To support the research, design, and delivery of high-quality children's practice across all of Children's Services and the wider partnership.
To be an active change agent in driving improvements in the standards of practice, linking with the outcomes and impact of the quality assurance programme across the children's workforce in Medway.
To actively engage the voice of practitioners, children, and families.
To be a source of expert advice on all aspects of practice for children and families.
To provide high support and high challenge to practitioners and managers to ensure practice remains focused on the child.
To lead on a specialist area and be an expert practitioner with recognised impact, status and authority.
To adhere to and uphold professional standards set out by Medway Council, Social Work Post-Qualifying Standards, Professional Capability Framework and Social Work England.
ACCOUNTABILITIES
Support the implementation and sustaining of Medway's Signs of Safety Practice model and Learning and Accountability framework across Children's Services.
Participate in the preparation for statutory inspections by ensuring the visibility of the practice framework and contributing to the design and development of quality assurance systems. This will promote capturing the voice of the child, family and practitioners to inform practice and assure the council that consistently high-quality safe care is afforded to all children and young people.
Lead on the thematic audit of key themes of social work practice and the implementation of any resulting recommendations. This delivering regular surgeries/workshops and 1:1 sessions on identified lead areas to drive and champion best practice within the specialism.
Drive improvements in the quality of supervision to promote the implementation of the Learning and Accountability Framework, addressing professional development, and developing a strong learning culture which will provide high quality practice and good outcomes for children and families.
Identify any areas of learning which may result from serious incidents and deliver practice learning events in partnership with the Safeguarding Partnership, and where relevant, multiagency stakeholders. This may include holding an author role for local Child Safeguarding Practice Reviews.
Support, guide and assist Newly Qualified Social Workers as the practice educator and to allow them to have a rewarding experience of front line practice. Lead on the development of the ASYE programme in Children's Services.
Motivate and inspire teams to provide the highest possible customer service and act as a 'role model' to influence cultural change through the service to promote a strong ethos and drive to deliver high standards of professional social care practice.
Maintain and disseminate an excellent understanding of current research, evidence based practice, policy, guidance, legislation and case law relating to children and families.
Facilitate the learning of others enabling them to develop their knowledge, skills, values and practice.
To be an advocate for children, young people and families and ensure their voice is heard throughout case files.
Support the development and career progression of students, practitioners, and managers whilst improving Medway's recruitment and retention.
Organisational Context and Development
To keep under review and develop the structures, procedures and working methods for which the post holder is responsible to ensure an integrated, effective and efficient approach to the delivery of services
To ensure that working practices and processes are developed that maximise the use of new technology to ensure efficient and effective delivery of services to resident
To actively contribute to the development of a learning culture within Medway Children's Services that enables us to learn from what works and also to create a non-blaming learning space for the times when things don't go as well as they should have.