Social Worker – South Devon Hospital Discharge Team – Ref 6819

We want the people of Devon to live good, ordinary lives in the place they call home with the people and things they love, in communities where they look out for one another.

We are looking for a Social Worker to work alongside people seeking or drawing upon support to live the lives they chose to lead, whatever their age or stage of life.

You will be responsible for :

• Having conversations with people about what matters to them most.
• Making sure that peoples wishes, feelings and beliefs are central to decision making
• Supporting people to live as independently as possible, for as long as possible
• Responding quickly in a crisis
• Being involved with people in the least intrusive way, and always in their best interests
• Connecting people to wider opportunity and support
• Increasingly people’s hope, self esteem and creative potential
• Building trusted relationships

You will be required to :

• Listen
• Respect dignity and diversity of the people you’re working with
• Understand and respond to people’s unique needs and aspirations
• Be curious
• Be kind
• Uphold human rights and social justice
• Advocate
• Recognise that people are the experts in their own lives
• Communicate respectfully with and about people verbally and in written form
• Complete strengths based Care Act assessments and personalised care plans.
• Proportionately assess and manage risk
• Coordinate and review, with people, any onward provision provided
• Bring people together for multidisciplinary meetings to achieve best outcomes with and for people
• Undertake S.42 Safeguarding enquires and complete complex mental capacity assessments where required.
• Work both independently and as part of a wider integrated team
• Undertake Saturday Working on a rotational basis

About our Team

The Southern Devon Hospital Discharge Team support people to return to the community following admission to hospital.

We hold a varied caseload supporting people who are currently inpatients as well as those who have recently been discharged; undertaking assessments to identify ongoing care and support needs.

We support a wide range of service user groups including but not limited to;

• Older People
• People with Primary Mental Health Needs
• People with Learning disabilities
• People affected by Substance Misuse
• People receiving End of Life Care
• Younger Adults
• Carers

We cover the Southern Devon Footprint from Dawlish to Dartmouth in a variety of settings including, acute and community hospitals, residential and nursing homes, our 10 bedded rehabilitation unit and an acute mental health ward. We offer a mix of both office and home-based working.

We are an Integrated Service working closely with colleagues in the NHS, Torbay Adult Social Care, Short Term Services Teams, the Voluntary Sector as well as our community-based colleagues.

As an experienced social worker working with us, you will manage a complex caseload; working with a strengths-based approach you will have the ability to take initiative and work creatively to support people to reach goals and eligible outcomes.

Bringing your health and social care experience and practice knowledge to the role, you will take a lead in being able to support others, offer practice guidance and mentoring to colleagues or students. We are passionate about continuous professional development and in return, you will receive regular supervision, development opportunities and support in a busy and friendly team.

Social Worker Career Pathway 

We have implemented the first phase of a new Social Worker Career Pathway within our Adults Services, with our vacancies available at the Social Worker (Grade F) or Experienced Social Worker (Grade G) levels. Our Social Worker and Experienced Social Worker roles align with the national Professional Capability Framework (PCF) for Social Workers, which provides a robust structure for all local authorities to use as a way of standardising professional capabilities and provides a clear career pathway.

This is a fantastic opportunity to provide you with an achievable, clear pathway for your career; to enable you as a practitioner to reflect and identify your own practice and development on the PCF pathway.

If successful in being shortlisted for interview, your experience, skills and knowledge, will be assessed against the PCF domains and if found appointable, this will determine your appointment to either the Social Worker (Grade F) or Experienced Social Worker level (Grade G).

With on-going learning and support from your line manager, those appointed as a Social Worker will be able to evidence incremental learning and submit an application in due course for progression to the Experienced Social Worker (Grade G) via a portfolio of supporting evidence against the PCF framework.

Does the job role include personal care?: No

Working Patterns:

The hours of work will be:

Monday - Thursday - 9.00 am - 5.00 pm

Friday - 9.00 am - 4.30 pm

Saturday - 9.00 am - 5.00 pm on a rotational basis

Essential details:

What we can offer you 

* We are committed to your continuous professional development, doing all we can to help you to get the most from your career. You will receive excellent support and supervision, with regular opportunities to discuss and reflect on your practice, both with your line manager and peers.

* We offer 26 days annual leave, plus Bank Holidays, rising incrementally to 31 days after 5 years’ service.

* Flexible working opportunities are available, these include part-time hours, flexitime, compressed working hours and homeworking (this is subject to the needs of the role – please discuss at further at interview)

* Offer an opportunity to enter a generous Local Government Pension Scheme.

* As a place to live and work, Devon is hard to beat with top-performing schools, universities, vibrant cities, pretty villages and some of the most scenic coast and countryside in the UK.

* Living and working in Devon as a Social Worker has never been more attractive.

* If you are currently living, working or studying in the UK and are looking to relocate to Devon, subject to qualifying conditions, relocation support of up to £10,000, may be available. Visa sponsorship may also be offered as part of the relocation support package, terms and conditions apply

For an informal discussion about this role please contact;

Adeana Fletcher (Team Manager; Southern Devon Hospital Discharge) on telephone number 07814 803592 or

Jemma Hughes (Integrated Deputy Community Services Manager – Hospital Discharge & Southern Devon) on telephone number 07967448897

DCC embraces the positive benefits of a diverse workforce and is committed to providing an environment that is inclusive and safe. We welcome applications from people who share our commitment to stop discrimination, challenge inequality and promote diversity across Devon. More information can be found on our Equality and Diversity webpages.
Happy to Talk Flexible Working - The Council offers flexible working arrangements in terms of when and where people work e.g. hybrid working, part-time, condensed hours etc.
We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.
This role requires the ability to fulfil all spoken aspects of the role with confidence and fluency in English.
Personal data we collect from you will be processed in accordance with the Applicant privacy notice.
For more information about Working for Devon please visit our Working for Devon page.
This role requires a DBS disclosure.