Job Purpose

1. The post holder is the professional lead for Adult Social Care, which includes assessment and care management social work, governance services and social work commissioned services. The role provides an effective leadership function dedicated to improving social work practice on the front line and creating a direct link between practice and organisational strategy and planning processes.

2. The post holder will provide professional leadership across Adult Social Care, with responsibility for practice governance including the quality of practice for adult social work. The role has the oversight and supervision of social work practice and standards, of complaints, performance, and learning and development within a focused post, creating a system of professional accountability and independent scrutiny which provides assurance that statutory duties are being effectively discharged at all levels of the service.

3. The Principal Social Worker role means that the responsibility and accountability for quality in social work practice is organisationally defined and visibly supported, enabling the requisite priority to be given to developing and improving practice as a means of improving outcomes for individuals and communities.

4. The post holder will draw on their professional experience to influence strategic decision making across the organisation and use their expert knowledge and skills to inform the wider functions of the organisation beyond social work and "social care" boundaries. The post holder will develop and sustain relationships with key stakeholders within and across organisations, ensuring that the views and experiences of adults and their support networks are central to the design and delivery of social work services and that organisational change takes account of professional social work issues.

5. The post holder will promote and take part in developing the body of social work knowledge and research within and outside the organisation, working in partnership to ensure that developments reflect the needs of front line practice.

If you are interested in this role please send your updated CV in the first instance.