Social Worker - Social Work with Families

Posted 19th Sep, 2025
Location
Croydon
Salary/rate
£46,968 – £55,323
Working pattern
Full-time – 36 hours per week
Working arrangements
Blended
Contract type
Permanent
Closing date
10th Dec, 2025
Incentives

This role is subject to a £5,000 welcome payment and a £2,500 retention payment.

About the role

We would welcome you to come and work in a vibrant and culturally diverse community, that supports our social work staff to deliver excellence in their practice. We want Social Workers to join us that are motivated to strengthen families, putting children at the centre of everything that we do.

Social Work with Families brings together people working for children who are subject to child protection plans, children in need, and Children Looked After. You'll work in a small Locality service, with your Team Manager, Business Support Officer and colleagues who will support you to use your skills and knowledge to create the best possible outcomes for children and families in Croydon. The London Borough of Croydon is innovative from the work environment, computer systems to our practice. It's a great place to work as a social worker.

This is an opportunity to grow your skills; be apart of a supportive community that will develop your career, as well as, make a difference in shaping the way we support children and families. Key responsibilities include:

  • Making relationships to create change with children and families
  • Identifying and working with families' strengths using systemic practice models
  • Managing complex cases including children who may be in the Public Law Outline process or Court proceedings
  • Working directly with children, young people and their families evidencing multi-agency partnerships
  • Representing children in court demonstrating empathy and maintaining professionalism

To apply, please submit your application through the council's recruitment portal. For informal enquiries about this role, please contact the team.

About you

We are looking for confident Qualified social workers, that are Social Work England Registered and that have completed their ASYE. We want someone who can demonstrate their skills, resilience and experience in working with children and families. The ideal candidate will:

  • Be Social Work England registered and have completed their ASYE
  • Have experience making relationships to create change
  • Be skilled in identifying and working with families' strengths
  • Have experience managing complex cases
  • Be competent in representing children in court demonstrating empathy and maintaining professionalism
  • Have excellent analytical and writing skills
  • Be able to incorporate systemic practice models which build on families' strengths
  • Have effective time management skills to deliver within expected timeframes

Experience of working in a statutory setting is desirable however not essential. Croydon Council is an inclusive employer and welcomes applications from all sections of the community. As users of the disability confident scheme, we guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the advertised role. The successful candidate will be subject to an Enhanced DBS check.

About Croydon

Home to 94,000 children, Croydon is a truly unique place to practice social work. We are a borough with big ambition, grit, and determination. Children's social care was judged ‘good’ in our last Ofsted inspection.

Our systemic practice framework places emphasis on relationships as key to supporting change for families. We make sense of the world through relationships, focusing on the whole family system and thinking about our own part in that too – what we bring, our own family stories and beliefs, how we use ourselves in the work that we do. Our practice model is all about collaboration - with our families, networks and partners; being open to challenge and ensuring our practitioners are highly trained in a variety of intervention approaches.  Our established clinical service will support you to grow your own systemic practice within the service, providing accredited training, co-working and direct work with families.   

Benefits of working with Croydon

  • You will be valued for your skills and expertise, supported by the team of experienced professionals, as well as the management at Croydon Council, one of the largest employers in the borough. We also offer:
  • Highly competitive compensation package
  • Accredited Systemic Practice training
  • A range of CPD opportunities
  • 29-31 days (grade equivalent) annual leave in addition to Bank Holidays and option to purchase more
  • A pension scheme with an average employer contribution of 20%
  • Continuing Professional Development – genuine opportunities to grow, develop and specialise in your career
  • Management development programmes
  • Investment into your wellbeing
  • Access to Employee Discount scheme with a range of programmes (Cycle Benefit Scheme, GymFlex, Retail Discounts and more)
  • We promote flexible & hybrid working arrangements where possible to support a healthy work-life balance

What makes Croydon special is our people – both within the council and throughout the borough.

  • Choosing to practice social work in Croydon will give you opportunity to develop, grow, thrive, and strive; it is not just a job but a career. Here are some of the reasons our colleagues like working at Croydon:
  • Our team consists of experienced, dedicated practitioners
  • We meet regularly to make sure everyone we work with has the support and knowledge needed to make a difference and be the difference to our families, communities and colleagues
  • At Croydon relationships matter and we are about strong partnerships and working together to make lasting positive change
  • We are an established team who can help you settle in and offer their expertise
  • You will have the support of an extremely knowledgeable understanding manager
  • You will have access to a busy, buzzy, committed workforce and work environment Opportunities to work from home and work flexibly provides you with more work-life balance
  • Opportunities to think together with your manager about career development
  • Support to help you grow, develop, learn and lead

For an informal chat about working in Croydon, contact Agata Stolowska at agata.stolowska@croydon.gov.uk