Job Description

Our Client is seeking an experienced and highly skilled Senior Practitioner (Team/Case Manager) to join our Senior Management Team in Coventry. This is an exciting leadership opportunity for a qualified practitioner with extensive experience in child and family assessment, safeguarding, and staff management.

Working within a specialist residential family assessment setting, you will lead comprehensive assessments of vulnerable children and their families, providing evidence-based recommendations that inform long-term planning and court proceedings. You will also supervise and support a team of Family Assessment Workers, ensuring the highest standards of practice, safeguarding, and service delivery.

This role is ideal for a confident leader who is passionate about improving outcomes for children, supporting families through complex assessments, and developing high-performing teams.

Benefits

Dudley Lodge offers an excellent range of employee benefits, including:

• Private Medical Insurance (Bupa) after 1 year of service
• Continuous training and professional development opportunities
• Staff wellbeing events throughout the year
• Team-building days
• Employee Assistance Programme (24/7 support services)
• Cash Plan scheme after 1 year's service
• Generous pension scheme with Standard Life
• Life Assurance (2 x annual salary)
• Free tea, coffee, water, and fresh fruit
• Enhanced annual leave entitlement:
• 27 days plus 8 bank holidays (up to 5 years' service)
• 32 days plus 8 bank holidays (over 5 years' service)
• Flu vaccination support
• Cycle to Work Scheme
• Long Service Awards

What You'll Be Doing

Family Assessment & Safeguarding

• Lead and complete comprehensive parenting, risk, and family assessments.
• Apply the Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need and their Families and work in line with Working Together to Safeguard Children (2023) guidance.
• Manage up to three family assessment cases at any one time.
• Produce high-quality reports and recommendations for courts and partner agencies.
• Assess child development, family functioning, parenting capacity, and safeguarding risks.
• Plan, implement, monitor, and evaluate intervention programmes.
• Provide structured feedback and support to parents and carers.
• Monitor the impact of interventions on children's emotional and physical wellbeing.
• Represent the organisation in court, providing written and verbal evidence when required.

Leadership & Senior Management

• Act as a member of the Senior Management Team, contributing to the strategic development and effective operation of the service.
• Support Centre Managers and Executive Team members in maintaining high-quality service delivery.
• Promote a safe, structured, and learning-focused environment aligned with organisational values.
• Build and maintain effective partnerships with external professionals and agencies.
• Represent Dudley Lodge at professional and community events.

Staff Management & Development

• Lead, mentor, supervise, and support a team of Family Assessment Workers.
• Manage performance, quality standards, and professional development within the team.
• Deliver training, coaching, and practice guidance.
• Participate in the on-call rota, providing advice and support to colleagues.
• Foster a positive, collaborative, and high-performing team culture.

About You

To be successful in this role, you will have:

Essential Requirements

• Qualified Social Worker (or equivalent professional qualification relevant to family assessment work).
• Significant experience working with vulnerable children and families.
• Strong knowledge of safeguarding legislation, child protection procedures, and family assessment frameworks.
• Experience undertaking complex parenting, risk, and safeguarding assessments.
• Experience preparing professional reports for court and multi-agency settings.
• Proven experience supervising, mentoring, or managing staff.
• Excellent communication, leadership, and decision-making skills.
• Ability to manage competing priorities and meet strict deadlines.

Desirable

• Experience working within residential family assessment services.
• Previous management or senior practitioner experience.
• Knowledge of Coventry and Birmingham safeguarding procedures.

Why Join Dudley Lodge?

At Dudley Lodge, you'll be part of a dedicated and experienced team committed to achieving the best outcomes for children and families. You'll have the opportunity to influence practice, lead assessments that make a real difference, and contribute to the ongoing development of a respected and specialist service.

Apply today and help shape brighter futures for children and families.

Reasonable Adjustments:

If you consider yourself to have a disability or require any reasonable adjustment during the recruitment process or within the workplace, please highlight this at the earliest opportunity by contacting our team. With this information, we will provide appropriate support to you throughout the process and into your work placement.

We are unable to support or accept applications from candidates who are residents within the Red or Amber list of the Code of practice for the international recruitment of health and social care personnel in England, based on the World Health Organisation (WHO) Workforce Support and Safeguard List.

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