Lead Child Protection Practitioner

Lead Child Protection Practitioners

About Us

Connect2Dorset is a managed service agency owned by Dorset Council, providing temporary, contract and interim opportunities within Dorset Council. Our service is built on our values of being ethical, trustworthy and caring, with profits returned to our Local Authority shareholders.

Location: Hybrid (2 days in office per week)

Contract: 6 months - 37 hours a week

Pay Rate: £47.50 an hour

Start Date: Immediate * Subject to compliance and Enhanced DBS.

Ensure that children's voices are heard and are central to influencing any plans made to support them.

Embed Family-Led decision making, while enhancing multi-agency collaboration to support our children and families.

Safeguarding Children through strategic oversight and intervention to meet our statutory obligations under the Children Act 2004, Working Together 2023 and The Families First Partnership Guidance. Focusing on building relationships; ensuring effective participation and taking a restorative trauma informed strengths-based approach.

To support and challenge operational practice to ensure outcomes for children are being achieved.

Key responsibilities

Lead Child Protection Practitioners will:

1. Be a key member of the Multi-Agency Child Protection Team.

1. Chair all strategy meetings.

1. Chair child protection conferences.

1. Oversee and be the decision maker regarding section 47 enquiries.

1. Lead the oversight of multi-agency and single agency investigations (as required).

1. Attend as part of the MACPT the daily S47 outcome meeting.

1. Chair MACE meetings for children who are at significant risk of extra familiar risk and harm.

1. Attend relevant Extra Familiar Risk and Harm Panels.

1. Work in collaboration with the Family Help Service to ensure robust child protection responses.

1. Gather information about whether a child is suffering significant harm, to support decision making.

1. Ensure that families have been offered a family group conference for children subject to child protection plans.

1. Visit families to prepare them for child protection conferences and support them to prepare a draft plan for the conference.

1. Oversee and quality assure the development, review and closure of child protection plans, including formal mid-way reviews.

1. Input into onward planning for children and families (including continued support from Family Help and the voluntary sector).

1. Provide advice and consultation for practitioners who need multi-agency child protection expertise.

1. Oversight of all children allocated to LCPP who are the subject of section 47 enquiries or on a child protection plan. Providing support and challenge of operational practice to ensure that intended outcomes for children are being achieved in the child's timeframe.

1. Attend the weekly multi-agency child protection line of sight meetings to contribute to the multi-agency discussions and decision making. Decisions from line of sight will be the responsibility of the locality service manager.

1. Attend the weekly leadership meeting to contribute to information being shared and discussion about decisions being made. Decisions from the weekly leadership meetings will remain with the head of locality.

1. Write or contribute to high quality reports and briefings on practice improvement, policy developments and legislation changes as required.

1. Delivery of workforce development activities to support improvement.

1. Maintain an understanding of local patterns of significant harm and agency responses and support service improvement.

Essential

1. QSW

1. Registered with Social Work England

1. Relevant children social care post qualifying training

Experience

1. Substantial post qualifying experience within children social care

1. Substantial experience of child protection work

1. Experience of chairing meetings

1. Experience of chairing inter-agency meetings

Knowledge

1. Working knowledge of relevant childcare legislation and guidance (including "Children's Act

2004," "Working Together" 2023, "Families First Partnership Program Guide 2025")

1. Understanding of assessment of risk and professional judgements relating to risk

1. Detailed knowledge of child development, trauma informed practice and behaviour including

likely outcomes of interventions

1. Good knowledge of child protection policies, procedures and practice

1. Knowledge of best practice for children subject to protection plans

Skills and abilities

1. Ability to maintain child focus and engage with children and families to understand their

needs and safeguarding concerns

1. Good organisational and time management skills

1. High level of written and verbal communication

1. Ability to receive, summarise and analyse information in a way that is accessible to others

1. Problem solving and negotiating skills

1. Ability to manage conflict and confrontation positively

Connect2Dorset is a trading style of Dorset & Kent Commercial Services LLP - A joint venture between Dorset Council & Commercial Services Kent Ltd. Connect2Dorset is an equal opportunities Employment Agency & Business. It positively encourages applications from all suitably qualified and eligible candidates