Fostering Recruitment Advisor

Organisation: London Borough of Waltham Forest

Salary: PO3 £44,331 - £47,532 

Contract Type: Full-time/Permanent
Working hours per week: 36 

Application Deadline: 08/06/2025

Proposed Interview Date(s): TBC
Reference: 1755

About Us: 

Bursting with culture, energy, and opportunity, the London Borough of Waltham Forest is a fantastic and exciting place to work. 

We are a highly ambitious borough. Driven by culture and the innate creativity of our residents, we have developed new and innovative ways to build our communities. Our Council is relentlessly resident-focused, insight-led, digitally driven and commercially minded; a Council focused on meeting the needs of our existing and future residents. 

London Borough of Waltham Forest is one of the Mayor of London’s Good Work Standard employers. This accreditation is a proof of our commitment to creating a healthy, fair and inclusive workplace. This includes fair pay and conditions, workplace well-being, skills and progression and diversity and recruitment. 

The Council’s preference is for online application. However, if you have a disability and are unable to complete an online application, please email recruitment@walthamforest.gov.uk so we can arrange an alternative application method. 

Click here for further information on the Human Resources recruitment privacy notice. 

About the role: 

Local Community Fostering is a network of northeast London councils, led by the London Borough of Waltham Forest, working together to inspire local people to become foster carers.  The service is part of a new nationwide approach to increase the number of local authority foster carers across England. 

The Fostering Recruitment Advisor plays a vital role in supporting and recruiting prospective foster carers. By providing high-quality information, advice and guidance, they ensure a seamless and positive experience for applicants. The role involves screening candidates, conducting initial home visits and managing enquiries efficiently. Collaborating with fostering teams and participating in promotional activities, the Fostering Advisor helps raise awareness and attract new applicants. Their commitment to compliance, safeguarding and continuous improvement ensures high standards and positive outcomes for children in care. 

>> Click here to download the Role Profile << 

Key Responsibilities: 

Provide high-quality information, advice, and guidance to prospective foster carer applicants.  Respond to enquiries via telephone, email and social media, ensuring timely and accurate responses.

 Screen prospective foster carer applicants to ensure they meet the required criteria for fostering.  Conduct high-quality initial home visits, subject to training.

Manage a database of foster carer applicants, ensuring up-to-date records.  Use the system to follow up on enquiries and maintain regular contact with prospective foster carers.

Build positive relationships with fostering teams across the Local Community Fostering region, collaborating to promote timely progression of enquiries after screening.  Liaise with colleagues in other teams to organise appointments and follow up on enquiries.

Participate in fostering promotional activities and public events to raise awareness and attract new applicants.  Assist in organising and staffing stalls at community events, fostering information sessions and distributing promotional materials.

Ensure compliance with legislation, policies, and best practices in fostering recruitment and assessment.  Participate in audits and quality assurance processes to maintain high standards in recruitment work.

Proactively seek opportunities to improve the experience of prospective foster carers and suggest ideas for increasing long-term retention.

Be aware of and work in accordance with the Council’s child and protection policies and procedures to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.

Ensure compliance with GDPR and other information governance requirements by managing data and information according to relevant policies and regulations.

Lead on the development, implementation, maintenance and management of systems, policies, procedures and / or standards within area of responsibility.

Work closely with the Senior Fostering Advisor and other team members to develop and implement recruitment strategies.

Willingness to work flexibly regarding location and work pattern, with support for flexible working arrangements provided.  Ability to manage multiple tasks and work flexibly, including occasional evenings and weekends by prior agreement.

Knowledge, Skills and Experience 

• Strong interpersonal skills, including a confident phone manner, great listening skills and the ability to build and positively influence relationships.
• Ability to focus and accurately record information while working in both remote and open-plan office environments.
• Experience in providing high-quality information, advice and guidance.
• Experience in recruitment, social care or a related field.
• Capable of offering information in a friendly and appropriate manner, tailored to the situation.
• Committed to promoting equality, diversity, and inclusion and willing to work with others to challenge discriminatory actions or practices.
• Understanding of the challenges faced by foster carers and the complexities of fostering assessments.
• Experience handling confidential issues with discretion and tact.
• Ability to engage with community groups and networks to raise awareness of local authority fostering.
• Passionate about fostering and supporting prospective foster carers.
• Logical planning skills, ability to cope well under pressure, self-awareness and creativity.
• Experience in setting up, maintaining, and developing administrative systems and processes.
• Good data collection and analytical skills to achieve positive outcomes in recruitment.
• Ability to work independently, organise workload effectively and meet deadlines.
• Exceptional attention to detail.
• A keen interest in achieving the best outcomes for children.
• Knowledge of relevant national legislation, regulations, and safeguarding policies.
• Ability to develop a detailed understanding of the local area and community demographics.

Qualifications and Requirements: 

To be considered for this position, you should meet the following requirements: 

Degree or equivalent or vocational qualification in relevant subject or area

Evidence of Continuous Professional Development

Terms and conditions: 

 The below terms and conditions apply to this role: 

Satisfactory employment references and CIFAS identity checks; 

Satisfactory declaration of interest; 

This role is subject to safer recruitment practices as it involves work with children and/ or vulnerable adults; 

Satisfactory DBS check; 

As a public authority, we must ensure that members of staff in public-facing roles are able to speak fluent English. This means that they must have a command of spoken English, with confidence and accuracy, sufficient for the effective performance of their role. This requirement does not refer to any particular English language qualifications, regional or international accents, dialects, speech impediments or the tone of conversations. It does not require staff to speak only in English. 

How to Apply: 

Interested candidates are invited to submit their applications online by pressing the ‘Apply’ button below. This includes a supporting statement that outlines to us how your skills and experience make you a good candidate for this vacancy. 

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.  

Equal Opportunity Employer: 

Waltham Forest is a diverse borough where diversity is valued and is integral to both, service delivery and employment of its staff. The Council is proud of its rich mix of communities and as the largest employer in the area, it works hard to respond to the changing needs of its population. We use our statutory duties on race, gender and disability equality and best practice in respect of age, faith and sexual orientation to ensure equality of opportunity in the workplace. The Council is committed to meeting its 4 equality objectives: - Promoting equality of opportunity - Opposing all forms of discrimination, intolerance and disadvantage - Ensuring our workforce reflects the diverse communities of Waltham Forest at all levels. - Providing fair, appropriate, accessible and excellent Services to all. Respecting Diversity is a core Council value. 

To support the above and reduce the risk of bias in its recruitment activities, the council is operating an anonymous shortlisting process, which hides personal information that can identify individuals until their application has been considered for shortlisting. The council also operates a scheme whereby, for jobs graded up to and including scale SO2, internal candidates are considered first. This includes those candidates who self-identify as having a disability for the purposes of the Disability Confident scheme. For more information, please refer to our recruitment and selection policy. 

We are keen to support employees to balance their working life with other commitments. Therefore, wherever possible, we will consider working arrangements that suit an individual's personal circumstances whilst still meeting the needs of the Council. If you would like to discuss the possible flexible working options that might be applicable to this role, please contact the person named below or feel free to discuss this during your interview. 

For more information on the benefits of working for the Council, please visit https://www.walthamforest.gov.uk/jobs-and-training/find-jobs-and-other-opportunities/working-us. 

Contact Information: 

If you have any questions about this vacancy or the application process, please contact - Roberta Onyekwelu Head of Service, Permanence & Resources on Roberta.onyekwelu@walthamforest.gov.uk

If you have any technical issues when trying to apply for this post, please contact our Recruitment Team via email at recruitment@walthamforest.gov.uk.