Senior Social Worker
Central London Community Healthcare (CLCH) is one of the largest community healthcare organisations in London and Hertfordshire, providing our services to diverse communities/boroughs in 11 London Boroughs - Barnet, Brent, Ealing, Hammersmith & Fulham, Harrow, Hounslow, Kensington and Chelsea, Merton, Richmond, Wandsworth, Westminster - and Hertfordshire.
We are rated Good by the Care Quality Commission and are ranked among top NHS employers. Community healthcare is our focus and our passion. We champion the role of community health professionals to make sure our patients get great care closer to home.
At Central London Community Healthcare, we promote equality and foster an inclusive environment where our diverse workforce feels they belong and are treated with fairness, respect, and dignity, enabling everyone to reach their full potential.
CLCH aims to create a culture where staff feel supported, valued and respected for what they do and where the values we seek to show to our patients are the same values we show to each other, in line with the NHS People Plan and Our NHS People Promise and our own strategic Equality values and objectives.
Job overview
We are seeking a compassionate, motivated and highly skilled palliative Care Social Worker to join our team on a part time basis. The successful candidate will work 2 days a week providing support to patients and families facing life limiting illnesses.
This role is crucial in ensuring that patients receive holistic care that addresses their emotional, social and practical needs during their end of life.
Main duties of the job- To undertake direct social work, using individual counselling, group or family techniques, in response to the psycho-social needs of patients, their families and carers.
- To offer consultation and support on issues related to the psycho-social needs of patients, families and carers to other members of the multi-professional team.
- To assess the needs of family members and those close to the patient; and to offer, or arrange for, appropriate intervention on an individual or group-work basis. This may include participation in provision of group-work days for children who have been bereaved, sometimes in collaboration with other hospice/palliative care social work teams.
- To maintain records and statistics as required.
- To undertake any other tasks which are commensurate with the general level of this post in the context of the development of the service.
- To undertake training when appropriate, support colleagues and the wider Pembridge team, advocate on behalf of the patients , their families and cares and promote and help support the development of the service.
Working for our organisation
Just as we care about our patients’ well-being, we care about yours!
We can offer you:
- A comprehensive induction into the community service followed by a local induction to introduce you to the role
- Car lease scheme(only available for Band 5 and up)
- Flexible working options
- Annual travel card loan
- Training, support and development in your career
To have a full look at our benefits and what it’s like working for us please go here: https://www.clch.nhs.uk/job/pay-and-benefits
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Please refer to Job Description and Person Specification for outline of skills, knowledge and experience required.
Person specification
Education/Qualifications
Essential criteria- CQSW/DipSW or equivalent
- Additional training e.g. in counselling, bereavement or family work
Experience
Essential criteria- Significant post qualifying social work with individuals and families in a multi-professional health or related setting.
- Knowledge of the principles of palliative care and awareness of the impact of terminal illness on individuals and their families.
- Experience of providing psychological / emotional support to patients and their families
- A good understanding of the grief process.
- Working knowledge of therapeutic practice and experience of using counselling skills.
- Experience of inter-agency work in both voluntary and statutory sectors.
- A working knowledge of the benefits system. Working knowledge of the key principles of the NHS and Community Care Act, and other relevant legislation impacting on users of the service.
- Experience of co-ordinating inter-disciplinary community care assessments.
- Working knowledge of theoretical models of counselling.
- Counselling qualifications
Skills and Knowledge
Essential criteria- Organisational skills including prioritization and caseload management.
- Interpersonal skills, including communication and listening.
- Ability to communicate clearly both verbally and in writing.
- Ability to contribute effectively to the multi-disciplinary team.
- Ability to keep abreast of current research and developments in the field.
- Understanding of, and ability to promote and implement, equal opportunities and anti-discriminatory practice in all areas of work
Due to the high number of applications that are received for some posts we may close this vacancy before the advertised closing date. Therefore please apply for this post as soon as you can, if you are interested and you meet the requirements of the Person Specification
Only those candidates who clearly demonstrate how they meet the person specification will be shortlisted for this job.
Interview arrangements will be communicated via email so please check your email regularly following the closing date.
At CLCH we appreciate and are proud of the diversity in the communities we serve and the workforce we employ. Applications are open and welcome to anyone, regardless of your age, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, ethnicity, religion, and disability.
We are proud to say that we follow the workforce race equality standard and 28% of our senior staff (8A and above) are from a BAME background. CLCH also has active BAME and LGBTQI networks:
Disability and Wellbeing Network (DAWN)
Race Equality Network
Rainbow Network which supports LGBTQI staff.
Each network has a champion who is an executive director at the Trust and they hold regular meetings to discuss issues and make plans to improve CLCH.
The CLCH Equal opportunities statement is on our Website Equal opportunities :: Central London Community Healthcare NHS Trust (clch.nhs.uk)
"We work Flexibly"