Lead Child Protection Practitioner (MACPT)

How you'll make a difference

As a Lead Child Protection Practitioner within the Multi-Agency Child Protection team (MACPT), you will play a key role in safeguarding children and young people where there are concerns of significant harm. Working within the Children’s Social Care service, rated Good by Ofsted, you will provide specialist child protection advice, leadership and oversight to support effective decision-making across partner agencies.Supporting practitioners to make timely, evidence-based and proportionate decisions, you will help to ensure child protection processes are applied consistently and remain focused on achieving the best outcomes for children and families. Alongside driving high standards of safeguarding practice, you will contribute to the ongoing development and improvement of services, helping to ensure children, young people and families receive the right support at the right time.
What you will be doing

• You will provide specialist safeguarding expertise, leadership and oversight across the child protection process. Rather than holding a caseload of children and families, you will work alongside Family Help lead practitioners, social care colleagues and safeguarding partners to guide practice, support decision-making and promote consistent, high-quality child protection interventions.
• Chairing strategy discussions and Child Protection Conferences, you will oversee Section 47 enquiries and support purposeful Child Protection Plans that are centred on the child’s lived experience. You will ensure that the right information is shared, the appropriate agencies are involved, and safeguarding responses are timely, proportionate and effective.
• A key aspect of your role is supporting clear, consistent and defensible safeguarding decisions where there are concerns that a child may be suffering, or is likely to suffer, significant harm. Working closely with partner agencies, you will help ensure thresholds for significant harm and Section 47 enquiries are applied consistently and appropriately.
• Through strong multi-agency working, you will build professional confidence across Family Help, children's social care, police, health, education and wider safeguarding partners, promoting effective collaboration and a shared understanding of risk.
• Contributing to reflective practice, audit, learning and service improvement activity across the MACPT and wider safeguarding system, you will help strengthen practice and improve outcomes for children, young people and families.
• You will have the the opportunity to influence and strengthen children protection practice across South Gloucestershire, supporting high-quality multi-agency decision making and ensuring children and families experience safeguarding processes that are clear, purposeful and focused on achieving the right support.

What we need from you

• It is essential that you are a qualified social worker and hold current registration with Social Work England, alongside substantial post-qualifying statutory child protection experience.
• You will have expert knowledge of child protection law, statutory guidance and local procedures, with confidence applying significant harm and Section 47 thresholds consistently.
• We are looking for someone who has the proven ability to lead and chair complex multi-agency safeguarding meetings, including strategy discussions and Child Protection Conferences.
• Skilled in overseeing the child protection process, you will be able to analyse complex risk and evidence, balancing professional views and making clear, defensible decisions.
• Strong partnership working skills are essential, with experience of building effective relationships across agencies to promote information sharing and coordinate interventions and positive outcomes for children and families.
• You will be committed to ensuring the voices of children and families are heard throughout the safeguarding process, while managing competing priorities, urgent decision-making, statutory timescales and accurate record keeping.
• Bringing clarity, confidence and professional curiosity to a high-volume and complex safeguarding environment, you will support consistent thresholds, reduce drift and help partners work together effectively in the best interests of children and families.

What you need to know

• This position is a limited term contract, with a planned end date of 31st October 2027.
• Please note that due to the nature of this role, it is a requirement of employment that an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check is obtained.
• You will be expected to travel throughout the authority and surrounding area, so you must have a full, valid driving licence with regular access to a vehicle insured for business use or have an alternative suitable means of travel.
• The role involves regular attendance at multi-agency meetings, including strategy discussions and Child Protection Conferences, and may include visits to children and families where necessary to inform decision making or support safe participation in child protection processes.

Interviews are currently anticipated to be held 10th November 2026.

How a career at South Gloucestershire Council is different

• As part of our benefits package, you will receive generous annual leave (pro rata), employee wellbeing support and you will have access to a range of staff discounts, including eye tests, travel, shopping and leisure activities.
• We recognise that our diverse team of skilled and dedicated people make us a great place to work. We welcome applications from everyone and ensure that individuals are selected, promoted and developed on the basis of their merits and abilities.
• We invest in the careers of our people, and we are recognised for the quality, breadth and depth of our training and development offer, which helps our people make the greatest long-term difference in their work.
• We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the safety and welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. Ensuring all our staff are given right skills, knowledge and support to recognise and respond effectively to potential abuse or neglect.

Our teams at South Gloucestershire Council are making a real difference to the lives of people who live, work and learn here.

• We're building and shaping communities which people are proud of.
• We’re providing essential services across our communities to ensure they are safe and well maintained.

We've achieved a great deal, but we need talented and dedicated people to ensure we continue to make a difference.

We’re making a difference, be part of it!

To view the full job description, please click the link: Lead Child Protection Practitioner (MACPT)