About Barnet Council

Barnet is a borough with much to be proud of. Our excellent schools, vibrant town centres, vast green spaces and diverse communities all help make it a great place to live and work. As a council we want to build on these strengths as we move into the future. We are growing and developing as an organisation to meet the challenges facing our borough and we are committed to working with partner organisations and residents to make Barnet even better. As an organisation, our staff are committed to Our Values: Learning to Improve, Caring, Inclusive, Collaborative – which drive everything we do.

About the role

This is an exciting opportunity for an experienced social work qualified practitioner, with a strong background in management. We are looking for someone with a relevant professional qualification suited to working with children, young people and families.

The role involves line-managing front-line early help practitioners. This will include providing regular supervision, practice development and allocation of work. The role also takes the lead for overseeing and allocating of casework between Early Help and Social Care, and so you will be expected to work when required, closely with the statutory social work teams. In addition, this post is required to carry out regular file audits and quality assure Early Help Assessments across the Team.

You will be joining a strong management team and will have access to regular supervision, peer support and training.

The Service is delivered across the borough from three 0-19 Hubs, in order to be closer to where families live, and is delivered in conjunction with a wide range of partners. We take a whole family and multi-agency approach to help build resilience and aim to offer the right help, first time.

Please click here to download the Job description for this role. (Right-click and select “Open in new tab” so you can keep the job description open while completing your application)

About you

You will have:

• In depth knowledge and understanding of the legislative framework and polices in relation to safeguarding children

• Excellent written and oral communication skills, particularly in writing assessments and plans for young people

• Proven experience in demonstrating your impact on families in achieving positive outcomes for children and influence the professional networks that you work with.

• The candidate needs to have a solid understanding of the ‘continuum of need’ (thresholds) between statutory intervention and early help and to demonstrate an interest in early intervention.

What we offer

31 days annual leave, plus public and bank holidays
Access to the Local Government Pension Scheme, which provides a valuable guaranteed income in your retirement together with security for your dependents
Work-life balance options may include hybrid working, flexitime, job share, home working, part-time
A vast range of lifestyle discounts from major retailers, supermarkets, energy suppliers and more
Broad range of payroll benefits including cycle to work, eye care vouchers, travel and gym membership
Excellent training and development opportunities
Employee well- being training programs including confidential employee assistance

How to apply

Read the job description and person specification before clicking ‘Apply’ to commence the online application form. If you would like any further information about the role before applying, please contact Meera Bhayani at meera.bhayani@barnet.gov.uk

System notice: Some dates shown on our online application system (such as “Apply Before”) appear in US date format (MM/DD/YYYY) due to Oracle system settings.

Artificial intelligence (AI) can be a useful tool to support your application as a reasonable adjustment, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn, escalated to counter Fraud for further investigation and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Barnet Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people, and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Barnet operates stringent safer recruitment procedures, this may include AI Detection Screening, Biometric ID/Right to Work Checks, Qualification and Registration Checks, Up to 6 years of Employment Data and Insights to Accelerate Screening (Konfir), Up to 5 years of Employment History References, DBS (Disclosure & Barring Service) Checks, Credit Checks and Social Media, Sanctions and Occupational Health Screening.

To deliver Barnet Council’s commitment to equality of opportunity in the provision of services, all staff are expected to promote equality in the workplace and in the services the Council delivers. As such we value diversity and welcome applications from all backgrounds.

Barnet Council embraces all forms of flexible working (including part-time, compressed hours, and hybrid working) and is committed to offering employees a healthy work-life balance. Candidates are encouraged to talk about relevant requirements and preferences at interview. We can’t promise to give you exactly what you want, but we do promise not to judge you for asking.

Barnet Council is a Disability Confident Committed Employer. We welcome and encourage job applications of all abilities. If you require any reasonable adjustments in the application or interview, please contact the lead contact on this advert. We will make reasonable adjustments to make sure our disabled applicants and those with health conditions are supported throughout our recruitment process. We support the access to work scheme, further details are available at www.gov.uk/access-to-work/apply

All posts with the council are subject to a probationary period of six months, during which time you will be required to demonstrate to the council satisfaction your suitability for the position in which you will be employed.

Due to the high number of applications that are received for some posts we may close vacancies before the stated closing date if sufficient number of applications are received. Therefore, please apply as soon as possible.

Please ensure you regularly check the email account (including JUNK MAIL folders) that you use to submit your application, as any further communication regarding your application will be sent electronically. Should you not hear from us within four working weeks of the closing date for this post, then regretfully in this instance, you have not been shortlisted.