Senior Education Welfare Officer

Pay range

This range is provided by Stoke-on-Trent City Council. Your actual pay will be based on your skills and experience — talk with your recruiter to learn more.

• Directorate:
  Children and Family Services
• Section:
  Access and Support
• Location:
  
  Civic Centre
• Hours:
  
  37 – Full time

This advert is open to both external and internal applicants.

Are you passionate about improving outcomes for children & families?

We are seeking an experienced and motivated Senior EWO to take a leading role in our Enforcement team.

As Senior EWO, you will manage a case load of complex attendance issues while providing operational oversight of statutory enforcement processes.

You will lead on the legal interventions under the Education Act 1996 and associated legislation, including penalty notices, prosecutions, and Education Supervision Orders, ensuring the Local Authority meets its statutory duties around school attendance.

Working closely with schools, academies, legal services, and partner agencies, you will offer professional challenge and guidance to ensure consistent practice across the service.

You will line-manage and support a small team of Enforcement Officers, providing supervision, training, and Quality Assurance of casework.

This is a demanding but rewarding role, requiring excellent knowledge of education legislation, proven enforcement experience, and strong interpersonal skills.

You will need to balance a child-centred approach with the effective use of statutory powers, always keeping the welfare and safeguarding of children at the heart of decision making.

We are looking for a candidate who can demonstrate significant experience in schools’ attendance, education welfare, or related enforcement work. Strong understanding of statutory frameworks and court processes.

Confidence in leading and supporting a team and the ability to work collaboratively with schools, families, and multi-agency partners.

If you are committed to making a difference and ready to step into a leadership role, we would welcome your application.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and we expect all our employees and volunteers to share this commitment. This position is exempt under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and the successful applicant will be subject to a criminal record check from the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS).

Please note that if an employee who is currently at risk of redundancy within the organisation applies for this vacancy their application will receive priority. If this happens you will be advised accordingly.

At Stoke-on-Trent City Council, we believe our strength comes from the diversity of our community, and we want our workforce to reflect that. We welcome applications from individuals of all backgrounds and experiences.

We understand that some people, especially those from underrepresented or marginalised backgrounds, may hesitate to apply if they don’t meet all of the listed requirements. If this role interests you and you think you could be a good fit, we encourage you to apply.

We are proud of what makes each of us unique and are committed to creating a workplace where everyone feels included, can be themselves, and can succeed together.

Associate

Full-time

Education

Government Administration