Directorate – Children and Young People’s Services
Children’s Social Worker, First Response, Permanent contract, 37 hours per week
Now is the time to come and work for Rotherham Council Children and Young People’s Service. For more information about Rotherham Social Care jobs, please visit: https://www.rotherham.gov.uk/childrens-social-work-jobs
ABOUT THE FIRST RESPONSE SERVICE
We will deliver on our promise to our children – will you?
If you’re passionate about children, come and work with us. Here, we focus on children not cases and keeping them at the heart of every decision leads to better outcomes.
First Response is a unified service made up of the Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH), four duty teams, the Out of Hours service, EVOLVE (exploitation), and ENGAGE (crisis support).
We are committed to giving children the very best support while also investing in our staff. We provide opportunities for social workers to grow, reach their full potential, and strengthen their skills particularly in analysis and managing a caseload so they can deliver high-quality, effective practice.
We are proud of our relationships with our partners who are co-located with us and part of the team. We make the most of their input, holding daily multi agency meetings in response to domestic abuse, ensuring quick safety planning for children, as well as having easy access to partners for strategy meetings, and information sharing when needed.
The duty teams carry out assessments for all new children entering the service and work across the borough. We operate on a four-week duty rota, with each team covering one week on duty followed by three weeks dedicated to completing assessments and related tasks.
As the team manages all incoming assessments, no two days are ever the same. The role includes Section 47 investigations, initiating care proceedings, accommodating children, completing assessments (including pre-birth assessments), and attending legal gateway meetings as part of Public Law Outline (PLO) processes.
The work is varied, complex, and fast-paced, but highly rewarding.
Don’t take our word for it. This is what one of our newly qualified social workers had to say.
‘My experience in Rotherham as a newly qualified social worker could not have been better, the support and guidance provided by the social workers and managers has helped to build my confidence and skills in order to ensure the best outcomes for the children I work with’.
ABOUT YOU
You will care.
You will make sure children are at the heart of all you do.
You will ask the right questions to make the best plans for children.
You will have experience of working with children in a social work setting.
You will have excellent assessments skills where analysis is key.
You will be able to organise your daily workload independently.
You will have some experience and understanding of court work.
You will be a team player and value the strength that your colleagues bring to the team.
You will have experience of carrying out safeguarding investigations as part of a multi-agency partnership.
You will be able to demonstrate initiative and work flexibly to ensure children receive a service that matters.
You will be able to negotiate tactfully when dealing with potential conflict.
You will be able to forge positive working relationships with partners.
You will be capable of accurate reporting and the communication of sometimes complex information to a variety of audiences.
You will be passionate about maximising a child’s life chances.
If you have any questions regarding the role, please email Service Manager Joanne McCartan:
[email protected]
Advert closing date: 28th June 2026
Shortlisting: 29th June 2026
Interview date: week commencing 6th July 2026
This post involves working with children and therefore if successful you will be required to apply for a disclosure of criminal records check at an enhanced level. Further information about the Disclosure Scheme can be found at www.gov.uk/disclosure-barring-service-check
Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults.
Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council is committed to encouraging equality, diversity and inclusion among our workforce, and eliminating unlawful discrimination. The aim is for our workforce to be truly representative of all sections of society and our customers, and for each employee to feel respected and able to give their best. As a Disability Confident employer, we will ensure that a fair and proportionate number of disabled applicants that meet the minimum criteria for this position will be offered an interview. For further information, please visit our website.
