Permanent, Full Time 37 hours per week
Location: This is an office-based role based within Floor 7, BBond, Smeaton Road, Bristol, BS1 6XN.
Do you have knowledge and experience of working with disabled children and young people and their families – together with a passion to improve the lives and outcomes of disabled children, young people and their families?
If yes - we have an exciting opportunity for a full time Family Support Worker in the Disabled Children Service and Specialist Services.
The Disabled Children Service is a dynamic team that stays involved with a child through the breadth of social care intervention, holding the child’s hand through their journey from various services.
Our family support workers work with disabled children, young people and their families who receive support services from our social work team, occupational therapy team or the Social Care Hub.
Our family support workers provide help to support disabled children and young people lead an “ordinary life”, as much as possible. Our family support workers offer practical help and emotional support to disabled children, young people and their families experiencing short or long-term difficulties. You will provide support to empower families to address various challenges, reducing problems and risks. You will help parents, carers and disabled children and young people with a range of social and personal issues.
Our family support workers are trained to deliver specialist parenting courses which are personalised to support disabled children and young people complex needs.
By providing our most complex disabled children and young people child in need support, we support parents and carers in their role as primary carers and give them much needed breaks to assist them to look after themselves and their wider family.
Alongside a designated Social Worker working in the new Review and Re-assessment team you will be responsible for visiting, assessing and reviewing disabled children and young people and their child in need plan.
You will ensure statutory timescales for the completion of child in need assessments, visits and reviews are met and that the work completed with disabled children and families is meaningful, proportionate and effective.
As a lead professional, you will use your specialist knowledge and expertise of the wide range of challenges that affect disabled children and their families to support assessment, plan and review. You will work in partnership with the family and multi-agency network to improve outcomes for disabled children.
Practice frameworks and approaches:
In order to support families there are a number of different approaches and methodologies which underpin our practice in Bristol:
- Signs of Safety is the framework we use to assess and respond to harm.
- Systemic Practice provides the theories to understand the complexity of an individual’s experiences and the influence they have on their ability to make and sustain change.
- Relationship based Practice means strengthening relationships between people as well as strengthening social connections within communities.
Contextual Safeguarding enables us to assess and respond to harm that affects children outside their families.
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Team Vision:
We want to create a consistent offer for disabled children, young people and families so that the intervention they receive is the best that can be offered, we want to ensure our interventions are supporting better outcomes for disabled children, young people and families whilst supporting them at the lowest level.
Please note that this role is subject to an Enhanced DBS Check.
Please note: Sponsorship is not currently available for this vacancy.
Why Bristol City Council?
At Bristol City Council, we go that extra mile for our people; we offer a work environment which is fast moving and supportive, giving you the chance to use your skills and develop new ones within a high-profile organisation.
Join us and you’ll receive an excellent rewards package including membership of the Local Government Pension scheme, and a generous annual leave allowance. In addition, you’ll be working in a supportive environment where you’ll have the chance to make Bristol a better place and contribute to its future.
How do I apply?
If you share our values and are ready to be part of our exciting journey please select the apply button below.
To be shortlisted for interview you will need to demonstrate how you meet each of the essential criteria in the Person Specification within the Further Information section of your application. On occasion we will receive high numbers of applications, we may then shortlist against the desirable criteria along with the essential criteria, so if you can, please demonstrate how you meet this in your application.
We're a Disability Confident employer which means we value recruiting and retaining disabled people. Any job applicants who consider themselves to be disabled and meet the essential criteria in the Person Specification are guaranteed an interview. We'll make reasonable adjustments throughout the interview process and provide continued workplace support throughout your career.
Shortlisting will take on: 17 August 2026.
Interviews will take place on: 25th and 26th August 2026 (these will be in person at B Bond). You should ensure you are available for the interview date.
For further information, please refer to the Job Description and Person Specification or alternatively, please contact: [email protected] or [email protected]
Bristol City Council strives to have a workforce that reflects the communities it serves, we are therefore committed to ensuring diversity in our hiring process. We welcome, develop and promote people from all sections of the community. We particularly welcome applications from Black and racially minoritised, Disabled, LGBTQ+ and Male candidates who are currently under-represented within this Service of Bristol City Council. Appointments will be made on merit.
The personal information section (including your name) you’ll complete as part of the application form will not be visible to hiring managers, but is used confidentially to make sure that everyone is treated fairly.
