Social Worker - Children in Care Team

Directorate : Family Services

Contract Type : Permanent

Hours : 36

Salary : Grade I £41,442 - £45,510

Location : Colindale

Closing Date : October 13th 2025

About Barnet Council

Barnet is a borough with much to be proud of. Our excellent schools, vibrant town centers, vast green spaces and diverse communities all help make it a great place to live and work. As a council we want to build on these strengths as we move into the future. We are growing and developing as an organisation to meet the challenges facing our borough and we are committed to working with partner organisations and residents to make Barnet even better. As an organisation, our staff are committed to Our Values : Learning to Improve, Caring, Inclusive, Collaborative - which drive everything we do.

About Barnet Council

Barnet is a borough with much to be proud of. Our excellent schools, vibrant town centers, vast green spaces and diverse communities all help make it a great place to live and work. As a council we want to build on these strengths as we move into the future. We are growing and developing as an organisation to meet the challenges facing our borough and we are committed to working with partner organisations and residents to make Barnet even better. As an organisation, our staff are committed to Our Values : Learning to Improve, Caring, Inclusive, Collaborative - which drive everything we do.

About the role

We are looking for skilled, dynamic and motivated Social Workers within our Children in Care Team who have a passion for achieving excellence and the ability to drive change for children and young people in Barnet. If this is you, you could be the person we are looking for!

Please click here to download the Job description for this role.

About you

An experienced social worker who can demonstrate creative and analytical thinking and share our passion in achieving the best for our looked after children.

You will have recent experience of working as a case holder for Looked After Children and have excellent skills in developing and implementing timely and effective care plans and pathway plans with children and young people to achieve permanency and stability in their placements.

You will have a thorough understanding of risk assessments, safety planning and working with partners to keep our children and young people safe. Working directly with a varied caseload of children in care from a few months old to 18 years old and supporting them through their journey as their corporate parents.

You will be supporting children and young people through your assessments, care planning and life story work. You will also be responsible for developing challenging and creative ways of working and thinking with children in care and support them to develop their independence to progress their transition to the care leaving service in order to achieve outstanding outcomes.

What we offer

• 31 days annual leave, plus public and bank holidays
• Access to the Local Government Pension Scheme, which provides a valuable guaranteed income in your retirement together with security for your dependents
• Work-life balance options may include hybrid working, flexitime, job share, home working, part-time
• A vast range of lifestyle discounts from major retailers, supermarkets, energy suppliers and more
• Broad range of payroll benefits including cycle to work, eye care vouchers, travel and gym membership
• Excellent training and development opportunities
• Employee well- being training programs including confidential employee assistance
• A 20% retention bonus to be added to the advertised salary.

How to apply

Read the job description and person specification before clicking 'Apply' to commence the online application form. If you would like any further information about the role before applying, please contact

Barnet Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people, and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Barnet operates stringent safer recruitment procedures.

To deliver Barnet Council's commitment to equality of opportunity in the provision of services, all staff are expected to promote equality in the workplace and in the services the Council delivers. As such we value diversity and welcome applications from all backgrounds. For further information, please read our equality statement.

Barnet Council embraces all forms of flexible working (including part-time, compressed hours, and remote working) and is committed to offering employees a healthy work-life balance. Candidates are encouraged to talk about relevant requirements and preferences at interview. We can't promise to give you exactly what you want, but we do promise not to judge you for asking.

Barnet Council is a Disability Confident Committed Employer. We welcome and encourage job applications of all abilities. If you require any reasonable adjustments in the application or interview, please contact the lead contact on this advert. We will make reasonable adjustments to make sure our disabled applicants and those with health conditions are supported throughout our recruitment process. We support the access to work scheme, further details are available at www.gov.uk / access-to-work / apply

All posts with the council are subject to a probationary period of six months, during which time you will be required to demonstrate to the council satisfaction your suitability for the position in which you will be employed.

Due to the high number of applications that are received for some posts we may close vacancies before the stated closing date if sufficient number of applications are received. Therefore, please apply as soon as possible.

Please ensure you regularly check the email account (including JUNK MAIL folders) that you use to submit your application, as any further communication regarding your application will be sent electronically. Should you not hear from us within four working weeks of the closing date for this post, then regretfully in this instance, you have not been shortlisted.