Full Time / 37 Hours Per Week / Permanent
Full Time / 37 Hours Per Week / Fixed Term for 1 Year
This is an exciting time to join Leicester City Council and to be part of our ever-improving service ensuring children are at the heart of our work. Recently rated as GOOD by Ofsted, with impressive strengths highlighted in direct work, participation and care leaving services, we are committed to working in partnership with children, families and young adults and developing excellent practice. As an authority we are committed to addressing racial injustice both for the families we work with and across the workforce.
We are looking for 2 new therapists to join our Functional Family Therapy – Child Welfare (FFT-CW) team to deliver FFT-CW interventions within our children’s services division. Using the FFT-CW model, we work to divert cases from court proceedings with the team accepting around 80 referrals a year. The Leicester FFT-CW team has a remarkable success rate of roughly 85% of children safely remaining in the care of their parents and around one third of cases being closed to the LA within 6 months of their involvement with the FFT team.
The positions on offer are full-time, permanent post, and full-time post, on a fixed term basis of one year to cover maternity. You’ll be based at Halford House however you’ll be required to travel across the city to undertake visits to family homes. We offer flexible and agile working to promote a healthy/work-life balance meaning that there is an option to work remotely from home when your needs suit. Core working hours for this role are 9.00am - 5.00pm Monday to Thursday and 9.00am - 4.30pm on a Friday.
What you’ll be doing
Following a period of training and induction, you’ll deliver Functional Family Therapy to families with complex needs where there is a child, children or young person(s) between the ages of 0-17 who is at imminent risk of being taken into care. The primary focus of the team is referrals where domestic abuse is a concern or where the family have children under 6 yrs old, although referrals are considered for any age child or families presenting with any other child welfare concern which has them at the door of the court. The FFT CW intervention aims to work with families to mitigate risks and enable a safe and nurturing environment for the children to remain at home.
Supporting a case load of up to 8 families, you’ll work collaboratively with your colleagues in the FFT-CW team, participating in team supervision and case discussions, and with colleagues from the wider social work services. You will keep accurate and timely case notes, which will form part of your reflective practice and development as a Functional Family Therapist. Whilst initial and ongoing training is provided, we expect that you are already an experienced therapist.
What you’ll need
You’ll have experience of providing therapeutic interventions to families facing a wide range of difficulties. You’ll have a knowledge of the underlying principles of FFT, and a sound understanding and experience of delivering other, evidence based, psychological interventions. You’ll be an integrative practitioner who enjoys regular group and individual supervision. Being able to keep accurate up to date case records and providing reports for the department and other agencies as required is a must. You’ll need to be positive enough to believe that families can change but resilient enough to cope when they don’t, and unafraid to escalate concerns.
This post is subject to an enhanced DBS check. In addition, you must have a driving license in order to travel to within the county/city/community areas and occasionally further afield.
What we can offer you
As well as the satisfaction of helping to improve lives of children across Leicester and working with an OFSTED rated ‘GOOD’ authority, you can look forward to a work environment that encourages a healthy work/life balance. You’ll enjoy generous annual leave, membership of the Local Government Pension Scheme and the option of flexible working. We’ll also give you the chance to develop your skills and expertise with a variety of training and development opportunities. In addition, you can choose from a number of flexible benefits, including discounts on city buses and trains. For an illustrative value of your benefits package, take a look at our benefits calculator.
Join us
We’re committed to recruiting a diverse and highly-talented workforce as we continue to build a council that is fitting and representative of our great city. That’s why we’ve designed our recruitment process to put you at your ease, make you feel welcome and bring the best out of you. We’ll do all we can to make our recruitment process as fair as possible. To help you with your application, take a look at the ‘our approach to recruitment’ page.
For an informal discussion, or further information regarding this job please contact Rachel Williams at Rachel.williams@leicester.gov.uk.
If successful, interviews will take place on 16th December, 2022.