Salary
Grade 10, £36,778 to £39,522 per annum (pro-rata’d for part time roles)

Reference
2025_1433

Location
County Hall, Newport, Isle of Wight with to travel to Adopt South’s head office in Swanwick

37 hours per week, part time applicants welcome

About Adopt South

This role is with Adopt South, the partnership Regional Adoption Agency for Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Portsmouth, and Southampton local authorities, with the Isle of Wight as the employer.

We are looking for an experienced Social Worker to join our Adoption Support team, in our dynamic and innovative Regional Adoption Agency. The role requires a minimum of 3 years post qualifying experience.

Adopt South’s Adoption Support Service offers a range of services to adoptive families, including; the provision of support groups, therapeutic parenting workshops, consultations sessions and an advice and support line. We also undertake Adoption Support Needs Assessments and deliver or commission adoption support plans.

The focus of our work with children and families is on adoption related issues, such as attachment and life story work. Whilst we work with parents to manage risks, we also work alongside other teams when thresholds are met for statutory services. As engagement with our service is completely voluntary, we need creative ways of engaging with parents and working alongside them to improve the outcomes for the children. To ensure our services are accessible to adoptive families, this role does include the provision of workshops and events that are held on evenings and weekends and are shared across the team.

We are seeking an experienced and passionate Social Worker who can apply professional knowledge to transform outcomes for individuals, relatives and carers whilst facilitating effective multi-agency solutions. With your significant Social Work experience, you’ll have excellent communication skills and the ability to relate to all different kinds of people, plus the motivation to grow in your role through personal and professional development.

Above all, you will be determined to make a difference for both the service and the children and families who need it. you will know what excellent practice looks like and will be able and to improve outcomes for children and adopters. Most importantly however, you will have a passion for supporting children and families to ensure that they thrive and flourish.

The role will prominently be working with our families on the IOW but requires ability to travel across the whole of the Adopt South region if required.

Key Role Responsibilities

• Providing advice and support on the Adopt South Advice and Support Line
• Develop and deliver Adopt South Services through individual, family and group work.
• Working with partner agencies to promote and provide peer support and mentoring.
• Using innovative technology to improve parental understanding of the child’s journey.
• Completion of Adoption Support Needs Assessments in agreed timescales.
• Delivery and commissioning of Adoption Support Plans.
• Develop collaborative relationships with adoptive parents to improve outcomes of adopted children.
• Refer to other relevant agencies where appropriate to ensure all risks and needs are considered.
• Take appropriate action in conjunction with other agencies and within legal and statutory framework, to protect vulnerable people.
• Managing caseload of children and family cases in line with organisational policy and procedure.

Essential Qualifications, Skills and Experiences

• A degree or equivalent qualification in Social Work, with a minimum of 3 years post qualifying experience
• Registration with Social Work England
• Experience of working with children and families in social work setting
• Concise verbal and written communication skills
• Mediation and negotiation skills
• Experience of report writing
• Ability to assess risks, needs, and to analyse information and recognise problems
• Understand equalities issues in social work practice and principals of safety, dignity and empowerment
• Understand philosophies, professional social work issues and legal frameworks
• Understand data protection/confidentiality and need for accurate and timely recording
• Computer literate with basic numeracy skills
• Highly organised and able to manage time and conflicting demands effectively
• Willing to learn and develop in the role, with ongoing training and personal development
• Able to be flexible with working arrangements to meet the operational requirements of the post

Working conditions of the role may include

Working with children and people with special needs.
Potential verbal abuse and/or physical aggression.
You must be able to meet the travel requirements of the role. Generally, this means that you will require a full driving licence and access to a car, but reasonable adjustments to this requirement will be considered to cater for a declared disability.
Travel to families across the Adopt South Region
Display screen equipment user.

Vetting Requirements

This post is subject to a criminal records check. As such please note, we will take up references prior to interview.

For an informal discussion or further details please contact, Charlotte Cook Team Manager at charlotte.cook@hants.gov.uk

Join #TeamIWC and you’ll receive our staff benefits package, including:

• Annual leave entitlement of 32 days p/a PLUS public holidays!
• Local Government pension scheme
• Discounted Solent ferry travel
• Island bus network discount
• Cycle to work scheme
• Staff parking permit scheme
• Discounted island sports & leisure gym membership
• National and local discounts & benefits schemes
• Relocation scheme of up to £8,000 may be available for some roles (subject to criteria)
• Travel allowance may be available if commuting from the mainland (subject to criteria)

Find out more about working for the Isle of Wight Council and living on the Island.

The Isle of Wight Council currently does not have a license to sponsor overseas workers.

We actively promote the diversity of our workforce, and provide flexible working options (where appropriate) to support the different needs of our employees. We are an equal opportunities employer, proud to encourage applications from all cultures, backgrounds and abilities to better reflect the diversity within our local community.

We are a Disability Confident employer. Along with a number of commitments, this means, providing you meet the basic essential requirements of the advertised role and have declared yourself as disabled, you will be offered an opportunity for an interview within the council.

The Isle of Wight Council protects its employees from discrimination, and this is supported by;

unacceptable behaviour policy

employee code of conduct

our values, culture and inclusivity

The Isle of Wight Council’s Terms & Conditions of employment are available upon request. Please contact our recruitment team via adverts@iow.gov.uk if you would like to receive a copy.

The Isle of Wight Council reserve the right to close vacancies earlier than stated, if required. To ensure your application is considered, it is recommended to submit your application promptly.

This council and its schools recruit according to the council’s Recruitment, Policy and Procedure and are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expect all staff and volunteers to share in this commitment.

The Isle of Wight Council is committed to supporting all newly qualified social workers (NQSWs) via a robust post-graduate competency framework, the ‘Assessed and Supported Year of Employment’ (ASYE). The ASYE is intended to be the first stage of continuing professional development for Registered Social Workers. The framework will be closely allied to the Professional Capabilities Framework (PCF).  You will be therefore, be required to satisfactorily complete the ASYE programme within a 12-month period (or 18 months if part-time).

For support completing your online application or for further information on how to apply, phone 01983 823134 or email callcentre@iow.gov.uk. Only applications submitted online by the closing date will be accepted.

We often receive a high volume of applicants for our vacancies. If you do not hear from the recruiting manager within three weeks of the closing date, we regret that your application will not have been successful on this occasion. Please revisit our job page for alternate posts that may be suitable.

Please read the Application Guidance Notes before applying. If you are unable to complete this application, email us at careers@iow.gov.uk or telephone us on 01983 823113