Placement Coordinator - Placement Service - Children Social Care

About the Borough

The London Borough of Sutton is situated less than 30 minutes by train from Central London, with direct connections to London Victoria and London Bridge. Found in zone 5 with good transport links in and out of London, Sutton boasts award winning parks and open spaces, low crime rates, affordable housing and great schools. As well as high levels of resident engagement and satisfaction, providing quality services and success in addressing our financial challenges, whilst involving residents in key issues and high street changes.

Sutton is continuously investing in the health, wellbeing and education of our residents and the future generation, as set out in the “Ambitious for Sutton” corporate plan. We are home to the Royal Marsden Hospital and the Institute of Cancer Research. Together with the development of the London Cancer Hub, Sutton will be the world’s leading life-science district, specialising in cancer research and treatment. Our vision will create around 13,000 jobs while contributing £1.2bn to the UK economy each year, a vibrant community of scientists, doctors and innovative companies intended to deliver real benefits for cancer patients and drive economic growth. With the regeneration of the local areas with new homes and schools, Sutton is passionate about working closely with our residents and vulnerable groups to help them maintain their independence and create a balance between support and independent living.

The Council is seen as a driving force within the South London Partnership of five outer south west London boroughs focused on strategic growth, regeneration and investment. As we strive to improve our services and spaces for our residents as set out in the ‘Ambitious for Sutton’ corporate plan, Sutton aims to shape the future of the borough and adapt to the needs of its residents to make our Borough a great place to live, work and raise a family.

About the Service and Team

The Placements Team is a dedicated and vital part of Sutton’s Children’s Social Care service. We are responsible for identifying and coordinating suitable external residential and family placements for children and young people aged 0-18, including foster care, supported accommodation for young people aged 16 and over, and providing ongoing support to young people leaving care to secure safe and stable step-down accommodation. Our team works tirelessly to ensure that every child and young person in our care is placed in environments that promote their safety, well-being, and development. We collaborate closely with a range of external providers, multi-agency partners, and internal teams to deliver tailored, high-quality placement solutions that meet individual needs. Committed to safeguarding and achieving positive outcomes, we strive to create a supportive and nurturing environment where children and young people feel secure, valued, and empowered to reach their full potential.

About the Role and Our Ideal Candidate

We have an exciting opportunity to join us as a Placement Officer within the Placement Team in the Children’s Social Care service at Sutton. Our objective is to ensure children and young people are placed safely and appropriately, promoting stability and positive outcomes through effective collaboration and care planning. We strive to deliver high-quality, responsive placement services that support safeguarding and well-being.. Reporting to the Placement Team Manager, your responsibilities will include:

• Managing a busy caseload, ensuring all placements are appropriate, safe, and meet regulatory standards.
• Assessing and matching children with appropriate placements swiftly and effectively, considering their safety, needs, and preferences.
• Keeping accurate and detailed records of placements, decisions, and communications to ensure transparency and accountability.
• Responding promptly to emergencies or urgent placements, demonstrating the ability to work efficiently under pressure.
• Developing and maintaining strong working relationships with social workers and other professionals involved in children’s care.
• Contributing to safeguarding processes by ensuring all placements are suitable and children’s welfare is prioritized at all times.

As a Placement Coordinator, you will play a key role in overseeing the coordination of placements and care planning, ensuring that procedures are followed and quality assurance standards are met. You will lead and support your team in their work and collaborate effectively with multi-agency professionals to secure safe and appropriate placements for children and young people. This role presents dynamic challenges within a diverse environment, offering opportunities to expand your knowledge and skills within children’s social care. Our teams are known for their ability to develop tailored placement plans that prioritise the needs and voices of children, working closely with professionals, families, carers, and external agencies to achieve positive outcomes and safeguard the welfare of those in our care.

Our Ideal Candidate

This role is a great opportunity for individuals with strong organisational skills, resilience, and a proactive approach, who value safeguarding, collaboration, and making a positive impact on children’s lives. It is ideal for experienced professionals such as social care coordinators, case managers, or those with a background in child welfare, who are looking to step into a role with greater responsibility and autonomy within a Local Authority setting.

Whether you are an experienced Placement Coordinator or seeking to advance your career in children’s social care, you will be supported through coaching, mentoring, and leadership development to ensure you understand and embody the Sutton way of safeguarding and placement planning. We aim to equip you with the skills and confidence needed to succeed and make a meaningful difference.

We would expect candidates to fulfill the competencies including (but not limited to):

• Experience of coordinating placements within a children’s social care setting, including working closely with social workers, care providers, and external agencies to secure suitable placements.
• Strong understanding of placement planning, safeguarding policies, and the ability to match children’s needs with appropriate care options such as foster care, residential homes, or semi-independent settings.
• Proven ability to manage multiple priorities, work effectively under pressure, and respond swiftly to urgent placement needs.
• Excellent communication and negotiation skills to collaborate with multi-agency teams and ensure positive outcomes for children.
• Demonstrated success in building relationships, influencing decision-making, and maintaining high standards of quality and compliance in placement processes.

Our Offer to You

As an organisation that values and nurtures talent, we’re committed to helping you fulfil your potential and will offer you a supportive, friendly and collaborative environment to grow and develop your career and skills. We’re constantly striving to improve our ways of working so putting your ideas across however big or small; will be fully encouraged and supported by your colleagues and our dynamic and experienced management team.

Employees have access to a wide range of benefits to enable staff to achieve a work life balance, some of which include:

• A generous annual leave entitlement of 26-31 days plus bank holidays (pro-rata if part-time working hours apply) depending on service and grade
• Enhanced Maternity, paternity, shared parental, adoption and dependents leave
• Two volunteering days per year
• Flexible Working - Smarter Working Scheme (dependent on the role)
• Adjustable and agile working arrangements using Google Chromebooks
• Learning and development portal offering a range of courses
• Discounts on a range of local shops, restaurants, gyms and leisure centres
• Interest free season ticket loans
• Local Government Pension Scheme
• Bicycle loan facilities and cycle to work scheme
• Zip car scheme
• Confidential health & wellbeing and counselling support

Application Process

Apply online outlining what skills, abilities and experience you can bring which makes you an ideal candidate for this role. Please refer to the requirements outlined in the job profile when completing your application and check your CV details have been uploaded correctly in the relevant sections.

We understand and recognise the benefits of using Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the workplace and are embracing AI where appropriate, to boost our productivity and streamline how we deliver our Council services efficiently; to provide the best possible outcomes for our residents and communities.
However, we reserve the right to reject applications where it is apparent that AI-generated content has been used in isolation and without personalised responses. At Sutton we value authenticity and are looking for individuals who can clearly demonstrate their own skills, experience and motivation for the role that they are applying for and embrace and demonstrate our PRIDE values.
Here at Sutton we have core values of Transparency and this is to be demonstrated during the application process and completion of the supporting statement and will be further tested at interview and selection stage for those who progress forward.

The closing date is given as a guide. We reserve the right to close this vacancy once a sufficient number of applications has been received, it is strongly advised that you complete and submit your application as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.

As part of our award winning Diversity Programme we anonymise all applications received to reduce conscious and unconscious bias enabling every application to be reviewed on the knowledge, skills and experience shown in your application. We encourage our interview panels to be as diverse as possible (age, cultural, neurodiverse etc.) to reduce bias where possible. We are fully committed to removing barriers and enhancing the diversity of our workforce.

Additional Information

We are proud to be a diverse and welcoming Borough and we strive to create a workforce which reflects the community we serve, and instil a sense of belonging in our staff. We celebrate and respect differences and appreciate the value of having a diverse workforce, therefore we welcome applications from under represented groups.

To support our workers and their families we offer a range of family friendly, inclusive employment policies, flexible working arrangements, staff engagement forums and inclusive staff networks who help drive our diversity agenda.

We are also proud to be a disability confident employer and guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum essential criteria for a role. As an accredited London Living Wage Employer all our employees are guaranteed the London Living Wage regardless of their length or type of contract.

The UK has a points-based immigration system affecting EU and Non-EU workers and sponsorship requirements. We advise checking the GOV.UK website for right to work guidance. Sponsorship availability varies and is subject to eligibility requirements and budget limitations. As a result, we cannot guarantee sponsorship for all roles and will evaluate sponsorship requests on a case-by-case basis.