Job Description

Locum ASC Senior Social Worker (Internal Workforce Bank)

Temporary, Full Time

£233 PAYE/£299 Umbrella

Location: Chelmsford

Working Style: Anywhere worker

Closing Date: Monday 17th August

This temporary position is until March 2028.

This position has been classed as an Anywhere Worker role, with an expectation that the successful candidate will attend the office in Chelmsford approximately two days per week, with the remainder of the time worked remotely, subject to service requirements.

Shape the Future of Adult Social Care Without Holding a Caseload

Are you an experienced Senior Social Worker or Deputy Team Manager looking for a new challenge beyond frontline case management?

This is a unique opportunity to join Adult Social Care's Internal Workforce Bank (IWB) Programme; a high-profile service improvement initiative designed to increase capacity, reduce waiting times and improve outcomes for residents across Essex.

Working alongside operational leaders, Workforce Coordinators and practitioners from across Adult Social Care, you will play a key role in influencing professional practice, improving performance and supporting strategic service delivery. Rather than managing a traditional caseload, you will apply your social work expertise to oversee quality, support decision-making, manage risk and help shape innovative approaches to managing demand.

This role offers valuable exposure to service-wide performance, workforce planning, programme delivery and continuous improvement, making it an excellent development opportunity for Senior Social Workers aspiring to management positions, or Deputy Team Managers looking to broaden their experience at a strategic level.

If you are passionate about improving systems, supporting professional practice and making a wider impact across Adult Social Care, this could be the perfect next step in your career.

About the Internal Workforce Bank

The Internal Workforce Bank (IWB) is one of Adult Social Care's key improvement programmes, designed to increase capacity, reduce waiting times and improve outcomes for residents by making the best use of the skills and expertise within our existing workforce.

The programme supports Adult Social Care to better manage demand, improve performance and respond to emerging service pressures. The primary focus is reducing waiting lists and improving timeliness; however, it also plays a vital role in supporting risk management, service resilience and operational priorities as we prepare for Local Government Reorganisation (LGR).

The Role

We are seeking a dynamic, experienced and organised individual to influence practice, drive performance and improve outcomes at scale.

As the Senior Social Worker within the Internal Workforce Bank, you will support delivery of the programme, working closely with the Team Manager and Workforce Coordinators to ensure the effective coordination, oversight and delivery of work across Adult Social Care.

This role offers an opportunity to utilise your professional expertise without holding a traditional caseload. Instead, you will focus on professional oversight, quality assurance, workforce deployment, service improvement and performance delivery.

The role is ideal for an experienced Senior Social Worker or Deputy Team Manager seeking to broaden their impact beyond a traditional team setting. You will have the opportunity to shape practice, influence performance, contribute to service-wide improvement and develop experience that will support future leadership ambitions, all without holding a frontline caseload.

Key Responsibilities

• Provide professional guidance to practitioners, ensuring consistent decision-making and adherence to statutory and organisational standards.
• Support triage and prioritisation of work, focusing on risk, complexity and waiting list impact.
• Assist with coordination and allocation of work, matching tasks to skills and capacity.
• Contribute to the development of workflows and processes to improve efficiency and performance.
• Work collaboratively across Adult Social Care and partner organisations to support coordinated, person-centred outcomes.
• Monitor and escalate risks and emerging themes, ensuring appropriate oversight.
• Promote consistent standards, quality assurance and continuous improvement.

About You

You will be an experienced Senior Social Worker or Deputy Team Manager with a strong Adult Social Care background, seeking to apply your expertise in a structured, system-focused role. Ideally you will have previous prior ECC experience.

Motivated by improving processes and service delivery rather than holding a caseload, you will be comfortable working at pace across competing priorities and supporting improvement across multiple service areas.

You Will Bring:

• A recognised Social Work qualification and current professional registration.
• 3 years post qualifying experience within ASC, including experience at Senior Social Worker or Deputy Team Manager level.
• Prior experience working at Essex County Council.
• Strong knowledge of statutory responsibilities, safeguarding, risk management and complex decision-making.
• Confidence in providing professional guidance, support and constructive challenge.
• Strong analytical and organisational skills, with the ability to use data to inform decision-making and service delivery.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office applications and Mosaic.
• Experience working in fast-paced environments with effective prioritisation skills.
• A collaborative and solution-focused approach with the ability to build strong working relationships.
• A proactive interest in service development, performance improvement and consistent ways of working.

Why Join Us?

• A unique opportunity to influence service delivery across Adult Social Care.
• No frontline case holding responsibilities.
• Exposure to strategic improvement projects and programme delivery.
• Experience of workforce planning, quality assurance and performance management.
• Opportunity to work closely with senior leaders across ASC.
• Hybrid and flexible working arrangements.
• The chance to make a meaningful impact on waiting times, service performance and outcomes for Essex residents.

Ready to Take the Next Step in Your Career?

If you're an experienced Senior Social Worker or Deputy Team Manager looking to expand your influence beyond frontline practice, develop strategic experience and contribute to service-wide improvement, we'd love to hear from you.

Join us in shaping innovative approaches to managing demand, improving performance and delivering better outcomes for residents across Essex. This is your opportunity to apply your professional expertise in a role that offers variety, visibility and meaningful impact.

Apply today and be part of a programme that is transforming the way Adult Social Care delivers for its residents.

We welcome applications from individuals who are passionate about improving outcomes, leading through influence and supporting innovation across Adult Social Care.

Why Essex?

As one of the largest and most dynamic UK local authorities, Essex offers a stimulating public service environment. Covering over 1,420 square miles and serving 1.8 million residents, we’re committed to transformational change and delivering better quality at lower cost. Recognised in the top three of the latest IMPOWER index for productivity, we ensure everyone matters in Everyone's Essex With flexible working options and a focus on innovation, whether you are looking to develop your career or contribute to the local community, Essex is the ideal place for you.

In March 2026, the Government announced that councils in Greater Essex will be reorganised into five new unitary authorities from April 2028. In addition to this, Greater Essex has been accepted on to the devolution priority programme, where we will work towards establishing a Mayoral Combined County Authority. You can read more about these changes, and what this may mean for this role, on our careers site

Essex County Council is proud to be a Disability Confident Leader. We’re committed to interview all disabled applicants who choose to apply under our Job Interview Scheme if they meet the minimum requirements of the job. Please speak to our Recruiters if you require any reasonable adjustments during the process. We’re also committed to interview all veterans and care leavers, who meet the minimum requirements of the role for which they are applying.

At Essex County Council, we value integrity and ethical behaviour. We kindly ask that you embrace our code of conduct and the Nolan principles, including throughout the recruitment process. Your commitment to these standards helps us maintain a positive and respectful workplace for everyone.

What you should do next

If you are interested in finding out more about this role, we would love to hear from you. Please apply via the Working for Essex website.

Please note that Essex County Council has determined that the off-payroll working rules will apply to this assignment and where a worker elects to provide their services through an intermediary (such as a personal services company) then income tax and primary national insurance contributions will be deducted at source from any payments made to the intermediary.

As part of employment with Essex County Council (ECC) should your role require a DBS check you will be required to register with the DBS update service. The DBS update service ensures all registered DBS certificates are kept up to date and allows authorised parties to view the status of your certificate. This is an annual subscription, and you will be responsible for ensuring this is maintained. For further information on the DBS update service please go to https://www.gov.uk/dbs-update-service

Essex County Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults, and expects all employees and volunteers to share this commitment.

If you would like to be kept up to date on other relevant opportunities, blogs, news, events and industry related news at Essex County Council, please join The Essex Talent Community

If you have queries on this role or require anything further, please email courtney.jode@essex.gov.uk