Social Work Team Manager – Access to Resources (Placements) – London

Location: London Borough of Southwark
Pay/Salary: Up to £39.43 per hour (Umbrella)
Office Working: Hybrid
Contract: Locum | 36 hours per week

We are currently working with the London Borough of Southwark to find an experienced Social Work Team Manager for their Access to Resources (Placements) Team. This is an excellent opportunity to lead a specialist service focused on improving placement choice, stability and outcomes for children in care while ensuring the best use of Southwark's fostering resources.

You'll oversee the delivery of the Placements Service, leading the team responsible for identifying and matching children with suitable foster carers and ensuring placements meet their emotional, educational, cultural and health needs. You'll work closely with Fostering, Assessment, Safeguarding and Care teams, providing strong management oversight of placement demand, sufficiency and the use of external provision.

Duties

• Leading and managing the Access to Resources Placements Team.
• Overseeing referrals and ensuring children are matched with suitable foster carers who can meet their individual needs.
• Promoting placement stability and developing support that helps prevent placement breakdown.
• Maintaining oversight of children awaiting placements and ensuring timely progress in identifying suitable carers.
• Monitoring placement demand, referral patterns and the use of Independent Fostering Agencies.
• Maximising the use of Southwark's internal fostering resources and promoting Friends and Family placements where appropriate.
• Using performance and placement data to identify trends, risks and pressures within the service.
• Alerting senior management to risks relating to placement sufficiency and capacity.
• Ensuring high-quality practice standards and effective systems are maintained across the Placements Team.
• Working collaboratively with foster carers, Social Workers, managers and external placement providers.
• Attending care planning, financial decision-making and tracking panels where required.
• Monitoring external placement expenditure and ensuring resources deliver both quality and value for money.

What you need

• Recognised Social Work Qualification or equivalent childcare qualification.
• Social Work England registration where applicable.
• Enhanced DBS (provided by us).
• Previous management experience within Children's Social Care.
• Strong knowledge of Looked After Children, Fostering, Placements and Permanence.
• Experience working with foster carers and promoting placement stability.
• Knowledge of safeguarding procedures, fostering legislation, guidance and National Minimum Standards.
• Experience managing performance, staff and service demand within a pressured environment.
• Strong experience using data and management information to monitor service performance.
• Experience of financial and resource management within a social care environment.
• Strong leadership, negotiation and decision-making skills.

Why use us?

At Sheldon Phillips, you are not just a number on a board, you are someone we get to know, creating a personal job search that is as individual as you are. Our expert team are trained to ensure that your needs are met, our compliance procedures are quick and efficient, while making sure you find the job you really want.

If you are interested in this Social Work Team Manager role in an Access to Resources (Placements) Team within Southwark, give Rhys Rafferty a call on 07595 063297 or email rrafferty@sheldon-phillips.com.

Referral Bonus: Know someone who would be a great fit? Refer them to Sheldon Phillips and, if we successfully place them into a locum role, you'll receive a £300 referral bonus as a thank you. Terms and conditions apply.