An excellent opportunity has arisen for a dynamic and experienced Advanced Social Worker to join South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust as our Professional Head of Social Work.
Working closely with the Trust’s Director of Social Care, the postholder will be a key member of our well ‑ established, friendly and highly skilled social work leadership team, embedded within an extensive multi ‑ professional leadership structure. You will join a strong peer group that includes our Associate Director of Social Care and Mental Health Legislation and our Associate Director of Safeguarding.
This is a pivotal role focused on strengthening the visibility, voice and impact of social work across the Trust. You will lead on developing, supporting and championing our social work workforce, ensuring consistently high standards of practice, professional development and innovation. Your leadership will help shape a culture where social work thrives and where our values are reflected in the care we deliver every day.
This leadership role is essential for South London and Maudsley Trust to achieve its ambitious social work agenda and will report to the Trust’s Director of Social Care as the professional lead for the Social Work profession in SLAM.
The postholder will lead on developing an excellent social work workforce within the multi-disciplinary setting of mental health services for adults, young people and children.
The post holder will provide expert professional expertise on social work across the Trust, including consultancy, supervision, training and guidance.
The postholder will be the primary link with Higher Education Institutions and social work training providers in relation to social work training programmes and may provide guest lecturing, when required.
The post holder will contribute to the development person-centred, strengths-based, relational and trauma-informed approaches and ensure that personalisation, choice and control is embedded as an approach into frontline services.
The postholder will be a key contributor in the development and delivery of a responsive, inclusive, cultural and equalities sensitive Social Work workforce plan.
The post holder will support the Director of Social Care’s aim to make SLAM the employer of choice for Social Work in the NHS.
This is a pivotal role focused on strengthening the visibility, voice and impact of social work across the Trust. You will lead on developing, supporting and championing our social work workforce, ensuring consistently high standards of practice, professional development and innovation. Your leadership will help shape a culture where social work thrives and where our values are reflected in the care we deliver every day.
Professional Leadership, Management and Governance
- Report to the Trust’s Director of Social Care and be a core member of the Trust’s senior clinical and professional leadership team, developing and delivering on the organisation’s professional social work strategy, promoting evidence-based practice, and embedding a learning culture that embeds psycho-social and social work models.
Ensure that the management of staff is consistent with Trust’s Human Resources Policies to the achievement of equality, equity and optimum performance.
U ndertake supervision of senior social workers and other staff (as agreed), input into performance and productivity improvements, and participate in annual appraisals for staff which reflect these priorities and ensures staff have access to appropriate training and development.
- Operates with high-level autonomy, managing multidisciplinary stakeholders, internally and externally within health and social care.
- Liaises with multi-disciplinary teams, senior leaders, external agencies, and partnerships, to influence practice and ensure standards.
- Lead and ensure that there are appropriate professional and managerial structures in place to enable social workers professional registration, supervision, reflective practice and development.
- Be responsible for developing a new Trust Social Work Advisory Committee, for developing, agreeing and implementing governance standards, policies and objectives associated with the practice of Social Work across the Trust.
- Ensure that the Trust’s systems and processes enable appropriate and effective engagement of social work staff.
- Lead and develop the Trust social work Training and Education strategy. Ensure this consider inclusion of social work training placements, apprenticeships, the Assessed and Supported Year in Employment (ASYE) for Newly Qualified Social Workers (NQSW), Advance Practice development pathways (e.g. AMHP, Advance Practitioner, Approved Clinician) and other career progression routes using the Professional Capabilities Framework.
- Lead on governance and oversight of the registration and re-registration of Trust social workers.
- Engage and manage relationships with external partners including NHSE, DHSC, Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), Social Work England and Integrated Care System (ICS), ADASS, Skills for Care, and others as appropriate to promote social work training and education.
Lead the planning and implementation of relevant professional policies and procedures, as well as ensure that social work interventions, approaches and strategies are reflected in all relevant Trust policies, procedures and guidance.
- Where appropriate manage and/or provide professional supervision to social workers, social work trainees
- Ensure that social work is represented within the Trust’s Clinical Effectiveness Group, chaired by the Chief Medical Officer, and the Trust’s multi-professional Clinical Council.
- Ensure that social work is represented in Quality improvements, quality planning and quality management; alongside other professions be a key stakeholder in development of Quality Centre programmes of work.
- Ensure the implementation of standards in the practice of social work in the Trust are in line with the national standards ensuring there are social work governance systems that supports improvement of patient experience, service quality, safety and efficiency.
- Lead the organisation at regional and national social work forums and feedback national developments in social work and influence development of policy and practice, by taking an active part in professional networks
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- Work in a community orientated way taking account of the diversity of local communities, the political context and community organisations and resources to support and promote social inclusion for people with mental health problems.
- Support staff from ethnic minority groups to develop their careers and therefore to support a diverse workforce that reflects the population the Trust serves. Work closely with equality and diversity workforce leads to address relevant issues.
- Promote the involvement of service users and carers in service development, enhancing the service user experience as appropriate.
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- To advise the Trust Director of Social Care on fitness to practice issues when they occur
- Deputise for Director of Social Care on social work matters and Directors as required .
Teaching, Training, Education and Supervision
- Ensure appropriate professional accountability structures and systems for professional supervision and appraisal of social workers
- Provide consultation to social workers and wider MDT on issues relevant to social work practice and service developments.
- Ensure that placements are available and of the highest quality for social work trainees as appropriate.
- Maintain good relationships with social work training providers and develop training placements.
- Ensure the development of the knowledge and skills base within the services by maintaining an active awareness of current developments in social work, and through implementing knowledge gained.
- Contribute to a bio psychosocially informed framework of treatment, care and support.
- To receive regular clinical and professional supervision according to regulatory and professional bodies and Trust guidelines.
Research, Audits and Development
- Lead on the development and preparation of research proposals relevant to the service to attract both internal and external grants, collaborating with management and external agencies to identify clinically focused research priorities. Liaise closely with the Academic, Service and Clinical Directors on research and development opportunities.
- Initiate and appropriate research and ensure systems are in place for research advice and supervision to other social work staff undertaking research within the service.
- Lead and support on the initiation, undertaking and supervision of complex service evaluation and audit as required.
- Disseminate research and service evaluation findings through presentations and published articles and promote such practice by other social workers.
- Ensure utilisation of social work trainees and postgraduate students in service evaluation and research.
- Collate evidence for social work elements of regulatory audits, quality assurance frameworks and reviews.
- Ensure the findings and recommendations of service / practice evaluations, research, quality audits within social work and related practice areas, are communicated clearly within the Trust and partner agencies and to use this information to drive forward a culture of continuous improvement.
Management of Finance and other resources
- To be responsible for physical and financial resources as delegated for social work training, development, research and supervision.
- Act as an authorised signatory for delegated budget, managing resources, contributing to the service cost improvement plans, and other tasks as agreed by the Director of Social Care.
- Oversee safe use of equipment and resources
- Manage and ensure the clinical competency / capability of social work staff within their service group and take appropriate remedial measures where require
- Be a professional lead for the recruitment and selection of social work staff.
- To ensure oversight of the purpose and maintenance of some physical assets / supplies such as any IT equipment.
- To attend and present to Directorate Leadership Teams, Trust Board and Executive as required.
- To develop reports and presentations as required this will include the provision and presentation of annual reports for the Trust Board, Trust Social Work Advisory Group.
Workforce Planning and development
- Establish with the senior leadership team across the service a system of workforce planning for social workers based on the identification of the social workers contribution within clinical care pathways. This includes identification of skills gaps, creation of new posts and extension of roles.
- Ensure standards of recruitment and retention of social work staff are in line with HR policy and ensure that professional registration and other statutory requirements are adhered to
- Workforce development including safe staffing and improve recruitment and retention of Social Workers.
- Ensure Social Workers within the Directorate meet the required standards for practice
Social Work Clinical Practice
- The post holder will be enabled as part of this role to maintain their own professional Social Work practice in a form to be agreed with the Director of Social Care.
- Champion the rights of citizens in the context of professional ethics and strategic decision making, using a legal and human rights framework
- Lead on learnings from best practice to be shared across the service and partner agencies
- Work close with the central safeguarding team in disseminating learning from Safeguarding practice reviews to social work practitioners and managers, and ensure this is included in relevant social work practice guidance, policies and pathways
- To advise the Director of Social Care on escalation of social work cases ensuring social work standards of practice and statutory and regulatory responsibilities are met
- Ensure the highest standards of clinical record keeping including electronic data entry and recording, report writing and the responsible exercise of profession self-governance in accordance with social work codes of practice, Social Work England and Trust policies and procedures.
