Senior Practitioner - Reception and Safe Care Service

Role Responsibility

Kent County Council’s Reception and Safe Care Service (RSCS) provides accommodation and support to newly arrived unaccompanied asylum-seeking children in Kent. The Service leads on social work practice with unaccompanied asylum-seeking children in Kent, which in 2022 Ofsted recognised as Outstanding.

This is an exciting opportunity for a current or aspiring Senior Practitioner to join the Service’s social work teams. The teams operate on a duty rota to respond to referrals for newly arrived children, assessing and supporting their needs before they move to a more permanent settings across the UK.

You will be part of a diverse and supportive team of social workers and support staff that are committed to providing a high-quality initial assessment service to newly arrived unaccompanied asylum-seeking children. You and your team will have a clear focus those in need of protection and the wider safeguarding agenda through high quality social work practice and collaborative working with local partners.

You will be supported to develop skills and experience in supervisory and leadership roles. You will work closely with your managers, KCC colleagues and partner agencies to deliver and improve services for unaccompanied asylum-seeking children in the Service and across Kent.

You will be supported to develop skills and experience in age assessment practice so proportionate and robust decisions are made when a child's age is disputed by the Home Office or significant concerns are raised by other professionals.

You will be able to evidence good leadership skills and a proven track record for delivering good outcomes for children and young people. Above all, you’ll be focused on helping unaccompanied asylum-seeking children begin to navigate a pathway to resettlement in the UK.

This post is considered by KCC to be a customer-facing position. The Council therefore has a statutory duty under Part 7 of the Immigration Act (2016) to ensure that post holders have a command of spoken English/Welsh sufficient for the effective performance of the job requirements. The appropriate standards are set out in the Job Description/Person Specification.

This post is subject to an Enhanced Disclosure application to the Disclosure and Barring service and registration as a qualified Social Worker with Social Work England.

Contact Details

For more information about the role, please contact the RSCS Service Manager Alex Stringer, at alex.stringer@kent.gov.uk or telephone on 03000 419281.

About the Company

KCC is committed to building a workforce which reflects the diversity of the county's working residents, encouraging applications from people of all ages, abilities, genders, sexual orientations, ethnic backgrounds and faiths, and aspires to create an inclusive workplace where everyone can be themselves at work.

Please note – if you are interested, please apply as soon as possible as the closing date for this advert may be earlier than stated should a number of suitably qualified candidates apply.