The East Riding of Yorkshire Council, Children’s Services have been rated GOOD by Ofsted following our recent ILACS inspection. Since the last inspection in 2019, the leadership team has made significant and sustained changes in all the practice and leadership areas identified for improvement. Through extensive engagement with external partners and scrutineers, the improvements in the service mean that children and young people in East Riding receive a timely and effective response and intervention when they need it. Senior leaders and councillors are clear about what their strengths are and what still needs to be improved in service delivery, and their self-evaluation is accurate. They have ambitious plans and have secured significant investment to develop their services further as part of their continuous improvement journey. Senior leaders lead by example, and this has supported practitioners to embed the relational model of practice with the families they work with
A great and exciting opportunity has arisen within the Participation, Innovation and Improvement portfolio for a Team Manager (social work qualified) - Development (initially temporary for one year) to support the further implementation and embedment of the ongoing improvement activity as set out in the Children and Young People Support and Safeguarding Service. This is a critical post that will be key in driving forward the work associated with the service plan on our journey to excellence. The service aspiration is to support the wider Children, Families and School Directorate as the service develops and evolves. This is a great opportunity for an experienced social work practitioner/manager who is passionate about improving services and supporting service design to continually improve practice.
The main priorities of the Team Manager (Development) will be to support the holistic practice system and will include:
This post forms part of a wider commitment by the Children, Families and Schools Directorate to support the practice system to deliver impact and focused outcomes for our children, young people and their networks via building a sustainable foundation of support to our holistic workforce. This is a great opportunity to be part of an aspirational and forward-thinking Portfolio with a priority of ensuring the workforce are equipped with the skills, experience and knowledge to promote and enable change.
The post holder will be line managed by the Head of Service and will work closely with the Principal Children and Families Social Worker and the Principal Practice Lead in ensuring that all activity complements with the recently launched Model of Practice. The post holder will also work closely with colleagues within the wider practice system and with colleagues across the wider Children, Families and Schools Directorate.
The Office Base for this role will be County Hall, Beverley although will work across the East Riding of Yorkshire footprint alongside the Heads of Service within the service. Working arrangements will be hybrid and working days are Monday to Friday.
Our model
‘You can, I can, We can’
We have created a bespoke practice model that reflects and connects our vision, our value base and our behaviour as one East Riding of Yorkshire approach to working with children, young people and their families, which is nurtured and grown from within East Riding of Yorkshire CYPSSS and owned by our workforce.
We remain committed to Signs of Safety as a practice framework, but this will be set within a much wider, values based, model of practice that clearly connects Signs of Safety much more clearly with the East Riding value base, and our overall approach to making and sustaining relationships with children, families, and communities.
Without a well embedded model, there is nothing to centre our practice on to ensure that, while the work may be different, all our teams are grounded in the same values, beliefs, theories and approaches. Having a well-developed practice model helps to create a common language for the service and enables everyone to understand how we go about doing the right things, in the right way and for the right reasons for children and their families.
The right candidate
We are looking for an energetic, creative and experienced/advanced social worker/manager who can demonstrate tenacity and enthusiasm in making a positive difference to the lives of children and young people through the support offered to colleagues in all areas of practice.
You will need to be social work qualified, with a strong experience of social work delivery, including experience of using spreadsheets, databases and presentation software
You will have an in depth understanding and experience of working with children, young people and their networks and experiences of working within a children’s social care setting, as well as a thorough knowledge of legislative frameworks and demonstrable commitment to the values of family involvement, relational approaches and empowerment.
We are a small team and positive relationships are valued. Therefore, it is essential that the post holder is able to work effectively with others with a flexible and adaptable approach in a relational based approach – always demonstrating their commitment to working to the highest possible standards whilst remaining at all times child centred.You will have excellent written and oral communication skills which will enable you to support and you will be able to demonstrate a high level of motivation and the ability to work independently, with skills in working within timescales and with conflicting priorities.
You will need to be able to evidence experience of data collation and an ability to prepare analytical reports, alongside experience of completing audit activities and performance monitoring in relation to Children’s Services
If you are meet all of these qualities, have the right value base, and are an innovative leader, then what are you waiting for? Apply now and make a difference.
Get in touch for more information.
The Council offers many remote working opportunities as part of our commitment to providing flexibility wherever possible for our employees.
The Council is undertaking a review of pay and reward as part of its ambitions to attract and retain employees by having effective pay and development structures in place to support modern ways of working and to support the provision of Council services which meet local priorities. Please note that the future terms and conditions of this post may change following the outcome of this review.
If you already work for the council and have an Employee Self Service (ESS) account, please login to apply online using your ESS username and password.
Some travel across East Riding of Yorkshire may be required, applicants must be able to transport themselves.
This post is subject to an enhanced DBS clearance check.
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