Senior Practitioner - Children and Families Hub, North Essex
Permanent, Full Time
£48,205 to £57,988 per annum
Location: Colchester
Working Style: Fixed-base worker
Closing Date: 5th August 2026
Please note that visa sponsorship is not available for this role. Applicants must have a current, unrestricted right to work in the UK.
We currently have permanent and Fixed Term/Secondment Opportunities for 12 months
Here in Essex, we continue to raise the bar about practice and our investment in our workforce is second to none. It’s an exciting time to join us having received our 2 nd Outstanding Ofsted rating in a row.
The Role
The Children and Families Hub is the single point of access for Children’s Social Care. Its primary purpose is to ensure that children and young people and their families receive early help, advice and support to assist in protecting them from significant harm and promoting their development and wellbeing. The Children and Families Hub does this by identifying the lowest appropriate level of support needed to bring about change, support good parenting and boundaries and promote children’s emotional wellbeing. The Children and Families Hub play a critical role in engaging parents and professionals in interventions that can bring about change in families and we aspire to deliver an outstanding service to children and families in Essex.
The Senior Practitioner role provides leadership in the team, providing both support and mentoring to newly qualified or less experienced staff and deputising for the Team Manager when needed. They will oversee the review of some child in need plans particularly prior to closure and will have responsibility to lead in a practice area. There will be good opportunities for their own professional development and for being part of developing our team and service. There is an ethos of openness to the development of new ideas, particularly to reinforce our relationship-based focus, both with our service users and within the staff group. The successful candidate will be expected to bring skill and high standards of social work to their own caseload as well as providing modelling, advice and support to colleagues. They will be committed to systemic, relationship based social work, providing effective, innovative interventions and with the ability to build good partnerships, both with our external partners and within the organisation.
Skills and Knowledge
· A diploma in Social Work, CQSW, CSS or equivalent and registration with Social Work England as a registered Social Worker and be post-qualified 2 years, with an in-depth knowledge of complex cases and application of key legislation / guidance.
· The ability to make clear decisions, to highlight and limit potential risks associated with intervention.
· Proven record of supporting staff members with complex decision making, as well as a desire to develop and become part of the Management Team, as well as modelling good practice, being open to change and ready to innovate.
· Evidence of recent practice at an experienced social worker level, supported by comprehensive working knowledge and experience within the field of practice in Children Services and understanding of related legal processes.
· Knowledge and understanding of child development, relating theory and practice.
· Evidence of continuing professional development and capability of practice in accordance
To read more about our business area, please visit: Children & Families
Please take a look at our ‘No Magic’ Children & Families video
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.
Once you’ve secured your role within Essex County Council you will receive many great employee benefits, including support for unpaid carers and flexible working arrangements to accommodate their needs.
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.
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.
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If you have queries on this role or require anything further, please email resourcing.team@essex.gov.uk
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