Community Social Worker

Community Social Workers also work alongside Community Practitioners who are part of a Team Around the Family where there are concerns that the risk is increasing, where there are multiple needs which are not being met or there is a particularly complex situation to address. In summary, the primary purpose of the Community Social Worker is to respond to emerging risk and manage de-escalating risk held in the Community. The Community Social Work Team develop and deliver Practitioner training in partnership with the Gloucestershire Children's Safeguarding Partnership and Health Professionals and upskill Practitioners utilising a 'project approach', identifying and disseminating best practice which demonstrates impact, resulting in sustained improvements for children and families. The team is part of Gloucestershire County Council's Early Intervention & Community Team and is integral to the early help advice, guidance and support provided to Community Practitioners and partners to ensure Practitioners are confident in implementing the earliest support approach to respond to emerging and escalating need. About You You will provide the vital link between our Social Care teams and the Early Intervention & Community Team. You will support Practitioners who are working with vulnerable children, young people, and their families to understand risk and harm and promote clarity where the level of risk is unclear. Part of the role will include improving outcomes for children and young people not currently open to Children's Social Care and prevent their needs from escalating unnecessarily. You will also be well supported within our experienced team to deliver training on different aspects of safeguarding and so much more! This role could be the perfect next step in your career, offering opportunities to undertake CPD to progress to GCC Endorsed Senior Social Worker, complete Train the Trainer to enable you to develop and deliver training and where available, complete the PEPs training to become a qualified Practice Supervisor/Educator. For the right candidate, this is a real development opportunity within a supportive team.

• a full driving licence and willingness to drive
• DBS clearance (Enhanced Adults and Children's)
• to have completed your ASYE year (if you qualified after 2012), We may be able to offer sponsorship for this role, in line with Home Office guidance and subject to pre-employment checks. Applicants must already hold a valid right to work in the UK that Gloucestershire County Council can transfer., It is a legal requirement, under the Immigration Act 2016, that anyone appointed to a 'customer facing role' must be able to demonstrate an ability to fulfil all spoken aspects of the role with confidence in fluent English.
  
  We are currently recruiting for a Community Social Worker to join our team based in the Forest of Dean on a permanent basis.
Reward and Support For all your hard work, you will receive the following:
• between £40,444 - £48,738 per annum subject to experience (pro rata for part-time staff)
• £3,600 welcome payment
• £2,000 retention payment
• up to £8,000 relocation package
• flexible and agile working opportunities
• 25.5 days annual leave rising to 30.5 days after 5 years continuous service (pro rata for part-time staff)
• option to purchase 10 days of additional leave per year (pro rata for part-time staff)
• family friendly policies and benefits to help support you and your family
• supportive and positive working environment with regular, robust supervision
• Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS)
• access to our Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) that provides free, confidential, counselling and advice for employees, available 24 hours a day, online and by telephone
• an in-house Occupational Health service
• employee discount scheme
• links to employee networks such as Prism (LGBT+) and the Young Employees Network
• career development and qualification opportunities
• access to our Social Work Academy
• Cycle to Work scheme (eligibility criteria and t&cs apply)
• Green Car Salary Sacrifice Scheme (eligibility criteria and t&cs apply)
• our frontline staff have access to Magic Notes to support their work as well as all staff having Copilot licences
• Please note that all our welcome and retention payments are subject to terms and conditions as well as tax and national insurance deductions. The payments are non-contractual and are pro-rata for part-time staff.
• Please note that our relocation policy is subject to terms and conditions.
Right child, right support, right time, every time In our recent inspection in June 2025, our Children's Services have been officially judged as 'Good' with 'Outstanding' elements. Ofsted also said 'Leaders have set out a clear vision for delivering success for children, by modelling values and creating a culture where the workforce, children and families feel valued and heard; risk is managed confidently with bottom lines clearly set out.' This marks an important step in our journey to improve outcomes for our children and young people, and we remain focused on our mission: to continue building on this success and ensure that every child and young person in our county has the opportunity to thrive. Gloucestershire offers a range of opportunities to develop your career, supported by a phenomenal Social Work Academy offer, a developing systemic practice methodology, an ambitious leadership team and an award-winning workforce. We are a local authority adopting, and training all colleagues in, systemic social work practice. If you would like to be part of an authority that takes a relational approach to working with families and focuses on what needs to change in the system around a child and family to enable children to thrive, then consider a role with GCC. About the team The Community Social Work Team are qualified Social Workers who support Practitioners in the community who work directly with children and families. Social Workers within the team are not case-holding and support Community Practitioners to reflect on worries for children and their families, identify next steps and follow-up to ensure Practitioners are confident in completing agreed actions, providing or signposting to support required.