Social Worker - Children's Social Care

The Children's Social Care team at Milton Keynes City Council play a pivotal role in supporting children, young people, their families and caregivers to achieve positive outcomes using Signs of Safety and we have a strong Child First ethos in which we make decisions to prioritise children; to Hear, Empower, Link and Protect them. Children's Social Care includes nine Family Support Teams, a Children in Care team, Fostering Service, Children with Disabilities team, a Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub and a Contextual Safeguarding team. We are recruiting Social Workers to join our expanding department. You'll work with families that need support to promote positive outcomes for children. You will have opportunities to develop your continued practice through case work, training and shared practice learning within the team. In return, we offer a £4000 market supplement (pro rata and role/team specific), a smart phone and laptop, flexible working and training and development opportunities. We encourage and warmly welcome Social Workers from all disciplines such as Adult Social Care and CAFCASS, wanting to make the transition to join one of our teams. Please note, you must have a Social Work degree and DBS checks will be required for the successful candidate. Children's Social Care are based in Civic in Central Milton Keynes and staff have the flexibility to work from home a couple days per week subject to their managers approval. Support with career progression and access to clinical supervision are provided to all employees.,

• Being the allocated Social Worker to a maximum of 19 children and young people who are subject to Child In Need, Child Protection and/or Child Looked After plans as defined in the Children Act 1989.
• To complete a range of assessments which will inform care plans, including Children and Families Assessments, Risk Assessments, Parenting Assessments and Sibling Assessments.
• Represent the Local Authority in public and private law proceedings which will involve giving oral evidence court, writing court statements, care plans and complying with the directions as set out in court orders.
• Chair Child In Need and Core Group Meetings as part of a multi-disciplinary team which will inform assessments and care plans for children and young people.
• Work closely with colleagues to fulfil duty responsibilities as advised by the Team Manager during office hours., Someone committed to supporting children, young people and their families and has the resilience to go that extra mile to ensure they achieve their potential.
• Someone who is willing to work as part of a team in sharing knowledge and supporting team development.
• An enthusiastic Social Worker.
• Someone who is able to challenge and make evidenced based decisions.
• For this role you are required to have a Full UK Driving Licence and provide evidence of your Vehicle Insurance with Business cover and use of a vehicle, which may sometimes include working outside of office hours. If you are successful, you will be required to supply evidence of your Licence prior to starting the role
• Should you be offered the role, as part of the pre-employment checks an Enhanced DBS will be actioned for you (unless you are on the DBS Update Service).
  
  A qualified Social Worker with at least 12 months post qualifying experience.
  
  Milton Keynes City Council is a large, modern and financially stable employer with around 2,500 people working across our eight areas. Together we provide local residents and businesses with a wide range of important round-the-clock services and aim to make our city a better place to live.
We work hard because of the demands placed on us, like protecting children from harm or preventing homelessness. However, working for the city is always rewarding and everyone has the opportunity to make a real difference. We're very proud of our diversity and are committed to having a workforce that reflects the community we serve. Whatever your background, you will be welcome here if you share our values of being dedicated, respectful and collaborative. We offer great training and support and because of the size and scale of the organisation there are always new opportunities to explore when it's time for a new role. If you'd like to know more about how we do things and what matters to us, take a look at our short booklet What makes us Milton Keynes City Council.

In addition to your salary, we offer a range of benefits including:
• Great holiday benefits - most roles include 28 days annual leave every year on top of public (bank) holidays, increasing to 32 days after five years. In addition, there is a holiday purchase scheme allowing staff to purchase up to 5 additional days of leave each year.
• Excellent pension - everyone who works for us can join the national Local Government Pension Scheme, widely regarded as one of the best available.
• A full range of family friendly policies including enhanced maternity, adoption and paternity support and a childcare subsidy.
• Access to an award-winning employee benefits programme that includes a health cash plan, a low-cost bike purchase scheme as well as high street discounts and money off entertainment and travel.
• Blue Light Card - employees working within social care can qualify for an additional range of discounts from national retailers and local businesses.
Our roles are either designated 'site based' or 'home based'. 'Site based' roles can include up to two days a week working from home whilst 'home based' roles are based at home four days a week. Of course, managers designate which category roles are in based on the needs of the service and the circumstances.