Family Services Specialist; CD- Intake

Join our team and make a life-changing impact from the very first contact. In this dynamic Intake role, you will be the frontline of support for children, families, and vulnerable adults in our community. You’ll handle a wide range of meaningful and complex responsibilities, including Child Protective Services (CPS) and child welfare intake, adult services and Adult Protective Services (APS) intake, and referrals for prevention and other family-focused programs.

As a Family Services Specialist, you may also take the lead on CPS investigations and assessments, providing critical ongoing services that promote safety, stability, and healing. Additionally, you may conduct APS investigations and deliver continued support to at‑risk adults. This is an opportunity to use your skills, compassion, and judgment to create safe pathways forward for individuals and families; right when they need it most.

Telework options are available after successful completion of training and certifications.

This is a professional position. The incumbent performs complex tasks in the provision of social services, such as child day care, adult services, foster care, adoption, and prevention services. The Family Services Specialist may also conduct Child Protective Services investigations and assessments and provide ongoing Child Protective Services. The Family Service Specialist may also conduct Adult Protective Services investigations and provide ongoing services.

The Family Services Specialist is part of Hanover County’s Career Development Program (CD). The Family Services Specialist Ladder has four (4) levels:
Family Services Specialist I, II, III, and Senior. The Family Services Specialist reports to a Family Services Supervisor and supervises no staff.

• Interviews customers to assess needs and/or assign to appropriate groups;
  Interviews all parties involved; assesses immediate and long‑term dangers/risks to children/adults; interviews customers to resolve complaints;
• Performs investigative duties to include screens referrals for validity and complaints of exploitation, neglect, and/or abuse of children, the elderly, and/or persons with disability;
• Provides persons, families, or vulnerable populations with the psychosocial support needed to cope with chronic, acute, or terminal illnesses, neglect and abuse (Senior);
• Ensures that reports of suspected abuse/neglect are assigned to appropriate staff;
• Ensures that the local department has staff on duty 24 hours per day, seven days per week to respond to reports of abuse/neglect (Senior);
  Provides after hours on‑call coverage and responds to emergencies in child/adult protective services and/or foster care;
• Provides guidance, consultation and supervision to other staff in the absence of the supervisor (Senior);
• Prepares social histories;
• Represents the agency in both civil and criminal court proceedings which involves interpreting laws, filing petitions, preparing court records, testifying before the court, preparing witnesses for examination, and compiling evidence;
• Attends court, testifies in court and coordinates cases with attorneys;
  Provides reports for court such as guardianship report;
  Testifies in criminal and civil cases; prepares court ordered home assessments and custody home studies;
• Provides direct intervention and service delivery for difficult, complex social work cases, and coordinates casework;
  Provides case management services to monitor compliance;
• Develops and conducts training for staff, interns and other professionals in the community;
• Con‑ducts field visits to residential facilities, consults with therapists and residential staff and participates in the staffing and planning of meetings;
• Functions as a lead worker providing guidance and training to other staff (Senior);
• Coordinates program functions, develops programs, and evaluates materials;
• Monitors, coordinates and administers specific assigned programs;
• Coordinates services within specific area of responsibility;
• Coordinates with other agencies and participates in multi‑disciplinary and inter‑agency teams providing services to customers;
• Develops, writes, and/or…