Support Worker - Permanence Team

Job Description

Organisation: Leicestershire County Council

Work Location: County Hall Glenfield Leicester LE3 8RA

Salary: £32,070 - £34,359 per annum (Pro rata for part time)

Working Hours: 37 hrs per week

Contract Type: Permanent

Closing Date: 9th April 2026

Interview Date(s): TBC

About the Role

The work of the team is to provide permanence through identifying and matching children and adopters together. This requires taking the lead in securing early permanence by taking responsibility for a child’s journey to an adoptive placement from the point that adoption is considered to be a potential outcome. The team are looking for experienced and passionate support workers to work within our stable and developing team alongside supportive and approachable managers and team.

The post holder will be responsible for delivering family support services to children, first families, foster carers and adoptive parents. As a key position, the post holder will be responsible for providing some direct work and support services to children with care plans of adoption and with their first and adoptive families who need specialist advice and support.

The post holder will also be a key source of information on national permanence policies and practices for Leicestershire County Council’s staff working in permanence services.

An enhanced with barred list DBS check is required for this post.

For information on our approach to the recruitment of ex-offenders, please see our policy statement.

About You

To apply for this post, you must:

• Have an applicable qualification that demonstrates knowledge of child development/trauma and attachment
• Have an awareness of matching standards to support with family finding and post adoption contact in order to support children, foster carers, first families and adoptive families.
• Specific knowledge / experience / understanding of adoption issues unique to families who receiving services from the permanence team either first families or adopters caring for children with a care experiences and trauma backgrounds
• Be able to evidence your skills and knowledge of creative, innovative, and relationship-based practice, working in collaboration with families and professionals.
• Demonstrate enthusiasm and passion for practice and be committed to helping us build a real culture of reflection and learning.
• Commitment to Trauma Informed practice.
• Have a full valid driving licence and access to a vehicle.

In addition, we also expect you to share our commitment to our values and to delivering accessible and inclusive services which meet the needs of all of our residents. You will be asked to demonstrate your understanding of these commitments as part of the selection process.

Reasonable adjustments will be considered for applicants with a disability. We are a Disability Confident Employer.

Interested in Flexible Working?

We are open to discussions about flexible working, which may include part time working, job sharing, term-time working, flexible start and finish times, and hybrid working, depending on the requirements of the role and the service. If you would like to discuss the possible flexible working options that might be applicable to this role, please contact the person named below.

For more information or an informal discussion, please contact:

Rebecca Gibson - Team Manager Permanence

Telephone: 01163050904

Email: Rebecca.Gibson@leics.gov.uk

How to Apply

At Leicestershire County Council we’re looking for top talent from all walks of life. Whoever you are, wherever you’re from, and whatever your background - we care about what you bring to our organisation, not just what’s on your CV. That’s why we’ve designed a recruitment process that’s fair, accessible, and focused on potential. And with benefits that support people at every age and stage of life, we make sure you can thrive - both personally and professionally.

If you share our passion to make a difference for the people of Leicestershire, we’d love to hear from you. Click the apply button to submit your application, ensuring that you upload a supporting statement that explains how you meet the criteria listed in the ‘About You’ section above. Without this information, we won’t be able to assess your suitability for the role, and your application will be rejected. For tips on how to write your statement, see the How to Apply section on our career site.

We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible.

If you have any technical issues when trying to apply for this post or you want to request an application pack in an alternative format, please contact our Employee Service Centre by telephoning 0300 3030222 (select option 2) or raising a ticket via our online portal: https://emss.org.uk/support.

By applying for this post, you agree to our Terms and Conditions.

About us

About Leicestershire County Council

At Leicestershire County Council, we're committed to making a real difference in people's lives. Our aim is to work with communities and partners to deliver public services that make Leicestershire the best possible place to live and work for everyone.

Our employees play a key role in supporting this goal and helping us deliver the vital services we provide to the people of Leicestershire. Whether you're starting your career or looking for your next challenge, you'll find a place with us where your ideas are valued, and your work has purpose.

For further information on what it’s like to work for us and the benefits we offer, please refer to the following:

Our Recruitment Process
Our Organisational Values
Our Employee Benefits
Working for Us