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Job Information
Achieving for Children is a Community Interest Company that has a public sector ethos, combined with the freedom to innovate enabling us to do things differently. As a not-for-profit social enterprise owned by three local authorities (Windsor & Maidenhead, Kingston and Richmond), we offer the freedoms of a social enterprise with the employment benefits of local government. To find out more about us click here.
Principal Social Worker & Practice Lead
Are you a visionary social work leader dedicated to excellence in practice? Achieving for Children is looking for a Principal Social Worker (PSW) and Practice Lead to champion high-quality social work and drive continuous improvement across the Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead.
We are an Ofsted Judged 'Good' local authority that places children and young people at the heart of everything we do. In this pivotal role, you will be the professional voice of our frontline practitioners, ensuring that our social work delivery is reflective, evidence-based and consistently improves the lives of the families we serve.
About the role
The Principal Social Worker is a high-profile leadership position designed to bridge the gap between frontline practice and senior management. You will provide independent scrutiny on statutory duties while fostering an environment of reflective practice and professional growth. You will be an advocate for the profession, ensuring that the views of social workers and the lived experiences of children and families directly influence our service planning.
You will be the driving force behind our practice frameworks and will lead the development and embedding of Signs of Safety (SoS) and our newly adopted Systemic practice, creating the resources and learning pathways that empower our workforce. This is an exciting opportunity to develop your practice through the offer of the Systemic foundational year which is accredited by the Association of Family Therapy.
Key responsibilities include:
- Acting as the primary liaison between practitioners and senior leaders, providing a strong professional voice for the workforce.
- Leading on quality assurance and policy guidance to ensure inspection readiness and compliance with professional standards.
- Embedding evidence-based approaches and monitoring the effectiveness of the Signs of Safety framework across all services.
- Working alongside the PSW for Kingston and Richmond and reporting to the Associate Director of Quality Assurance to ensure a unified approach to excellence.
If you wish to have an informal discussion about the role please contact Sarah Moran, Deputy Director Children's Social Care & Early Help on sarah.moran@achievingforchildren.org.uk
About you
We are looking for a resilient, energetic leader who is passionate about strength-based practice and delivering better outcomes for children. To succeed in this role, you will need:
- Relevant post-graduate qualification and current Social Work England registration. You should also be a Qualified Practice Educator and a recognised Signs of Safety Practice Lead.
- A deep understanding of current legislation, statutory guidance, and inspection regimes, paired with the ability to use data to drive service improvements.
- You are a skilled negotiator and influencer, capable of providing professional challenge to senior stakeholders while remaining adaptable to various learning environments.
- A personal drive to uphold our values of Trust, Value, and Respect, with a proactive approach to addressing equality and diversity issues within practice.
About our benefits
We are focused on creating a positive supportive environment, where you will have access to a really wide range of resources, as well as a competitive salary and all the perks to enable hybrid working. In AfC you will also have access to:
- 29 days annual leave, increasing to 33 days after 2 years and 35 days after 4 years with an additional day off in your birthday month (Or for term-time workers, your leave entitlement consists of the non-working periods in your contract)
- Tailored induction sessions commencing on the date you start working for AfC
- Local Government salary and pension scheme (LGPS or Teachers Pension)
- Flexible working options - helping to keep a good work life balance
- A comprehensive Employee Assistance Programme
- A range of staff benefits and discounts
- An excellent learning and development offer to support your career pathway
To find out about all of the breadth of benefits of working for Achieving for Children click here. For our social work offer click here. For our Recruitment Journey, click here.
Important Information
Start dates: Achieving for Children have set start dates meaning successful candidates join on a set date in each month. Candidates are advised to prepare for this should a job offer be accepted to ensure eligible continuous service is not affected.
Right to work: The UK has introduced a new 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.
Equality: We particularly welcome applications from sections of the community who are currently underrepresented within our teams. Achieving for Children are committed to making our recruitment practices as inclusive as possible for everyone. We are committed to promoting equality and diversity and developing a culture that values differences, recognising that employees from a variety of backgrounds bring important and positive contributions and can improve the way we deliver services. We are proud to be a Disability Confident employer.
Safeguarding: We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. We expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. This post is exempted under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and as such appointment to this post will be conditional upon the receipt of a satisfactory response to a check of police records via Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS).
We reserve the right to close this vacancy once a sufficient number of applications has been received. Therefore, it is strongly advised that you complete and return your application as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.
