Senior Social Work Assistant
Team: Fostering Team
Job Family: Supporting - CBG8
Salary: £31,022 - £33,851 per annum pro rata
Hours: 33 hours per week - this includes ocassional weekend working
Location: You will be expected to attend a CBC office location as often as needed to carry out your role, which will be no less than once per month.
Contract Type: Hybrid - Permanent
Closing Date: 9th July 2026
Interview Date: 29th July 2026
Be the difference behind every foster placement
We’re looking for a passionate, organised and people-focused professional to join our Fostering Service as a Social Work Assistant with focus on Foster Carer Recruitment. This is a unique opportunity to play a vital role in increasing the number of safe, stable and loving foster homes for children and young people across Central Bedfordshire.
At the heart of this role is one simple but powerful aim: to attract, engage and support people to become foster carers – and stay on that journey with confidence.
About the role
As a key member of our team, you will lead and coordinate recruitment activity to help us grow our community of foster carers. You will:
- Deliver and support an annual fostering recruitment plan.
- Work closely with communications and marketing teams to design impactful campaigns.
- Be the first point of contact for prospective foster carers, ensuring timely, warm and consistent responses to enquiries.
- Coordinate information events, community engagement and outreach activity.
- Track enquiries and progress data to help improve recruitment outcomes and service planning.
- Work collaboratively with partners, including regional fostering networks, to strengthen recruitment approaches.
- Support early stages of the fostering journey, helping applicants feel informed, valued and motivated.
- Be flexible around your working pattern as some events may take place in the evening or weekends.
Every enquiry you respond to and every conversation you have could lead to a life-changing placement for a child.
About you
We are looking for someone who:
- Has experience of working collaboratively within a team or across organisations.
- Can handle sensitive and confidential information with professionalism and care.
- Has experience in engagement, recruitment, customer interaction or events – or transferable skills that demonstrate this.
- Brings excellent communication, organisation and relationship-building skills.
- Is motivated by improving outcomes for children and young people.
What we offer
- A meaningful role where your work directly impacts children’s lives.
- A supportive, collaborative team environment.
- Hybrid working arrangements.
- Opportunities to develop skills in recruitment, engagement and social care.
Join us
If you’re passionate about working with people, skilled at engagement, and want to play a key role in strengthening foster care provision, we would love to hear from you. Help us find the people who can change children’s lives.
Our Offer
We have a number of rewards and benefits available to our staff, to view these please visit our Rewards and Benefits page
Our aspiration is to be a truly flexible employer. We welcome discussion on location, hours and working pattern as part of the application process.
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You will be expected to demonstrate how you meet the key accountabilities and competencies in this Recruitment Pack.
Our Competency Framework and Qualification Guidance are to be read in conjunction with our Recruitment Pack.
For an informal discussion about this position, please contact: Lauren Abraham at Lauren.Abraham@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk or call 0300 300 4035.
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Safeguarding:
Central Bedfordshire Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all employees, volunteers and contractors to share this commitment. This post is subject to the disclosure of criminal records.
To maintain a fair and consistent approach for applicants, it is Central Bedfordshire Council's policy to only consider applications made via our online application system and we therefore thank you for not submitting your application offline.
Our National Careers Service team offer a free monthly workshop covering CV writing and how to complete the statement sections of the Central Bedfordshire Council online application form. This MS Teams workshop is open to anyone from the UK and lasts around 1.5 hours. Please book your place here.
More information about this service can be found here: Support getting into work or learning | Central Bedfordshire Council
Please note we are unable to offer sponsorship for our roles. Successful applicants that may require a visa will need to consider the options for obtaining and/or maintaining the legal right to live and work in the UK for the duration of the contract offered.
All new starters will join us on a four‑month probationary period. During this time, if you are offered a Hybrid role you will be required to attend a Central Bedfordshire Council office location more frequently to support thorough and well‑supported onboarding into your role. Please keep this in mind if you anticipate extensive travel to Central Bedfordshire.