Senior Residential Childcare Worker (Secondment)

Job Title: Senior Childcare Worker (Secondment)
Starting Salary: £39,481 progressing to £43,149 per annum + 6% market enhancement
Sleep In allowances are paid at £40 per night. There are opportunities to work additional hours and overtime across the Service.
Hours: 37 hours per week
Contract Type: Permanent

Directorate: Children's Services

About the team - Cherry Tree Cottage | CAMHS & Social Care Collaborative Service

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Senior Childcare Worker to join Cherry Tree Cottage on a secondment basis. This innovative service works in partnership with CAMHS and Social Care to provide intensive therapeutic support for young people who are at risk of requiring Tier 4 mental health services or who are stepping down from inpatient provision.

The successful candidate will play a key role in delivering high-quality, trauma-informed care, supporting young people with complex emotional and mental health needs. As a senior member of the team, you will provide leadership and guidance to staff, undertake regular supervisions, contribute to care planning and risk management, and help maintain a safe, nurturing, and therapeutic environment.

About the role

Key responsibilities include:

• Providing day-to-day leadership and support to the care team.
• Conducting staff supervisions and supporting professional development.
• Attending and contributing to multi-disciplinary and multi-agency meetings.
• Working collaboratively with CAMHS, Social Care, families, and other professionals.
• Supporting the management team with service delivery, quality assurance, and safeguarding responsibilities.
• Promoting positive outcomes for young people through relationship-based and therapeutic practice.

This role offers a unique opportunity to be part of a forward-thinking partnership model that aims to reduce admissions to Tier 4 services, support successful transitions back into the community, and improve outcomes for young people with complex mental health needs.

About you

Essential:

• Minimum 9-12 month experience of working in residential children’s home.

• Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare or equivalent

• Hold a full driving licence and business insurance.
• Lead and manage shifts.
• Willingness to undertake shift work.

Desirable:

• Staff supervision
• Attending/ leading meetings with key stakeholder
• Working with families

We welcome applications from candidates who currently reside in the UK with established proof of right to work documentation. We are not able to offer sponsorship at this time for this role.

This job role is within the Health and Social Care, level job profile. Please locate this via: Job profiles - Health and social care

Working for Hertfordshire County council is an excellent opportunity, we are forward thinkers and diverse in the residential services that we offer.

As an employer we offer our staff the opportunity to undertake further training via our apprenticeships to further their careers in social care.

Its an excellent time to join our residential service as we have a strong therapeutic foundation and looking to enhance our service with a core and committed staff group.

To hear more about this opportunity please contact Victoria Apperley (Victoria.Apperley@hertfordshire.gov.uk) for an informal discussion about the role.

Interview date: 19th November 2026

Benefits of working for us

How to apply

As part of your application, please upload your most recent CV. Ensure your CV is up to date with your employment history (including any employment gaps), and including any training/qualifications. We encourage you to include examples of where you have demonstrated the requirements/criteria in the advert / job profile to allow the panel to fully recognise your skills and abilities. You will have the opportunity to include a short covering paragraph within your application to give us a little more information about your skills, knowledge, and experiences.

Additional information

We are changing

Hertfordshire County Council is undergoing Local Government Reorganisation (LGR). If you are employed by Hertfordshire County on 1 April 2028, it is expected that most roles will transfer to the newly-created unitary councils on existing terms and conditions under TUPE (Transfer of Undertakings – Protection of Employment) principles.

LGR is one of the biggest changes we will face in a generation. It will reshape how we work and how services are organised and gives us a real opportunity to build something better. To find out more, visit https://www.hertfordshire-lgr.co.uk/

Disability Confident
We are proud to be a Disability Confident employer and guarantee an interview to anyone disclosing a disability whose application meets the minimum criteria for the post.

Safeguarding
This role has been identified as requiring a Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) check.

Driving required
You’ll need to have the ability to drive and/or travel around Hertfordshire, either using your own mode of transport or a company car to travel to other locations.

English Fluency
The ability to converse at ease with members of the public and provide advice in accurate spoken English is essential for the post (for those whose language is a signed language the provision of a sign language interpreter who speaks English to the necessary standard of fluency will be required). Further information about the legal requirement can be found here.