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Job pack
I am a Slough Borough Council
consultant practitioner. Join me.
Department:
Children, Young People and Families, Wellbeing
Contact Officer: Karl Davis
Telephone:
01753 477321
3 November 2014
Dear Applicant
Consultant Practitioner Job Pack (Ref: 01-2899)
Thank you for the interest you have shown in this opportunity to work at Slough Borough Council as a
Consultant Practitioner.
This information job pack contains:
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•
•
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Messages from the top
Job description and person specification
Benefits of working in Children’s Social Care
How to apply
I hope this information will encourage you to apply for the post. For full details of our employment
offer please visit the following link: www.slough.gov.uk/socialworkjobs
To apply please complete an application form and send it by email to [email protected] or
post it to the Recruitment Team, Slough Borough Council, Arvato public sector services, Phoenix 1,
59-63 Farnham Road, Slough SL1 3TN
If you would like to discuss this position on an informal basis please contact Sabira Khan on
01753 875192 or Neil Ashby on 01753 690808 who will arrange for me or a member of staff in the
Social Care Teams to discuss this opportunity with you.
In the meantime we look forward to receiving an application from you.
Yours faithfully,
Karl Davis
Head of Service, CP/Looked After Children
Main Reception: 01753 475111
DX: 42270 Slough (west)
Slough Borough Council
St Martins Place, 51 Bath Road
Slough, Berks SL1 3UF
Messages from the top
Jane Wood
Strategic director of wellbeing and
director of children’s services
Welcome to Slough and thank you for considering us
for your next career move.
In Slough we are on a journey of improvement and
are looking to recruit people of the highest calibre,
with high aspirations for our children and families,
who are committed to our focus on achieving good
outcomes for our children.
Our last Ofsted inspection in November last year was
disappointing and judged us inadequate.
We knew we were only part way through our
journey and new foundations for improvement are
being laid every week to underpin the commitment
and enthusiasm of our staff.
But we are making progress, and determined to
continue at a pace to make Slough one of the best
places in the country to be a social worker and a
place where outcomes for all children are good.
Slough is small geographically but a giant multiculturally and economically; the population and
challenges of an inner-London borough, surrounded
by east Berkshire and south Bucks countryside.
Life in Slough can be fun, stimulating, exciting and
sometimes frustrating, but it is never dull and if you
enjoy complex challenges, thrive in a vibrant team
environment and you want to be part of a council
determined to achieve good outcomes for local
children, Slough is the place to be.
We want the very best social workers and in return
we promise to make sure you are coming to a place
where you can do the best social work.
With best wishes
Jane
www.slough.gov.uk
Kitty Ferris
Assistant director children, young
people and family services
Thank you for considering Slough as a place to work.
I hope you will choose to make an application for
one of our roles.
If you want to be part of a service completely
focused on getting our practice right so that children
thrive and are safe then Slough is the place for you.
We know the only way we can get practice right and
safeguard children is by listening to children and
giving their social workers the tools they need to do
their job and do it well.
We have an amazingly diverse and vibrant
community - reflected in our workforce and political
leadership.
Working in Slough means working with families
from a wide range of ethnic, cultural and religious
backgrounds, where people get on well, cohesion is
strong and difference is celebrated.
We know we are on an improvement journey with a
way to go, but our commitment and motivation to
keep children safe through good social work is
absolute.
I hope you will want to join us.
With best wishes
Kitty
www.slough.gov.uk
Job description
Job title:
Consultant Practitioner (Children’s Services)
Directorate:
Wellbeing
Responsible to:
Practice Manager (Children’s)
Responsible for:
To provide leadership and professional wisdom to team members and other colleagues
to ensure high quality outcomes for children and young people (CYP) through:
• Working closely with and support the work of the Practice Manager to achieve team
objectives and good outcomes for service users.
• Work with cases and in situations of high complexity.
• Working directly with a small number of service users.
• Providing constructive challenge to team members and others to enhance practice,
procedures and policies.
• Promoting innovation and new ways of working (from recognised sites of excellence).
• Contributing to the development of knowledge and promotion of excellence using
evidence - informed practice.
• Modelling and facilitating reflective and evidence–informed practice; promoting and
modelling the use of critical reasoning.
• Making appropriate decisions within remit.
• Mentoring of staff and undertaking reflective supervision in respect of specific cases to
promote the learning of team members.
• Promotion of best practice throughout the team.
• Representing the service in the court or other arenas.
• Co-working with partners to ensure objectives are secured and improved outcomes
can be evidenced.
• Contribute towards preparation for inspections.
Main accountabilities:
1.
Responsible for undertaking social work on
allocated cases, producing high quality
assessments and outcome based plans, having
regard to the needs of, and risks to, children
and their families.
2.
To ensure on-going work, care plans and care
packages are reviewed in accordance with
departmental policies, contractual agreements
and in liaison with appropriate colleagues,
partner agencies and service providers, to
provide best value for money.
3.
Responsible for improving areas of poor
performance and quality across the Team. This
will include investigation and analysis of issues
and performance action planning and
monitoring to ensure corrective action and
improvement.
4.
To undertake investigations and prepare
reports for panels, case conferences and courts
as required, ensuring that Safeguarding is
paramount in all areas of casework
www.slough.gov.uk
5.
Responsible for routine auditing activity across
the service to secure the highest possible
standards of social work practice and record
keeping and to act in accordance with
requirements of the Quality Assurance
Framework.
6.
To complete financial assessments and, where
appropriate, to determine contributions and
levels of need/service to promote child/family
well being with the agreement of the Practice
Manager (Children’s).
7.
To mentor, support and develop staff as
delegated by the Practice Manager (Children’s)
and to provide reflective supervision to team
members on specific cases to promote learning
and practice development
13. To develop and maintain effective working
relationships at appropriate levels with other
relevant partner agencies e.g. voluntary,
community, Schools, police, health other
statutory agencies/local resource networks and
internal partners, to ensure services are
provided in accordance with assessed need.
14. To maintain, monitor and review accurate
records of all work undertaken ensuring
recording information is accurate and up to
date, including comprehensive use of the
Integrated Children’s System.
15. To work effectively with other teams and
services within the council, including
maintaining appropriate work flow and case
transfers.
8.
To contribute to the assessment of workers
performance against core competences, using a
range of models including sampling case files,
personal interviews, tests and other assessment
tools.
16. To contribute to the development of services to
children and families and to attend, contribute
to and lead (when appropriate) team meetings
to promote the delivery of integrated and
effective services.
9.
To develop systems for the dissemination of
evidence based practice.
17. To focus on the professional development
needs for the team including ensuring an
evidence based approach and working with the
Practice Manager to assess staff against the
professional capabilities framework
10. To be involved in induction of new team
members and NQSW, including assessment of
competence, identifying mentoring and
coaching needs and reviewing progress.
11. To complete FOI and DPA enquiries and deal
with complaints processes as and when
required.
12. To ensure that the needs of service users/
carers from all communities are addressed, and
that close attention is paid to equalities issues in
all aspects of work. To ensure access to
translation and interpretation services as
necessary.
18. To identify own individual learning needs and
ensure that practice reflects contemporary
thinking. To ensure regular reflection of skills
and abilities and use supervision and approval
to identify future and plan to meet future
needs. Ensure and maintain HCPC registration.
19. To ensure compliance with Health and Safety
and welfare requirements.
20. To provide cover for the work of other team
members and undertake projects and other
additional duties commensurate with the level
of the job. (The nature of these will vary
according to experience, competencies and the
grade of the post).
www.slough.gov.uk
Person specification
Consultant Practitioner (Children’s Services)
Competency
Experience
Knowledge
Skills/abilities
Attributes - Customer Focus, Development,
Relationships, Personal Effectiveness,
Expertise, Communication Skills, Health &
Safety and Equalities
Essential/
Desirable
Method:
Application (A)
Interview (I)
Test (T)
1.1
Experience of working with Children and Families.
Essential
√√
A
1.2
Experience of assessment, commissioning of care,
monitoring and review ensuring effective use of
resources in the provision of services to meet
need.
Essential
√√
AI
1.3
Working with a range of partners in social care
provision.
Essential
√√
AI
1.4
Experience of undertaking risk assessments and
developing risk management plans.
Essential
√√
AI
1.5
Experience of leading motivating and supporting
staff.
Essential
√√
AI
2.1
Children Acts 1989 and 2004, and all other
relevant legislation and national standards and
guidance.
Essential
√√
AI
2.2
Best practice in the delivery of social care services
to children and families.
Essential
√√
AI
2.3
A working understanding of child protection
policy, procedures, practice and other statutory
processes/procedures including CP/LAC
framework .
Essential
√√
AI
2.4
Equal treatment and anti-discriminative policies
and practices working in ethnically and culturally
diverse communities.
Essential
√√
AI
2.5
Local resource networks.
Essential
√√
AI
3.1
Ability to assess the development needs of staff
to ensure that quality standards are met and
practice targets and outcomes are met.
Essential
√√
AI
3.2
Excellent analytical skills, casework assessment,
interventions, and skills to develop outcome
based plans.
Essential
√√
AI
3.3
Ability to present ideas and information
persuasively, communicate effectively, facilitate
group and build rapport with staff that supports
practice.
Essential
√√
AI
www.slough.gov.uk
Skills/abilities
Qualifications
3.4
Excellent verbal, written and IT skills, to produce
clear literate and appropriate reports/
correspondence for a wide range of readership,
ensuring comprehensive use of ICS for case
recording.
Essential
√√
AI
3.5
Communicating clearly and effectively with
vulnerable customers in a non-judgemental, nondiscriminatory way.
Essential
√√
AI
3.6
Ability to undertake direct work with CYP, parents
and carers, managing a caseload of high
complexity work.
Essential
√√
AI
3.7
Maintain clear and effective caseload reporting,
complete risk assessments and care plans.
Essential
√√
AI
3.8
Ability to work on own initiative exercise
judgement.
Essential
√√
AI
3.9
Experience of balancing complex workloads and
setting priorities.
Essential
√√
AI
3.10 Demonstrable ability to work effectively and
contribute to the management of the team,
supervision of staff and make best use of
available skills.
Essential
√√
AI
4.1
Recognised Social Work qualification.
Essential
√√
A
4.2
Evidence of continuing professional development.
Essential
√√
A
4.3
Full driving licence with access to car on daily
basis.
Essential
√√
A
4.4
A relevant qualification/award in promoting the
learning and development of staff.
Desirable
4.5
The post holder is required to register with the
HCPC to comply with National requirements.
Essential
A
√√
A
www.slough.gov.uk
Benefits of being a Consultant Practitioner
at Slough
Salary
• For posts in CP/CIN/LAC & LDD Teams
the salary is:
£40,208 - £41,111 per annum fully inclusive
(+£4,000 Market Supplement +£1,000 retention
payment).
After 18 months in post in the in CP, CIN & LDD
teams you will receive a £1,000 retention
allowance having sustained and satisfactory
performance.
• For posts in all other Childrens Social Work
Teams the salary is: £40,208 - £41,111 per annum
fully inclusive (+£2,000 Market Supplement).
Salaries are paid on or about the last working day of
the month.
Annual increments are paid on 1 April each year
subject to 6 months service and satisfactory
performance.
Working hours
Hours of work are 37 hours per week at Slough.
Slough encourages part time working/job share.
The LGPS is a national scheme which is administered
by geographical region.
Slough is a part of the Berkshire pension fund administered by the Royal Borough of Windsor and
Maidenhead on behalf of all the employers.
Unless you wish to opt out, you will become a
member of the LGPS on starting a job at Slough
Borough Council.
More details are available in the Guide to new
Employees to the pension fund website:
www.rbwm.gov.uk/berks-pension/index.htm
Annual leave
Our annual leave is generous and the longer you
work for us and local government, the more you get.
The annual leave year runs from 1 April to 31 March.
The yearly entitlement is based on full time staff; for
part-time employees the entitlement is pro-rata.
You are also entitled to eight public and bank
holidays - which is pro-rata for part time staff.
Your entitlement
Flexible working
Service
We support a range of flexible working
arrangements to promote a work-life balance for
our staff.
Days in a
complete year
Up to two years continuous local
government service
25 days
These are dependant on the operational needs of
each service.
Between two and five years
29 days
continuous local government service
Pensions
More than five years continuous
local government service
32 days
As a local government employee you will have
access to a high-quality pension scheme known as
the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS)
www.slough.gov.uk
Mileage and subscriptions
Travelling
Mileage
Car parking
We reimburse all business mileage. Currently we pay
45p a mile for the first 10,000 business miles in a tax
year and 25p per mile for each business mile over
10,000 in the tax year.
Unlike many places, we have free car parking for
staff just across the road from our main site called St
Martins Place where 800 of our staff are based. We
offer travel warrants to staff that need to travel on
business via public transport.
Business mileage taken on a motorcycle or bicycle is
also reimbursed at 24p per mile for motorcycles and
20p per mile for a bicycle.
All mileage claims for cars and motorcycles are only
valid when supported by VAT receipts.
Once a member of staff has hit 1,000 business miles
or more in any one tax year they are paid a lump
sum of £1,000.
Vehicles used for business need to be suitably
insured.
Subscriptions
As an employee within Children’s Social Care we will
pay for your HCPC registration and registration with
the College of Social Work. Additionally, we subscribe
to the Research In Practise who bring together
research and practitioner expertise - building the
sector’s capacity for evidence-informed practice.
Professionals of all levels benefit from their wide
range of high quality, accessible resources and
learning opportunities.
Bike loans and pool bikes
But if you’d rather use two wheels - we offer a bike
loan scheme for our staff, free secure bike parking
and have shower facilities on site.
There are also pool bikes available to get you from a
to b in the town during the day.
Season ticket loans
We offer all our staff an interest-free loan to buy an
annual railway, London Underground or bus season
ticket to cover travelling from home to work.
The scheme is available to all staff on a permanent
contract and on those on a fixed term contract
where there is at least 12 months left to go.
Our location
Slough is one of the easiest places to get to in the
country.
Two motorways, a mainline railway station and bus
links across the area and we are also one of the least
hilly places, making cycling a breeze.
And if you would rather take to the skies - Heathrow
is a mere five miles away.
Slough is also only nine miles end-to-end and five
miles top-to-bottom so many areas are also in easy
walking distance.
www.slough.gov.uk
Nearby
Getting physical
Thirty minutes to the West End and 10 minutes to
Burnham Beeches; Slough and its surrounds have
everything you could ever want. In the borough are
254 hectares of parks and open spaces - three of
which have green flag status - including 76
playgrounds; with everything from historic Victorian
pleasure grounds to football pitches and wildflower
meadows. Not bad for one of the most urban areas
in the country. There are shops galore in the High
Street and retail parks, a cinema and the largest
variety of food outlets outside London.
With one of the town’s leisure centres just across the
road from our main site and 20 percent off
membership there is no excuse not to go to the gym
or have a swim.
Events taking place this year include the bonfire and
fireworks spectacular, annual canal festival, the
Mela, Night of the Festivals and continental markets
in the town centre.
And just down the road is the spectacular and
historic Windsor Castle, host to many royal activities
and the Windsor Great Park where you can truly get
lost in the country.
And you don’t have to pay a joining fee meaning
peak time membership is just £31.20 per month and
family membership (two adults and up to three
children) is just £61 per month.
But if you would rather take to the ice, our Ice arena
(also just across the road from our main site) offers
£3 off a general skate session during the week.
Discounted driving lessons
I-drive offer Slough staff discounted driving lessons.
Hotels
Want to stay in style on your holiday? Hilton hotels
offer up to 40 percent off to our employees.
Food and drink
With London a short train journey away the world of
the capital is on our doorstep.
Money off deals
To help with that work-life balance, several local and
national businesses offer great money off deals for
our staff.
O2
Our corporate network provider, O2 offers staff and
their friends and families special discount on pay
monthly phone plans, home broadband and other
products.
Kaarp benefits
From days out and holidays to gifts and flowers,
Kaarp benefits offers our staff special deals on a
whole range of activities.
There are restaurants galore in Slough with some
offering up to 20 percent off the price of food for our
employees. Treat yourself to a pizza at Pizza Express
with 20 percent off, a curry at Haveli or the Prince of
India with 15 percent off or a range of Asian food at
As Asia with 15 percent off.
Costco
Our employees can take out membership at Costco the wholesale shop that gives access to top quality
products and low prices.
Individual cost of a membership is just £25 a year,
plus VAT, and includes a free spouse card.
Theatre tickets
If the theatre is your thing, then the West End
Theatre Club offers our staff discounted tickets at
top West End shows.
www.slough.gov.uk
Childcare vouchers
HSF
As any working parent knows, arranging childcare
can be a real headache and very expensive, but
there are lots of options available to staff.
You are eligible to join the HSF which is a health plan
that provides staff with a highly valuable benefit.
The HSF health plan can cover both you and your
family for over 30 benefits with contributions
starting at just £1 a week (made by Payroll
deduction). It is like an added peace of mind for you
and your family’s health in these ever changing
times.
One option is the childcare voucher scheme.
Many people have asked whether they can still apply
for childcare vouchers if they get child tax credit and
working tax credit. The only people that aren’t
eligible for the childcare voucher scheme are those
that receive the childcare element of the working tax
credit.
Further information about childcare vouchers is
available through an organisation called
Computershare. You have to register with them
online. To find out more, visit the ComputerShare
website.
http://www.computersharevoucherservices.com/
Pages/default.aspx
If you are looking for childcare, Slough’s children’s
centres provide a range of childcare services and
staff may use the childcare vouchers at the centres.
There are 10 children’s centres, each offering
various options for childcare for children aged 6
months to 8 years, including full day care, crèches,
before and after school clubs and holiday care.
The children’s centres also offer a wide range of
other services for families with young children,
including health visitor drop-ins, speech and
language drop-ins, family and adult learning
programmes, access to the Citizen’s Advice Bureau,
and much more. If you want to find out what’s on at
your local children’s centre, you should ring 01753
476566 or email [email protected].
For more information about other childcare
providers and services in Slough, you can call the
Family Information Service on 01753 476589 or visit
the Slough Services Guide website.
Dental check-ups and treatment, sight tests, glasses,
contact lenses, the cost of your family’s day to day
health care can add up to a large annual bill. Getting
Cash Back with HSF health plan will be a great
benefit to your household budget as well as your
family’s health.
Relocation allowance
Newly appointed staff to Social Worker posts within
the Children In Needs teams, Child Protection teams
and Learning Difficulties and Disabilities teams will
be able to access the councils’ relocation scheme.
Children’s Services Retention Payment
Scheme
Newly appointed staff to Social Work posts within
Children in Needs teams, Child Protection teams and
Learning Difficulties and Disabilities teams will be
eligible for a retention allowance, after 18 months in
post, in accordance with the Children’s Services
Retention Payment Scheme.
Smoking Policy
The Council has a No Smoking Policy. Smoking is not
permitted within the core hours of 10:00-12:00 &
14:00-16:00.
www.slough.gov.uk
How to apply
Key dates
Recruitment monitoring form
Closing date: 5pm Thursday 20 November 2014
Interviews: week commencing 8 December 2014
Please complete our Recruitment Monitoring Form
as this provides us with important information to
monitor the process of the appointment of
individuals under current legislation and our equal
opportunities policy. This form will be separated
from your application form and will not be used for
shortlisting or selection purposes.
To apply for this post you must complete a Slough
Borough Council application form. You may submit a
CV in addition to your application form. Please note
that a CV alone will not be accepted as they do not
meet our assessment criteria and commitment to
equal opportunities.
Completing application forms
Particular attention should be given to the
Supporting Information section within the
application form. Shortlisting is based on the
candidate’s ability to meet the selection criteria
within the person specification. Therefore, it is
essential that you outline clear examples and
evidence of how you meet the requirements of the
person specification. Examples and evidence should
also relate back to the duties/accountabilities
contained in the job description.
It is important that you complete ALL sections of the
application form; you can attach additional
information if you wish.
Reply details
Your application form must reach us by closing date.
Applications received after this date will not be
considered. Application forms should be returned
by:
a) E-mail: [email protected]
b) Post: Recruitment Team, Human Resources,
Slough Borough Council, Arvato public sector
services, Phoenix 1, 59-63 Farnham Road, Slough
SL1 3TN.
Next steps
If you are selected for interview we will contact you
by telephone and confirm the details in writing.
If you have not heard from us within 4 weeks of the
closing date, please assume that, on this occasion,
your application has been unsuccessful.
www.slough.gov.uk
Consultant Practitioner job pack
Designed and printed by Slough Borough Council |
www.slough.gov.uk