Social Worker

Job Introduction

About Us

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Social Worker to join the Countywide Fostering Recruitment Team. We are looking for a passionate and dedicated Social Worker to be part of a dynamic team, driving the recruitment of foster carers and contributing to the continued development of the service.

The role is based at Ron Groves House, Kidlington, Oxford.

About the Role

Our team is friendly, supportive, hard-working, and dedicated to fostering. This is an excellent opportunity for someone passionate about the recruitment and retention of foster carers to advance their career.

Your responsibilities will include:

• Assessing prospective foster carers, delivering the Skills to Foster programme to prospective foster carers supporting, and promoting the role of foster carers in Oxfordshire.
• Completing Initial Home Visits.
• Ensuring assessments and visits are completed within expected timescales and are of high quality.
• Contributing to the overall function and management of the Countywide Fostering Recruitment Team.
• Supporting the team with events and training, which will involve some out-of-hours working.
• Participating in monthly group reflective supervisions, individual supervisions, and mentorship.
• Collaborating with Managers in the development, delivery, and review of services for foster carers, children, and young people.

About you

We are seeking a Social Worker with over two years of post-qualifying experience in relevant settings, such as Children’s Services or Family Placement. The ideal candidate will have excellent assessment, analytical, and report writing skills.

The applicant will need to demonstrate that they understand the recruitment and assessment process of prospective foster carers, and that they are keen to develop their knowledge and skills further. The successful applicant also needs to be computer literate.

 Rewards and benefits

• Flexible working. We do all we can to ensure that every one of our employees has a healthy work-life balance. Our agile working policy means you can work across council sites or from home to suit your needs and we support flexible working hours. 
• You will be provided with a laptop, mobile phone and MS Teams to facilitate agile working.
• Generous annual leave allowance. We know that as a social worker, you do an invaluable job. 
• We offer a generous holiday allowance starting at 29 days per year (plus bank holidays) to help demonstrate how much we value the work you do.  This includes annual leave purchase scheme.
• A caring and supportive culture. We are passionate about keeping people safe, well and independent, whilst making a positive contribution. 
• Other benefits include a cycle to work scheme and staff discount scheme for a range of retailers, holidays, insurance, restaurants, health & leisure activities and rail travel.
• Access to a Local Government Pension Scheme.

Our commitment to:
 Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

At Oxfordshire County Council we are proud of our diverse workforce. Everyone is accepted for who they are, regardless of age, disability, gender identity, marital status, race, faith or belief, sexual orientation, socioeconomic background, or on maternity or family leave. We have a number of staff network groups which provide peer support, education and safe spaces for all.

Our commitment to:
 Guaranteed Interview Schemes

As a Disability Confident employer, we guarantee an interview for disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the job. We also guarantee interviews to care leavers who have completed further education and who meet the essential criteria for the job. For those leaving care without any further education, we guarantee an interview for our apprenticeships. We are also committed to helping and supporting those transitioning from HM Armed Forces to civilian life and guarantee an interview for those demonstrating the essential criteria for the role, within three years of leaving the service.

Our commitment to:
 Safeguarding

Oxfordshire County Council are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults. We expect all employees, workers and volunteers to share this commitment. We will ensure that all our recruitment and selection practices reflect these commitments.

Our commitment to:
 Flexible Working

We are open to discussions about flexible working, which can include flexi-time, part time working, job sharing, nine-day fortnights and annualised hours, depending on the requirements of the role and the service.

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If you encounter any technical issues with the application system, please contact us at: careers@oxfordshire.gov.uk