CSW Senior Social Worker/Specialist Social Worker (Pledge)


Company:	Wax Recruitment Ltd
Salary:	£28.67
Hours:	Full-time
Location:	Southwark, SE15 5QS
Working pattern:	Hybrid - 2 days remote
Job type:	Contract
Posting date:	27 Jul 2026
Closing date:	26 Aug 2026

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Summary

Hours per week: 36

Location: Council Offices, Sumner House, Sumner Road, Southwark, Surrey, SE155QS, Southwark Council

Pay: £28.67 per hour

3 days in office, 2 days remote.

Senior SW role in Assessment & Intervention Service to completed S17 and S47 assessments, initial court work and LAC processes. To work as part of a social work team of 5 practitioners and 1 Team Manager. Duty system occurs every 6 weeks.

PURPOSE OF THE JOB

To provide a comprehensive, effective, integrated, systemically-informed social work service, within Southwark’s practice framework, managing complex cases. To deliver excellent social work practice, assessing complex need, planning and working purposefully with families, support networks and other professionals to manage risk, safeguard children and promote positive outcomes. To provide a social work service which is both relationship-based and which responds in a timely manner within statutory guidelines. To work collaboratively with the team, supporting the development of best practice and confident practitioners through coaching and mentoring of students, newly qualified social workers and less experienced practitioners.

PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTABILITIES

Responsibilities (in line with the Knowledge and Skills Statements for Approved Child and Family Practitioners

Relationships and effective direct work

1. Provide focused and purposeful systemically-informed social work within Southwark’s practice framework, in complex situations, with explicit aims and objectives about desired outcomes which are proportionate to each child’s identified risk and need.

2. Establish rapport, build and maintain professional, respectful, and honest relationships with children and their families to develop trust and assist in safeguarding children, resolving conflict and promoting positive and timely outcomes.

3. Deliver social work practice which is informed by statutory guidance, best evidence, and research knowledge.

4. Provide professional guidance, support and developmental opportunities with less experienced or knowledgeable social work colleagues, including taking the role of practice educator with social work students, and assessor of NQSWs in their ASYE year.

Communication

5. Present complex information in writing and in person in a range of settings, including professional input at child protection conferences and representing the Council at Court.

6. Maintain case records and management information on appropriate systems, ensuring that case files are organised and up to date.

7. Manage and organise complex information, producing comprehensive, analytic, high quality reports which evaluate the most appropriate interventions and make cogent arguments based on evidence.

Child development

8. Observe and talk with children in their various environments to help understand their physical and emotional worlds and patterns of development, taking account of typical development over time, including the quality of child and parent/carer interaction.

Adult mental ill health, substance misuse, domestic abuse, physical ill health and disability

9. Identify the impact on children of adult mental ill health, substance misuse, domestic abuse, physical ill health and disability, including those that may indicate risk. Access the help of other professionals to ensure children’s best interests are prioritised whilst vulnerable adults are safeguarded.

Abuse and neglect of children

10. Deal with the more complex and unusual cases, especially those where there are issues of risk of harm to children. Lead investigations of concerns about significant harm, in consultation with managers and other professionals. Devise, implement and review care plans, including the development and management of protection plans within a child protection framework.

Child and family assessment

11. Carry out in-depth ongoing evidence-based assessment of complex social need and risk to children, in line with statutory guidance, working directly with children and all key family members, and gathering information from other agencies. Use professional curiosity and authority, maintaining a position of partnership, whilst recognising when

there is a need for immediate action.

Analysis, decision-making, planning and review

12. Manage a complex caseload, planning work activities, prioritising tasks and responsibilities, testing multiple hypotheses, balancing risks and family strengths, using evidence and professional judgement to ensure positive and timely outcomes.

13. Work purposefully with other practitioners to devise and implement child-centred written plans of work with children and their families, in various settings including family homes, applying twin and triple track planning to minimise delay. Provide advice and support to less experienced social work staff, and chair professional meetings when required.

14. Ensure multi-disciplinary input at all stages, negotiate with other agencies to promote positive outcomes and ensure an integrated approach on complex issues.

The law and the family and youth justice systems

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