You'll support social work teams, provide quality assurance and contribute to strategic leadership.
What you'll do
As a principal social worker you’ll:
- provide leadership to social workers and practitioners and represent their views to senior managers
- support social work teams to ensure positive outcomes for children and families
- provide quality assurance to help social workers navigate complex decisions
- use different models of practice and learning to guide decision-making
- monitor cases to ensure professional standards are met
- work with team managers to manage resources and performance
- contribute to the development of policies, procedures and practice models
- provide training to social workers to support professional development
- develop and maintain effective working relationships with multi-agency partners
Skills and knowledge
You'll need:
- leadership skills to lead and motivate teams of social workers
- in-depth knowledge of child development, family dynamics and safeguarding
- critical thinking skills to analyse complex situations and make informed decisions
- strategic thinking to develop long-term plans, achieve organisational goals and deliver for children and families
- communication skills to navigate dynamics between social workers and senior managers
- the ability to prioritise tasks and delegate responsibilities
- an awareness of national policy and how it affects social work teams
How to become one
To become a principal social worker you must:
- have completed a degree, apprenticeship or graduate training scheme in social work
- be registered with Social Work England
- ideally have at least 5 years’ experience as a qualified child and family social worker
- have leadership and management experience in a social work setting
- have experience collaborating with external partners and influencing practice outside your organisation
You can develop your practice and leadership skills through the self-study social work leadership modules.
Career paths and progression
With experience you could:
- progress into an advanced leadership role such as head of service, assistant director or director of children's services
- move into a training and consultancy role and deliver training programmes to social workers
- become an expert in your specialist area of social work practice
The Aspirant Directors Programme can help prepare you to progress to a director of children’s services role.
Current opportunities
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