Social Worker, Child Development​/Support

We are looking for a social worker who has completed their assessed and supported year in employment to join our Children in Care teams. In this role you will work with children and young people aged 0–18 who are in our care, whether they are living with foster carers, with family and friend carers, or in a children’s home.

This is a fantastic role where the child will be at the heart of everything you do. You will care plan with children, their carers and family whilst ensuring their views are central to the plan, the child’s needs are met well, and their future is planned for.

Relationships with children and their families will be very important to you. You will spend quality time with children in our care, understanding their views and their life events. You will take a trauma‑informed approach, supporting the child to understand and recover from what has happened.

Your work will be informed by the Signs of Safety framework which will support you to take a strength‑based approach and work towards the goals of the child and their family.

We are passionate about social work in County Durham. We are committed to providing a culture where good practice can flourish. We ensure our social workers are highly supported and encourage flexible working to achieve a good work‑life balance.

You will benefit from a range of training opportunities and professional development through personalised induction, professional supervision, and mentoring.

You will need a degree in Social Work or equivalent Social Work qualification and current Social Work England registration. Please refer to the attached person specification for the full criteria. If successful, you will be required to apply for a Disclosure and Barring Service Enhanced Disclosure.

Durham County Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. We expect all employees and volunteers to share this commitment. This role is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and therefore if successful in your application, an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check will be sought inclusive of a check of the Children’s Barred List and Adults Barred List.

Applicants should be aware that the DBS check will disclose both spent and unspent convictions, cautions, reprimands and warnings, in line with current legislation and will confirm whether an individual is barred from working with children, adults, or both.

Interviews will be held on 12th August 2026.

We operate a guaranteed interview scheme for applicants that can show they meet all the essential criteria and have indicated they have a disability, are a looked after young person, care leaver or a veteran.

We offer a competitive rewards package that includes attractive salaries, a generous annual leave entitlement of 27 days (rising to 32 after five years’ continuous local government service), membership of the excellent 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.

This post is eligible for a recruitment/retention allowance of £2,500 over 12 months (pro‑rata for part‑time workers). Payments are made in equal instalments across a 12-month period alongside your pay. The allowances are subject to tax, National Insurance and pension contributions.

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.

Please note, we do not accept CVs. All applications must be submitted online via the Northeast Jobs portal. Use the person specification section of the form to clearly demonstrate how you meet the essential (and where possible, desirable) criteria. Applications that do not evidence the essential requirements will not be shortlisted.

Please visit our website to understand our position on using AI to support your application and for guidance on completing your application.

If you require assistance when applying for this role, please contact our Recruitment Helpdesk on , or via email R All correspondence relating to your application will be sent from don Kindly check your spam/junk folder regularly to ensure you don’t miss any updates.