The Professional Practice Team seek to promote and support the development of our Adult Social Care workforce.  To do so, we have an exciting opportunity for a Social Worker who is also a Practice Educator to join Barnsley Council-Adults Social care. 

This post would support the team to expand on our offer of learning opportunities for practice, peer supervision and professional education so that employees feel confident and competent in a range of settings.  The post holder will be responsible for providing support to a range of employees, developing and where required embedding Continuous Professional Development.

Applicants should have a good understanding of The Professional Capabilities Framework (PCF), the Practice Educator Professional Standards (PEPS) as well as knowledge of Social Work reform, programmes such as the ASYE and experience of providing support and guidance to others.  Knowledge, skills and experience of adults legislation such as The Mental Capacity Act, The Human Rights Act and The Care Act are other considerations for this role.

Continuing to improve standards and consistency in practice is a focus of our work. We are therefore interested in applicants who have knowledge, skills and experience and a passion in Practice Education and continual professional development of themselves and others and who are committed to supporting individuals, the team and the service in our aims.

For this role, you will require effective communication skills, the ability to write reports and be able to demonstrate when you have handled situations of conflict. You will require strong Social Work values and the ability to consider information from a range of sources effectively supporting employees to consider their own impact-and that of others- this in turn having a positive impact on frontline practice.

Why work for Barnsley Council?

Creativity, ambition and a focus on people- that is what matters at Barnsley Council.

Our award-winning council is on an exciting journey of change. It’s all about putting local people at the heart of everything, listening to and doing good for our communities. We’re now more innovative, more efficient and provide better value for money. The changes are clear to see - from new businesses and jobs, to improving school results and to museums being recognized for their community engagement.

Shape a better future with us

We’re thrilled to have achieved LGC Council of the Year in June 2023 following a rigorous judging process.  Now we’d like you to be part of our success and help us take change further. Join us on our journey to a brighter future. By working together, with each other and with our communities, we can take pride in improving lives. Let’s make a better Barnsley for everyone.

Your role in our journey

As a Social Work Professional Practice Development Officer, you will be a relatable practitioner supporting the Social Work Practice Manager and the Professional Practice Team to develop and embed CPD in a range of ways expanding our team and supporting our employees.

A lot to look forward to

Here at Barnsley Council, we live and work by four important values: honesty, teamwork, excellent service, and taking pride in what we do. As part of our team, you can be sure we’ll do all we can to support you in being truly excellent. You see, we prioritise learning and enabling you to achieve your potential. So, we’ve created a development process that lets you grow in the way that suits you - whether that’s training to be a leader or learning flexibly online. This is just one of the reasons why you will find your career here inspiring and rewarding.

Supervision and support

You will receive monthly reflective supervision on a 1:1 basis from the Social Work Practice Development Manager.  Supervision will explore your wellbeing, training needs, performance and workload considerations in brief.  Additional support and guidance is also available from the team’s manager The Principal Social Worker and other peer managers. 

Annual reviews will also take place via a Performance and Development Review (PDR) to support you in developing your skills, knowledge and experience.

We are an inclusive workplace where diversity is celebrated.

What you’ll need

To join us, you’ll need to have a recognised Social Work qualification, be registered with Social Work England and have achieved-or nearing completion of- Practice Educator Stage 2 level.

You need relevant experience of working in Adults services for this role.

You will be expected to produce high quality reports, collaborate with others, and consider approaches to managing conflict. Knowledge of the frameworks, local and national policy issues, legislative base and anti-oppressive practice are vital. You will need to communicate effectively and be a flexible practitioner, be open to new ways of working and particularly be reflective in manner, modelling practice.  Being honest about your own learning and development will also be important in this post.

Apply

If you would like to shape a bright future for yourself and our workforce, develop and continuously improve practice and development and in turn positively impact on our services and communities we would encourage you to apply.