Job Description

Family Fostering Partners

We are an Independent Fostering Agency that has proudly supported children and families across Wales since 2015. As a family-owned and managed agency, we are committed to providing high-quality, nurturing care for children and young people, while creating a supportive and reflective environment for our foster parents and staff.

We are expanding our Parent and Child service and looking for an enthusiastic, compassionate individual to join our team. This role will focus on supporting the growth of the service and completing CUBAS assessments. A Parent and Child Foster Placement is a specialist arrangement where a parent, usually a mother, sometimes a father, and their child live together in a foster home. The foster carer provides a safe, supportive environment while mentoring the parent to develop essential parenting skills.

This role requires a strong understanding of child development and the impact of trauma, alongside extensive experience in social care. You will be dedicated to promoting the safety, wellbeing, and voice of every child, and passionate about working in a way that builds resilience and positive outcomes for children and families. If you are looking for an opportunity to make a meaningful difference in shaping children's futures through trauma-informed practice, we would love to hear from you.

Benefits of working for us include

Generous Annual Leave entitlement: 30 days annual leave (prorate part time), in addition to Statutory Bank Holidays Length of Service Award: An additional 5 days annual leave after 5 years' service (prorate part time) Paid staff membership to Foster Talk, with employee benefits and rewards Free comprehensive Private Health cover (subject to satisfactory probation) Competitive business mileage rates Employers contributory pension scheme Low case loads High levels of support and supervision
If you are interested in finding out more about the role then we would

LOVE

to hear from you. Feel free to drop us an e mail on info@familyfosteringpartners.co.uk to arrange an informal chat or meeting, or to request an application form.

Family Fostering Partners

Supervising Social Worker

Job Title:

Supervising Social Worker (Link Worker)

Based at:

Cross Hands Office - with opportunities for hybrid working.

Reports to:

Fostering Manager

Job Type

Full-Time

Salary:

Up to 42,656.40 - depending on Skills and level of experience

Closing Date for applications

Monday December the 8th

Interview date for short listed candidates

Friday December the 12th at our Cross Hands office.

MAIN PURPOSE OF THE ROLE

Provide professional support and supervision to foster parents, ensuring they receive guidance and assistance in their role Assist in identifying and matching suitable placements for Family Fostering Partners' approved foster parents, prioritizing the best outcomes for children and young people. Complete parenting assessments. Prepare and attend foster parent annual reviews, completing all required reports, and participate in Panel meetings for reviews or other relevant professional meetings. Participate in the Family Fostering Partners Out of Hours Rota. Undertake Form F assessments for prospective foster parents. Provide guidance and support to applicants throughout the Form F assessment process.

RESPONSIBILITIES AND DUTIES

General

Participate in professional supervision as required by the Fostering Manager. Adhere to the policies, procedures, and established practices of Family Fostering Partners, including its administrative and management processes. Maintain and enhance personal knowledge of regulatory requirements and best practice standards. Commit to ongoing professional development by attending training sessions and actively engaging in agreed learning opportunities, as directed by the Fostering Manager.

Supporting and Supervising Foster Parents

To effectively supervise and support Foster Parents by:

Work closely with foster parents through regular supervision, following Family Fostering Partners' policies, to make sure they fully understand their role. Identify any training or development needs and record them in the foster parents' personal development plan. Provide the right support so foster parents have the skills they need to care for children and young people. Ensuring Foster Parents take part in supervision and benefit from the guidance given. Undertaking additional support visits and/or other forms of contact as necessary, considering the needs of all family members. Supporting Foster Parents at all professional meetings. Help organise and run foster parent support groups when needed. Take part in planning and attending events for children and foster parents. Assist foster parents with keeping required records. Contribute to reviewing and improving foster parents' performance. Make sure that all placements made follow the child's Care and Placement Plan and company policies and procedures. Report any foster parent who is not meeting required standards to the Fostering Manager and work under the direction of that Manager to create and implement an improvement plan. Immediately inform the Fostering Manager of any child protection or safeguarding concerns, following Local Authority and Family Fostering Partners safeguarding procedures.

Foster Parent Training

To support the continued development of Foster Parents by:

Complete the induction process for new Foster Parents, ensuring they are fully introduced to the fostering service and its expectations. Use supervision sessions to monitor progress, identify learning needs, and develop tailored training plans for foster parents that support continuous professional development and demonstrates competency. Actively promote attendance at post-approval training, support groups, and other events, both in-person and online, to help Foster Parents meet contractual and professional obligations.

Foster Parent Recruitment

To assist in the recruitment of new Foster Parents by:

Promoting Family Fostering Partners through formal and informal channels. Support the delivery of information sessions and community events.

Children and Young People

To work with the children placed with our foster families, ensuring that they feel safe and protected and feel that their views are heard effectively, by such means as:

Professionally befriending children/young people or parents in placement by being a "safe person." Supporting their care needs, including supporting children/young people and parents in placement to access advocacy services and their Local Authority Social Worker if necessary. Helping secure access to services and where appropriate, negotiating and challenging other professionals and organisations to provide the help required. Providing them with age-appropriate copies of any guides or handbooks and supporting them to be aware of its contents and intent. If appropriate, to provide one to one work with children. This may include life story work or preparation for adoption. To complete parenting assessments as required using CUBAS (Common Assessment Framework for Parenting). To support and assist in facilitating young people/children's Forums/activities as part of Family Fostering Partners ongoing development in involving children in their service delivery. To bring to the immediate attention of the Fostering Manager, or any other appropriate authority, any matters judged necessary, for example, child protection or whistleblowing.

Finding and Supporting Children's Placements

To ensure that Family Fostering Partners Parents remain active and focused by:

Participating in the matching process to place children with foster parents in line with approval terms and agency policy. Securing contractual paperwork and CLA documentation from Local Authorities promptly, to support administration, foster parent preparation, and supervision. Building effective working relationships with Local Authority representatives to ensure they meet their responsibilities for children in placement. Representing Family Fostering Partners at CLA Reviews and other relevant meetings as required. Delivering a service that enables children and young people to achieve their full potential. Supporting young people transitioning from care by working with Local Authorities to develop support plans and establish links with local organisations. Assisting in ensuring timely and accurate completion of Foster Parent Reviews and all other documentation required for Panel consideration.

Growing the Organisation

To promote the reputation and services of Family Fostering Partners' by:

Representing the agency professionally in all interactions with Local Authority Social Services and other key stakeholders. Contributing to the creation and development of promotional and marketing materials. Acting as an ambassador for the agency at local and national events and forums when required. Supporting the preparation for and participation in regulatory inspections conducted by CIW.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

Qualifications

Social Work Degree or equivalent qualification, for example CQSW or DipSW:

Essential

Registration with Social Care Waless:

Essential

Experience

Experience of working with children and families in social care, education or health setting:

Essential

Good working knowledge of significant legislation impacting on children and fostering:

Desirable

Excellent understanding of children's safeguarding needs:

Essential

Experience of completing assessments:

Essential

Experience of having worked in the Court arena:

Essential

Skills and Abilities

The role requires regular travel to visit foster parents; therefore, applicants must be a confident driver; hold a valid driving licence, and have access to a car.:

Essential

Ability to communicate effectively verbally and in writing at all levels :

Essential

Good time management and organisational skills:

Essential

Strong computer literacy and ability to confidently use virtual platforms to engage with foster parents and children, including delivering supervision and meetings as needed. :

Essential

Ability to challenge foster parents on unsafe or concerning behaviour and promote reflective practice to drive positive change:

Essential

Ability to work with foster and birth parents to support children's development using tailored therapeutic parenting strategies:

Essential

Ability to be reflective of own practice and areas for development:

Essential

Able to respond flexibly to the demands of the post and prioritise and meet deadlines:

Essential

Understanding responsibilities in protecting your own health, safety, and wellbeing, and that of your colleagues and others.

Essential

The ability to work effectively as part of a team:

Essential

Ability to produce work to deadlines and work under pressure:

Essential

High level of personal integrity and commitment to confidentiality:

Essential

Commitment to promoting equal opportunities and diversity:

Essential

An ability to speak Welsh:

Desirable

Family Fostering Partners is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people, and vulnerable adults, and expects all staff and post holders to share this commitment.

Appointment is subject to our safer recruitment checks: an Enhanced Disclosure & Barring Service Check (DBS), satisfactory references, evidence of essential qualifications and evidence of the Right to Work in the UK.

Family Fostering Partners values equality and diversity across our workforce. We are committed to ensuring that no unlawful discrimination occurs in our selection process, in line with the Equality Act 2010.

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: Up to 42,656.40 per year

Benefits:

Additional leave Company pension Private medical insurance
Licence/Certification:

Social Work Degree or equivalent, for example, CQSW or DipSW (required) registration with Social Care Wales (required)
Work Location: Hybrid remote in Llanelli SA14 6RX