Advanced Practitioner - Assessment

Assessment Team | Barnsley Council | £37 per hour

Barnsley are looking for an experienced Advanced Practitioner to join their Assessment Team on a locum basis. This is a strong opportunity for someone who is confident working at pace in a front-door service, supporting high-quality assessments, strong decision-making, and safe, timely planning for children and families.

This role will suit a practitioner who is comfortable managing complexity, overseeing risk, and providing support and guidance within a busy assessment environment.

Role Overview

As an Advanced Practitioner in the Assessment Team, you will take a lead role in progressing child and family assessments, responding to safeguarding concerns, and ensuring children receive the right support at the right time. You will work alongside managers and social workers to strengthen practice, support decision-making, and drive consistently good outcomes.

You will be part of a fast-paced frontline service completing timely assessments for children and families where there are concerns around welfare, risk, and need. The role requires strong statutory experience, confidence in child protection processes, and the ability to support less experienced staff while maintaining a high standard of practice. You will need to be organised, resilient, and able to make sound decisions in complex situations.

Key responsibilities

• Complete high-quality Child and Family Assessments within statutory timescales
• Progress Section 17 and Section 47 work in line with safeguarding procedures
• Make clear, evidence-based recommendations and plans for children and families
• Support robust risk assessment and safety planning in complex cases
• Work closely with multi-agency partners to inform decision-making and intervention
• Provide practice support and guidance to social workers within the team
• Contribute to strategy discussions, legal planning, and child protection processes
• Maintain accurate, analytical case recording and court-ready documentation where needed

Reasons to stay

• Advanced Practitioner opportunity within a frontline Assessment Team
• Competitive rate of £37 per hour
• Chance to play a key role in supporting strong practice and decision-making
• Varied and fast-paced work with a focus on safeguarding and timely intervention
• Opportunity to bring experience and leadership to a busy statutory setting

Requirements

• Social Work England registration
• Qualified Social Worker status
• Strong frontline children’s social work experience
• Previous experience within Assessment, Duty, or safeguarding services
• Confident working with child protection, risk, and threshold decision-making
• Ability to support others in practice and lead by example
• Enhanced DBS and full compliance for locum work

Interested?

For more information or to apply, contact:
Emily Cooper - 07745 200325 | ecooper@sheldon-phillips.com