Care Resource Specialist

Do you want your work to make a real difference to the lives of children and young people in our care? This is a brilliant opportunity to join a new team in a new role where your focus will be on ensuring children and young people in our care get the right support at the right time, while securing the best value for money.

This post is temporary for 2 years, however there may be a possibility of it being extended beyond this point in the future.

You will be joining our small Durham Cares Sufficiency Programme Team, a brand new team with a clear purpose.

As one of two Care Resource Specialists, you will review individual care packages for children and young people, working closely with the care team to understand the needs of the child or young person, and with providers to identify opportunities to reduce expenditure without compromising outcomes.

• Take a lead role in reviewing care packages, particularly high‑cost placements
• Work with social workers, providers and partners to ensure care packages meet the needs of children and young people and are appropriate, effective and deliver value for money
• Identify opportunities to reduce costs through negotiation, alternative provision, and smarter planning
• Develop and embed new systems and processes to monitor placements, costs and outcomes
• Contribute to care planning meetings and influence decisions about support arrangements
• Track trends and outcomes

To apply for this new post you will need a relevant degree and/or professional qualification and experience of:

• Building effective relationships and working collaboratively with multiple stakeholders
• Budget monitoring and cost control
• Developing plans and monitoring outcomes
• Gathering, analysing and interpreting data and preparing analytical reports
• Working with competing demands and pressures
• Having brave and kind conversations, challenging others constructively when needed

Please refer to the attached Person Specification for the full criteria.

We offer a competitive rewards package that includes attractive salaries, a generous annual leave entitlement of 27 days (rising to 32 after five years of continuous local government service), membership of the contributory career average Local Government Pension Scheme, and a range of flexible working arrangements including hybrid working (home and office) where applicable. Rewards and benefits are subject to individual terms and conditions.

We are a proud equal opportunities employer and believe a diverse workforce brings fresh ideas and drives service improvement. We welcome applications from everyone and make employment decisions based on skills and ability. As a Disability Confident Leader, we actively encourage applications from disabled and neurodivergent people and offer support throughout the recruitment process.

Durham County Council currently operates a hybrid working policy where a model of 2 days in the workplace and 3 days at home/remote will apply. This model is pro‑rated for part time roles and arrangements are at managers discretion; alternatively you can work all of your contracted hours within the workplace if you prefer.

Company:
Durham County Council
Salary:
Grade 10 £ 38,220 – £41,771

Location:

Spennymoor, Durham
Sector:
Health and Social Care / Social Care

Job Role:

Support Worker