26 Oct
Swindon Borough Council
Swindon
At Swindon Borough Council, we want our town to be the best it can be. Our ambitious vision in the new Swindon Plan is supported by realistic transformation programmes, with the people of Swindon at their heart. Because that’s who we’re doing it for – the communities and businesses that make our town great. As part of the Council, you’ll support a friendly local authority making decisions with real impact. It’s all for better public services. Better processes. And a better quality of life, for everyone. Join us, and Swindon will be better with you.
We are bold and ambitious in our plans, with a clear vision and direction for the future.
Our status as one of the UK’s fastest growing towns is driving transformational change across our organisation, most significantly within our highly valued Adults’ Services teams.
We’ve already taken huge strides forward with our journey for an integrated approach to children’s health, education support and social care and now we’re ready to move on to the next stage in our development. As we move forward, it is vital that everything we do and every service we provide is delivered in a robust way and is in line with national standards and protocols.
Introduce the team
The Learning Disabilities Team support people to meet their needs, to live as independently as they can and to live a good life. We work with multi-disciplinary teams, including the Integrated Care Board to meet those needs holistically.
The team focuses on promoting the rights of individuals to be able to make choices and decisions for themselves and use the Mental Capacity act to guide these where required.
The team has a range of practitioners including Assistant Care Managers, Social Workers,
Experienced Social Workers, Advanced Social Workers and Link Workers. Our Link workers support the main Care Management functions of the other roles, and support the people we work with to source services and activities in the community.
While the work can be challenging the team are very supportive of each other and fun to be around. We have a passion and commitment to support the people we work with.
Your next role
As an Advanced Social Worker in the Learning Disability Team, you will be joining a friendly, supportive and dynamic team. This role will see you working closely with the residents of Swindon and their families as well as a number of professionals including health, provider services, safeguarding and mental health colleagues.
Offering a significant level of experience in working with those who have learning disability, you’ll manage a complex caseload and be responsible for completing Care Act Assessments, reviews and proportionate support planning which may include Mental Capacity Assessments and Best Interest Decisions as well as other tasks. You’ll offer support to your colleagues by leading and developing best practice, providing supervision in the team, managing safeguarding enquiries, and taking part in the duty rota. The team operates a hybrid working model with all practitioners expected to be in the office for a minimum of two days per week with the ability to travel throughout the Borough as required.
Consistent and regular monthly supervision will be provided to you with access to support from the Assistant Team Manager, Team Manager and the wider team.
You must hold a formal social work degree, be Social Work England registered and hold a post-qualification certification i.e. Practice Educator, Best Interest Assessor or Approved Mental Health Professional to apply for this role.
You must be fluent in the English language (as a requirement of Part 7 of the Immigration Act “for the effective performance of a customer-facing role”).
Our transformation journey
Like all other local authorities, we are experiencing an increase in demand.
As an organisation we know our Adults’ Services are on a rapid improvement journey which is why last year we started making big changes across the service to provide the best care for children and great conditions for our staff. This started with us recruiting an entirely new leadership team of experienced, forward thinking managers who are driving changes in the service and we aim to be one of the best Adults’ Services in the country.
Our Adult Practitioners’ induction
A practitioner-specific, Swindon-specific induction programme, aimed at providing you with the information you need regarding the policies and procedures of Adult Social Care at Swindon Borough Council.
The induction programme incorporates a blend of face-to-face activities and e-learning modules aimed at consolidating and reviewing your knowledge of the key areas.
These key areas include:
- understanding how to use our case management system
- understanding the Safeguarding and Quality Assurance policies and procedures
- understanding and using a strength-based approach
Improvements include:
- Multi-million pound investment in staff and support
- Significant restructure creating smaller social worker teams
- New intuitive IT system to cut down on desk time and make mobile working the norm
- High standards for management practice, support and supervision for staff
- Listening to our social workers by holding regular social work forums.
- Implemented Liquid Logic
At the heart of it all is our desire to promote and cultivate a strong learning culture combined with outstanding leadership and supervision. Here is what you can expect to find when you arrive:
- Early help and community health practitioners co-located with our social workers, providing great working relationships
- Fantastic relationships with partner agencies such as the police and Swindon CCG
- Teams located within communities, providing a closer connection to the people we work with
Our new offer to you
We recognise that getting the best outcomes for our Adults means getting the best from you and we have listened to what our Social Workers and our Managers most value.
Please see our Rewards and Benefits offer for more details.
As an employee, you will receive a diverse and exciting environment in which to work, encouraging creativity and innovation whilst recognising the need to support ongoing personal development and a flexible work life balance.
For Swindon to thrive in the future, we need to lay the foundations now. It’s why our regeneration and transformation programmes are already underway. So, you’ll be joining us at an exciting time on our journey. We’ll look to you to share your knowledge, influence decisions and drive real, positive change. With your contributions, we’ll achieve our vision of a prosperous, re-vitalised Swindon together. And you’ll be proud to say it was made better with you.
Please see our Vision and Values page for more details.
Please see our new Swindon Plan.
Your next steps
Read the role profile and select the Apply button where you will be redirected to the Swindon Borough Council website to complete our online application process. Clicking the ‘Apply’ button on this job website is not an application, you must register on the Swindon Borough Council website in order to be considered for the role.
Potential applicants are sometimes put off if they don’t meet 100% of the requirements. We think individual experience, skills and passion make all the difference, so if you are a registered practitioner and meet the majority of the criteria, we’d love to hear from you.
If you would like to discuss this opportunity further please contact Team Manager Naomi MacMeekin at ***********@swindon.gov.uk.
As an inclusive employer, we welcome applications from a diverse range of communities, and in particular disabled people and people from ethnic minorities. Read our statement of commitment to equality & inclusion.
If you are experiencing technical issues submitting your application please email **********@swindon.gov.uk
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▶️ Advanced Social Worker, Learning and Disabilities Team, Adult Services
🖊️ Swindon Borough Council
📍 Swindon