Parenting Assessor - Senior Social Worker (£49,918–£53,048 plus 4% Retention Payment after 1 year)

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Please apply online via the link provided.

Please include a personal statement with your CV specifying why you are applying for this vacancy.

We are looking for an expert Senior Social Worker to take on the role of Parenting Assessor within our Family Safeguarding Team to make a real impact on children’s lives.

Bracknell Forest's Children’s Social Care team are proud to have achieved an Outstanding in all areas grading in December 2025. Not only did we maintain our Outstanding judgement, but inspectors also recognised that “since the last inspection in 2022, Bracknell Forest has sustained and strengthened exceptional services for children and families”.

Ofsted described our practitioners as “effusive about working in Bracknell” who value our strong child‑focused ethos, relational practice model, manageable workloads and high‑quality training and supervision.

Staff shared with inspectors they appreciate leaders’ visibility, approachability and unwavering commitment to children, all factors that underpin their decision to continue their careers in Bracknell Forest.

“Leaders have established a highly effective Social Work Academy that provides tailored support to practitioners at every stage of their career”. This commitment to development and learning has contributed to Bracknell Forest’s secure reputation as an ‘employer of choice’ for Social Workers.

About you...

As a Parenting Assessor, you are a confident and skilled Senior Social Worker who has extensive experience in complex child protection cases, care planning and legal proceedings. You will be passionate about relational social work and committed in joining our embedded culture and ethos of bettering vulnerable children’s lives.

As a non-case holding expert Parenting Assessor - Senior Social Worker, you will demonstrate the ability to complete in-depth, high quality family assessments of need and risk to children with particular emphasis on parental capacity and capability to change.

To thrive in this role, you will bring with you a high standard of report writing and case recording. The ability to make professional judgments and recommendations based on analytical assessment and review. Confidence in writing comprehensive court reports and giving evidence in court.

As a Parenting Assessor, you will role‑model and champion high‑quality practice. You will demonstrate a strong commitment to your own continued professional development and use your knowledge and experience to support colleagues, helping to foster our inclusive and collaborative culture.

You will be Social Work England registered.

If you would like an informal chat or a tour of the office prior to submitting your application, please contact helen.gore@bracknell-forest.gov.uk to arrange a suitable time.

About the team...

In December 2025, Ofsted concluded that “since the last inspection, leaders, managers and practitioners have not only sustained outstanding services but have raised the bar even higher”.

We use the Family Safeguarding Model in our approach to collaborate with families to keep them together, where it is safe to do so, supported by Motivational Interviewing (MI). December 2025 Ofsted recognised our model “operates consistently and effectively” and “embraces a relational approach, with explicit commitment to understanding the culture and diverse needs of families”.

Children experiencing neglect or domestic abuse receive exceptional and expert in-house specialist help. They work closely with the family safeguarding team and offer step-by-step help to parents to improve home conditions and strengthen parenting capacity.

When risks escalate, our conscientious managers take decisive action whilst maintaining a clear focus on the lived experiences of children. Permanence planning meetings secure “timely decision-making, enabling children to thrive” “Social Workers consider all permanence options for children, and contingency planning is in place so that children are offered the best permanence option”.

Social Workers were recognised by inspectors as “committed to understanding the lived experiences of children and responding to help them have improved home conditions and better childhood experiences”. Families are positive about their experiences with social workers, and we know practitioners are having a positive impact in supporting families.

We are a small, welcoming and friendly local authority where you will have the opportunity to build strong, positive and supportive working relationships with colleagues and peers. You will be a valued member of the team, where you will feel connected, appreciated, heard, accepted, included and supported.

To learn more about what it is like to work with us, take a look at our workforce video.

Read more about our culture and what our staff say Children's social care culture | Bracknell Forest Council.

Key responsibilities...

• To complete in-depth, analytical parenting assessments (including pre-birth), with a clear focus on parental capacity and capacity to change within PLO and care proceedings, and to produce high-quality reports that provide robust analysis and clear recommendations within stipulated timescales.
• Complete additional assessments, such as risk assessments or 'Together and Apart’ assessments, when required.
• Promote listening to children at every opportunity; ensuring their views are heard, recorded and acted upon in an appropriate and timely manner.
• To coordinate multi-agency contributions to assessment, planning and intervention, working within the multidisciplinary Family Safeguarding Model to drive change and provide effective support.
• Attend Permanency Planning meetings and contribute to the care planning for children.
• Participate in regular reflective supervision, providing analytical assessment findings and recommendations in monthly group case supervisions alongside the allocated social worker and partners.
• To support and mentor less experienced colleagues including newly qualified Social Workers, Family Workers and Social Work Students.

Our benefits...

• 28 days annual leave increasing to 33 days after 3 years’ continuous service, with the opportunity to buy up to 10 and sell up to 5 days.
• Hybrid working opportunities to support your wellbeing and work-life balance.
• Paid employee volunteering scheme.
• Local government pension scheme, with life insurance cover.
• Electric vehicle salary sacrifice scheme (subject to eligibility). [only applicable to roles on BG-G and above – delete if not relevant]
• Reimbursement of one annual professional subscription/registration
• Reimbursement of Social Work England registration
• Recognition of continuous service attained within the NHS and UKHSA when calculating some benefits. (Terms and Conditions apply)
• Career development through internal and external training opportunities.
• Enhanced maternity, paternity, adoption and fostering leave.
• Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support your health and wellbeing
• Inclusive and social working environment with a variety of staff networks and a sports and social club.

Salary: This role attracts a4% Annual Retention Payment after 1 year's service.

Find out more about all our benefits or see the candidate pack.

Our values...

At Bracknell Forest Council our values define who we are and what is important to us. Our core values are inclusive, ambitious, and always learning. These values influence the way we work with each other and the way we serve our residents and engage with our communities. We make our values real by demonstrating them in how we behave every day. If you are excited about joining a diverse team that celebrates learning and strives for excellence, we would love to hear from you.

Reasonable adjustments...

We are committed to ensuring an inclusive recruitment process for all applicants. If you require any reasonable adjustments to support your application or interview, please let us know by contacting recruitment@bracknell-forest.gov.uk. We will work with you to support you throughout the process. Find out more about reasonable adjustments.

Interview date

Shortlisting will take place on a weekly basis, and candidates who are successfully shortlisted will be offered an interview at least 7 days later.

Interviews will be conducted in person, providing candidates with the chance to personally meet the team and experience our work environment.

We will be reviewing applications regularly and reserve the right to close the advert early if suitable candidates are identified. To avoid disappointment, you are advised to submit your application as soon as possible.

Please note AI is prohibited during the interview, any candidate using AI will be withdrawn from consideration.

Want to ask us a question?

For an informal discussion or to ask any questions about this role, please contact:

Cheryl Perry, Head of Service

Email: cheryl.perry@bracknell-forest.gov.uk

or

Helen Gore, Principal Social Worker

Email: helen.gore@bracknell-forest.gov.uk

Bracknell Forest Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. We expect everyone employed with us to share this commitment. All successful candidates for this role will be subject to a DBS (Disclosure & Barring Service) check as part of our pre-employment checks process.

Candidates should be able to demonstrate experience of working within the current Social Care System and Framework.

We can only accept applications from candidates currently residing in the UK.

Candidates currently residing in the UK who require sponsorship to work are encouraged to assess their eligibility for a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) based on the relevant criteria. Please be aware that sponsorship availability varies and is subject to eligibility requirements and budget limitations. As a result, we cannot guarantee sponsorship for all roles and will evaluate sponsorship requests on a case-by-case basis.

No agencies please.