. You'll also help identify practical solutions, equipment and support that enable individuals to live as independently as possible.
You'll be part of a supportive, experienced and collaborative team that values person-centred practice, professional development and innovation. Working alongside Social Workers, Occupational Therapists, healthcare professionals and prison staff, you'll play an important role in delivering high-quality Adult Social Care services.
You'll also be:
- Completing strengths-based Care Act assessments, reviews and support plans for adults living in prisons and approved premises across Staffordshire.
- Building positive relationships with individuals, supporting them to identify strengths, goals and outcomes while promoting choice, control and informed decision-making.
- Managing a caseload of adults with varying care and support needs, ensuring assessments, reviews and support arrangements are timely, person-centred and outcome-focused.
- Supporting Occupational Therapists and Social Workers with assessments, interventions, moving and handling risk assessments, and recommendations for equipment or adaptations that promote independence and wellbeing.
- Working collaboratively with prison staff, healthcare professionals and partner agencies to develop a holistic understanding of individuals' needs and achieve positive outcomes.
- Maintaining accurate case records and reports, contributing to service improvement, and engaging in supervision, training and professional development to enhance practice.
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The Ideal Candidate
We're looking for someone who is passionate about supporting adults to achieve the best possible outcomes and maximise their independence.
The minimum essential criteria that will be assessed for the purposes of shortlisting will be:
- Experience of working with adults who have care and support needs.
- An understanding of person-centred and strengths-based practice.
- The ability to complete assessments, gather information and develop effective support plans.
- Good communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to build positive relationships with individuals, families and professionals.
- The ability to work collaboratively as part of a multidisciplinary team and develop effective partnerships with a range of organisations.
- Strong organisational skills and the ability to manage a varied workload.
- The ability to analyse information, identify risks and support proportionate decision-making.
- Good written and IT skills, including maintaining accurate records and reports.
- A commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion, and respecting individual strengths, backgrounds and experiences.
- The ability to travel independently to prison sites, approved premises, hospital settings and office locations across Staffordshire.
The following criteria will also be assessed as part of the recruitment process:
- Transferable skills and experience from health, social care, housing, criminal justice, community support, rehabilitation or related settings are welcomed.
Don't feel you meet all the requirements? We value transferable skills, experiences and qualifications, so we encourage you to consider applying anyway. For an informal chat about the role, please contact Sara Bell - Deputy Principal Social Worker sara.bell1@staffordshire.gov.uk, or Ruth Martin - Principal Social Worker and Safeguarding Lead ruth.martin@staffordshire.gov.uk
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Interviews will be held during the week commencing 31 August 2026.
Our Recruitment Process
We anonymise applications during shortlisting to ensure only relevant information is considered. Please complete your application fully, especially the supporting statement, to highlight what you'll bring to the role. Please note: The minimum essential criteria detailed above will be used when assessing applications received under our Interview Guarantee Schemes, including Disability Confident, Armed Forces and Care Leavers.
About Staffordshire County Council
We are no ordinary county council:
Our Values:
The core of who we are as an organisation. Just like we all have personal values that shape our thoughts and behaviour, organisational values drive how we think and act collectively.
Our values were created and shaped by colleague feedback and national best practice and they sit at the heart of People Strategy:
We have a real sense of community spirit that brings our people together. This feeling of belonging means we are all connected to what we do and take pride in the difference we make every day for Staffordshire people. We are ambitious and our sights are set firmly on a better future.
We look forward and race ahead - that goes for your career too.
Our benefits:
We recognise that it is our employees that are central to everything we do. We aim to create a supportive working environment where employees can achieve their full potential and achieve a healthy work-life balance.
In addition to your salary, as a member of staff, you will have access to Our rewards and benefits - Careers at Staffordshire
Our recruitment process:
As an Authority we are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people/vulnerable adults and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.
Staffordshire County Council is an equal opportunities organisation and Disability Confident employer. We encourage applications from all background and communities
As part of our commitment as a Disability Confident employer, a Gold Award Armed Forces employer and our commitment to supporting care leavers - we offer a guaranteed interview as long as your application meets the minimum criteria for the post.
As you’ll know safeguarding and promoting the welfare of our children and young people/vulnerable adults is important to us and that’s why this position is subject to a criminal record check from the Disclosure and Barring Service. If applicable you should disclose details of unspent and unfiltered spent reprimands, formal warnings, cautions and convictions in your application form.
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