Children’s Social Workers (Dorset)
Up to £38,813 (depending on level and experience)
If you’re a dedicated, passionate and enthusiastic Social Worker who is committed to making a difference to the lives of children and young people we want to hear from you. We’re looking for people who have a genuine interest in relationship-based practice and a strengths-based approach to building effective relationships with children, families and communities. These ways of working are being embedded through our Reinvigorating Social Work programme, which we’ve just successfully completed.
It’s an exciting time here in Children’s Services as we continue our journey to improve our services and outcomes to enhance the lives Dorset’s children and families as part of the new Dorset Council. We want our Social Workers to have manageable caseloads and feel safe and supported, with more time to work with families so they can make a real impact. The brand new ‘Front Door’ of our service – the Children’s Advice & Duty service – is now up and running, with the aim of reducing the number of referrals, and unnecessary and time-consuming assessments. This will provide further opportunities for more direct work and in time help reduce the number of cases per individual, which has already decreased over the last six months… but we can still do better by recruiting more Social Workers. You!

We offer a range of benefits including:
A Competitive Salary (Grades 9, 10 & 11 + Labour Market Increments)
Generous Relocation Package*
Flexible Working
Excellent Local Government Pension Scheme
Exciting Continuous Professional Development Opportunities
Career Progression through three levels of Qualified Social Worker roles, plus Advanced Practitioner posts
*A generous relocation package is payable, of which up to £8,000 (of HMRC eligible elements) are free of tax. Depending on your personal circumstance our package provides options to help you relocate whether you are looking to buy or rent and includes; an initial advance of up to £2,500 payable when you start, help towards fees associated with buying/selling (up to £6,500) and an option to receive help towards your rent or mortgage in the first two years.

ASYE looking for your first role?
We require all newly qualified social workers to undertake the assessed and supported year in employment (ASYE) and meet the expected standards during the ASYE period.
The ASYE arrangements should normally apply to the appointment of all newly qualified social workers who qualified after September 2012 unless they can demonstrate that they already fully meet the standards laid out in the professional capabilities framework (PCF).
Our fantastic ASYE programme includes a reduced caseload, shadowing opportunities, mentoring support from experienced social workers, Peer Support groups and specific ASYE training sessions.

Make Dorset The Next Step in Your Social Work Career
Please click here for further information, or for an informal discussion please call Paula Golding, Operational Manager on 01202 868237 (email paula.golding@dorsetcouncil.gov.uk).
Your application will be reviewed as soon as you apply. There are Social Worker opportunities in a range of teams – including the Children Who Are Disabled (CWAD) team, West and East District teams (Assessment, CIN and CP) and 0-12 and 13+ teams (Looked After Children) – and locations across Dorset offering flexible options, and this will be discussed at interview stage.
If you are applying from outside the UK, please contact Chris Armstrong, our Overseas Recruitment Partner at chris.armstrong@morganhunt.com

To be considered for a position you must have a degree in Social Work or equivalent, be registered with the HCPC and be able to fulfil the travel requirements of the post.
This post involves working with children and having access to significant information about them and will therefore be subject to a satisfactory Disclosure and Barring Service check.
The friends and family referral scheme applies to this post. If this vacancy has been recommended to you by a Dorset Council employee, make sure you mention them by completing the required details when asked on the application form. They’ll give you all the information you need.

Nb. Once this post has closed, the job description and person specification will no longer be available to view.
Please note Dorset Council does not accept CV’s in place of an application form due to Safer Recruitment procedures, and because we require the same range of information from all our candidates.