Senior Social Worker - Assessment and Reunification Team
We are inviting qualified and registered social workers who have at least two years post qualification experience in frontline childrens statutory services to apply for a Senior Social Worker post in our Assessment and Reunification team (ART) which has recently merged with our Children Looked After services.
You must be able to work independently to hold and effectively manage a caseload of complex cases and have experience of working on care and court proceedings. You must be able to respond to complex referrals, provide casework advice, support and guidance to other team members.
You will provide specialist support in high‑risk reunification work by:
- Offering assessment, critical analysis, and structured professional judgement.
- Embedding best‑practice tools, supporting quality assurance, and ensuring alignment with national standards.
- Enhancing collaborative planning and child‑centred practice.
- Effective reunification improves long‑term stability and reduces costs associated with care and crisis responses.
- Improve outcomes for children and families
About You
You will be:
- A qualified and experienced social work practitioner with at least two years post qualification experience in statutory fieldwork
- Registered with Social Work England
- Able to work autonomously on complex cases
- Skilled in risk assessment and safeguarding
- Able to strengthen safe reunification
- Able to reduce re-entry into care
- Able to embed evidence based practice
- Experienced in multi‑agency working
If this sounds like you, we would love to hear from you.
Further information: Victoria.Laycock@sheffield.gov.uk
We are investing in our workforce and are promoting opportunities to our under-represented groups. We value equality, diversity and inclusion and are focused on increasing the diversity of our workforce, particularly the number of Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic, Disabled and LGBTQ+ people, so that our teams reflect the communities in the city we serve. We are also supporting staff with unpaid caring responsibilities to work flexibly.
It is a great time to join us and we welcome your application.
Under the Guaranteed Interview scheme, applicants who are disabled, care leavers, or armed forces veterans will be guaranteed an interview if they meet the essential criteria and indicate their eligibility on the application form. Sometimes, if lots of people apply, we might not be able to interview everyone who qualifies for the Guarantee. In these cases, we’ll interview the candidates who best meet the essential criteria for the job.
Full-time employees work 37 hours for 52 weeks of the year and we offer a generous holiday entitlement. We are open to discussions about a wide range of flexible working opportunities which benefit you and the Council, including reduced hour contracts, working part time or as a job share.
If you are appointed to this role, your starting salary will be at the bottom of the grade. If you provide payslip evidence that your basic pay is greater than the bottom of the grade, we will consider starting you at the point of minimum advantage within the grade.
Equality of pay is extremely important to us. All roles at Sheffield City Council are going through an evaluation process which may result in changes to some pay arrangements from 2026. Find out more on our Sheff news page.
We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all individuals, ensuring a safe and supportive environment for everyone and where appropriate to the role the successful applicant will be required to undertake relevant safeguarding checks.