How you'll make a difference:
Join a children’s social care service rated Good by Ofsted, where strong practice, supportive leadership and positive outcomes for children are recognised. As an Advanced Social Worker – Family Help Lead Practitioner, you will build on these foundations through skilled, relationship-based work with children and families across Child in Need, Child Protection and the early stages of Children in Care planning.
You will manage complex and sensitive work, using sound professional judgement to assess risk, strengthen safety and support families to make sustainable change. Alongside your own workload, you will contribute to good practice in the team by offering mentoring, consultation and support to colleagues, students and newly qualified Social Workers where directed.
What you will be doing:
Working within a multi-disciplinary Family Help and Best Start Community Team, you will act as Family Help Lead Practitioner for children and families requiring statutory social work support. Children’s voices, family networks and relationship-based practice will remain central as you complete assessments, coordinate plans and work with partners to achieve positive outcomes.
The role also contributes to team learning and practice development. Under the guidance of the Team Manager or Senior Social Worker, you may hold responsibility for a specific area of expertise, mentor colleagues and support students or newly qualified Social Workers, while maintaining high standards of case recording and professional practice.
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Managing complex Family Help work across Child in Need, Child Protection and early Children in Care, completing high-quality assessment, planning, intervention and review.
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Assessing and balancing risk, children’s needs and family rights, taking appropriate safeguarding action where there is risk of significant harm or family breakdown.
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Facilitating family group decision-making, strengthening family networks and coordinating effective multi-agency plans and meetings.
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Providing mentoring, consultation and practice support to colleagues, students and newly qualified Social Workers under the guidance of senior practitioners.
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Holding responsibility for a specific area of practice or expertise where directed, while maintaining accurate records and contributing to team learning and service development.
What we need from you:
- We require you to hold a recognised Social Work qualification and current registration with Social Work England.
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You will have considerable relevant post-qualifying experience in a Local Authority children’s services setting, including evidence-based work with vulnerable children and families.
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You will bring current knowledge of children’s legislation and practice, with excellent assessment, analytical, care-planning and risk-management skills.
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You will be able to mentor and support others, sharing professional knowledge and helping colleagues develop confident, consistent practice.
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You will be an effective communicator and relationship builder, confident handling difficult and sensitive issues with children, families, colleagues and partner agencies.
What you need to know:
- We are unable to accommodate applications from newly qualified social workers or candidates who require an Assessed and Supported Year in Employment (ASYE). Applicants must already have successfully completed their ASYE.
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This position is based in our West Family Help Hub, in Patchway.
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Although this post is advertised as full time, we welcome applications from experienced Social Workers seeking part-time, job-share or flexible working arrangements.
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You will be expected to travel throughout the authority and surrounding area, so you must have a full, valid driving licence with regular access to a vehicle insured for business use or have an alternative suitable means of travel.
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An enhanced DBS check is required, and you will need to travel throughout the authority and surrounding area, with occasional work outside normal office hours.
Interviews are anticipated to be held on 3rd September 2026, but alternate dates may be available.
How a career at South Gloucestershire Council is different:
- As part of our benefits package, you will receive generous annual leave (pro rata), employee wellbeing support and you will have access to a range of staff discounts, including eye tests, travel, shopping and leisure activities.
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We recognise that our diverse team of skilled and dedicated people make us a great place to work. We welcome applications from everyone and ensure that individuals are selected, promoted and developed on the basis of their merits and abilities.
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We invest in the careers of our people, and we are recognised for the quality, breadth and depth of our training and development offer, which helps our people make the greatest long-term difference in their work.
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What’s special here is the strength of the team ethos. We are a relatively small local authority, so managers know staff well. They can plan their services to ensure teams have manageable caseloads and have effective supervision so feel supported to make decisions which are right for the children and young people they work with.
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We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the safety and welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. Ensuring all our staff are given right skills, knowledge and support to recognise and respond effectively to potential abuse or neglect.
These posts attract a gross lump sum £3,000 ‘recruitment payment’ pro rata offered to enable experienced Social Workers who have already successfully completed their ASYE to join our permanent workforce. This is payable upon successful completion of your probationary period (after approximately 3-6 months) and is subject to eligibility criteria.
These posts are currently eligible for a market factor £3,000 ‘retention payment’ pro rata, payable in November annually to those with two years’ service with the council in Children’s Social Care In an eligible post, inclusive of any ASYE period.
Our teams at South Gloucestershire Council are making a real difference to the lives of people who live, work and learn here.
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We're building and shaping communities which people are proud of.
- We’re providing essential services across our communities to ensure they are safe and well maintained.
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We've achieved a great deal, but we need talented and dedicated people to ensure we continue to make a difference.
We’re making a difference, be part of it!
To view the full job description, please refer to the Advanced Social Worker role profile.
