Senior Practitioner - Fostering Placement Assessments Team

Job Description

Salary: £44,208 - £50,424 per annum (plus a £6,000 annual market supplement*)

Grade: F

Permanent Contract

37 Hours per Week

Why Thurrock?

Working at Thurrock Council gives you the opportunity to join an organisation that is changing at pace, one where you can make a real difference to the lives of the people we serve.

Thurrock Council is moving towards a new community leadership approach which involves linking with local partners and communities as we shape our improvement for the years ahead.

This is an exciting time to join us, to shape the future success of our changing organisation and to have a positive influence on our borough.

Senior Practitioner

We are looking to recruit a dynamic, experienced social worker who is passionate about securing the best outcomes for children. The Assessment Team is responsible for completing Viability Assessments, Special Guardianship Order assessments as well as kinship carer assessments. We offer support to applicants throughout the assessment process, delivering preparation workshops to kinship carer, facilitating support groups for kinship carers and work in unison with the supervising social worker for Kinship carers within the team.

The team also takes the lead for Private Fostering and there is a dedicated social worker who leads in this post, that may require the team's support in completing initial visits to potential private foster carers.

About you

You will need to have a thorough knowledge of the Children Act, with a good understanding and working knowledge of Fostering Regulations and standards. The successful candidate will have strong interpersonal skills, the ability to work independently but also as part of a successful team to ensure high quality social work. Assessments will need to reflect the lived experience of applicants and provide details analysis. Written work will need to be clear, concise and correct. Attendance at Court is a possibility and therefore you are likely to have experience of giving evidence.

• Social Work Degree
• 5 years post-qualifying experience
• Social Work England registration

What We Offer:

• Hybrid working
• Generous annual leave entitlement – 25 days rising to 30 after 5 years’ service
• Career average pension scheme
• Salary sacrifice schemes such as cycle to work schemes
• Flexible working to enable work life balance.
• Maternity, paternity, adoption and shared parental leave above the statutory minimum.
• Reflective supervision and management support
• 24-hour health advice and support

A Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check at Enhanced Level with Children's Barred List is required for this role.

*Market Supplement reviewed annually

Advert Closing Date:

• Redeployment only: 26th June 2025
• Internal & External: 6th July 2025

Interview Date: To Be Confirmed

If you would like an informal chat or more information please contact Team Manager Alexandra Cucu at ACucu@thurrock.gov.uk

To view the Job Profile and Person Specification please follow the link below:

Download Job Profile (PDF Document)

About us

Why Thurrock?

Working at Thurrock Council gives you the opportunity to join an organisation that is changing at pace, one where you can make a real difference to the lives of the people we serve.

Thurrock Council is moving towards a new community leadership approach which involves linking with local partners and communities as we shape our improvement for the years ahead.

This is an exciting time to join us, to shape the future success of our changing organisation and to have a positive influence on our borough.

Our location

Thurrock is located on the north bank of the river Thames. Our urban centres are a vibrant mix of established towns and new young communities, with a diverse and growing population of around 160,000 residents.

We are an emerging cultural and arts centre, home to the production centre for the Royal Opera House and the National Skills Academy for Creative and Cultural Skills. We have excellent retail and leisure opportunities, including Lakeside Shopping Centre, country parks, forests, and marshes.

Thurrock is just half an hour journey away from the centre of London by train and well connected by road.

Staff benefits

We offer lots of staff benefits, including a generous annual leave entitlement and hybrid working. We champion flexible working and job share applications are welcome.

Further information can be found here Employment benefits | Working for the council | Thurrock Council

Equality, Diversity & Inclusion

Thurrock Council is committed to equal opportunities. As a Disability Confident Employer, disabled people will be offered an interview where they meet all essential criteria on the person specification.

We serve a diverse community where people are different yet equal. Diversity underpins everything we do.

For further information about Thurrock Council please visit our website: Thurrock Council