We are looking for a flexible, innovative team player to be the Family Support Social Worker for a fixed-term service development project within the Children and Young People’s Gender Service (CYPGS) in the South West. The project involves working with parents and schools to provide NHS guidance in supporting children with gender incongruity or gender-related distress. The role will involve travel around the South West of England to community, school and primary care settings, but not lone working. It will also include data collection and management in line with project delivery protocols. This role will be part of a team that assesses need and provides information and support to parents and professionals. Fixed-term family support is part of the project so the ability to build good working relationships with parents is essential. You will be part of the CYPGS and Psychological Health Services (PHS).
PHS is an award-winning department, recognised for a commitment to leadership and the development of Trust-wide psychological services. As a university teaching trust, research and quality improvement form part of UHBW’s mission to support excellence in delivery of patient care, alongside education and applied research of the highest quality.

In order to support individual development, growth of expertise and service priorities, staff can benefit from opportunities to work into other clinical areas through discussion and planning with their line manager and head of service.

• To be a competent, knowledgeable, and visible social worker within the CYPGS (SW), and specifically the service development project.
• To provide high-quality evidence-based safeguarding practice, for children, young people and adults at risk.
• Using knowledge of safeguarding legislation, statutory guidance, and policy to ensure appropriate safeguarding support to children and young people, their families and the CYPGS (SW).
• Understand and guide others in the legal frameworks that apply to children.
• Work with the clinical MDT to ensure child-centered holistic support is identified and provided for family support and safeguarding concerns and work with multi-agency teams in other services, as necessary.
• To develop and implement safeguarding processes for the project and operate within the UHBW systems to safeguard children and young people, including direct liaison with patient’s families and staff.
• To facilitate excellent communication and consistency across the project and the service in terms of safeguarding support, including ensuring the regular briefing of the project team and the Deputy Director of Safeguarding (Children) on key safeguarding issues and family support themes.

University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW) is one of the largest acute Trusts in the country, bringing together a combined workforce of over 13,000 staff and over 100 different clinical services across 10 different sites, serving a core population of more than 500,000 people across South West England. UHBW has been rated by the CQC as ‘Good’ overall and our staff are proud to deliver excellent care to the people of Bristol, Weston and beyond. As a forward- thinking multi-award winning Trust and a digital exemplar committed to improving patient care, our world-leading research and innovations are having a positive local and global impact. Our hospitals are spread across Bristol and Weston, join us and you can enjoy the very best of both worlds; city living within a stone’s throw of the countryside or beside the seaside, both with easy access to all that the South West has to offer. UHBW is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. As an equal opportunities employer actively working towards a diverse workforce we aim to recruit and retain a workforce which represents the rich diversity of the local population at all levels and are committed to designing our services around the needs of individual patients and those around them. Anonymous information will be used from your application in order to ensure we’re meeting our pledge.

(main duties continued)

• Be able to adjust the support offered considering any learning needs of service users.
• Where appropriate support staff to professionally challenge the analysis of others where safeguarding concerns need further escalation.
• Facilitate good standards of record keeping, report and assessment writing in line with own regulatory bodies and other guidelines.
• Able to provide clear analysis of risk to inform information sharing and referral where concerns are raised for children who are patients or are the children of family members or adult patients.
• Attend as required, strategy meetings, case conferences, core groups, appropriate multi-disciplinary team meetings and any other appropriate meetings, as a support to staff or as a representative of the Trust.
• Share advanced understanding of the additional vulnerabilities of children in care, care experienced and children on Child Protection Plans face and the role of health staff in assessing risk and contributing to safety plans.
• Assist the Clinical Project Lead, as part of the project team and Deputy Director of Safeguarding (Children) in implementing the recommendations of the Cass Report in relation to safeguarding best practice in Children and Young People’s Gender Services.
• As per Working Together 2023, where identified, work as the lead professional at early help and Child in Need level for children receiving a service from the CYPGS (SW).

For a more detailed job description, main responsibilities and person specification, please refer to the job description document attached to this vacancy

• Be able to adjust the support offered considering any learning needs of service users.
• Where appropriate support staff to professionally challenge the analysis of others where safeguarding concerns need further escalation.
• Facilitate good standards of record keeping, report and assessment writing in line with own regulatory bodies and other guidelines.
• Able to provide clear analysis of risk to inform information sharing and referral where concerns are raised for children who are patients or are the children of family members or adult patients.
• Attend as required, strategy meetings, case conferences, core groups, appropriate multi-disciplinary team meetings and any other appropriate meetings, as a support to staff or as a representative of the Trust.
• Share advanced understanding of the additional vulnerabilities of children in care, care experienced and children on Child Protection Plans face and the role of health staff in assessing risk and contributing to safety plans.
• Assist the Clinical Project Lead, as part of the project team and Deputy Director of Safeguarding (Children) in implementing the recommendations of the Cass Report in relation to safeguarding best practice in Children and Young People’s Gender Services.
• As per Working Together 2023, where identified, work as the lead professional at early help and Child in Need level for children receiving a service from the CYPGS (SW)