Entry Level Social Worker Salary Expectations in 2021 | Children’s

Social workers who work in children’s services have the statutory obligation to promote and safeguard the welfare of vulnerable children.

They support children and families by providing them with a wide range of services.

Working in children services is probably the most popular field social workers work in.

However, it appears to have the greatest pressures and social worker salary expectations in this area also differ.

As a children’s social worker, you may work in frontline roles, a family court or in management.

Frontline social workers may carry out the following roles;

  • support cared for children and young care leavers
  • support children through transition from children to adults’ services
  • tackle child abuse and neglect cases
  • work in a child protection
  • work in a fostering and adoption team
  • work in a referral and assessment team, or a
  • safeguarding team.

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Entry Level Social Worker Salary Expectations in 2021

social worker salary

Besides the basic salary in children’s team, you are likely to get retention payments of up to £5,000 in many cases, and additional market forces payment depending on the area of up to £4000.

Frontline roles in children’s social work:

1. Referral and assessment team

Salary – £27,000-£38,000

Who can apply – Newly qualified social workers and experienced social workers.

Skills and Experience – registered social worker

Key Responsibilities – Using the Assessment framework to analyse the needs of children and their families by considering;

  • parental capacity
  • child’s developmental needs
  • family and environmental factors.

Where can you find a referral and assessment social worker role? 

2. School Social Worker

Salary – £29,000-£35,000

Who can apply – Experienced social workers.

Skills and Experience – A Social Work England registered social worker.

Key Responsibilities

  • support profound changes to a child’s life
  • personalised counselling to individual students
  • building long-term relationships with children to see them through their journey.
  • coordination of preventative programs like anti-bullying campaigns

Where can you find a School Social Worker role? 

3. Children’s Services Practice Supervisor–Fostering

Salary – £29,000-£45,000

Who can apply – Experienced social workers.

Skills and Experience – A Social Work England registered social worker with extensive experience in children’s social work. Practice Educator qualification. Experience of mentoring others. Leadership skills.

Key Responsibilities – Supporting foster carers, recruiting, assessing, training, and promoting positive outcomes for children.

Where can you find a Children’s Services Practice Supervisor role? 

social work salary expectations

4. Social Worker – Independent Reviewing Officer

Salary – £44,000-£65,000

Who can apply – Experienced social workers

Skills and Experience – A Social Work England registered social worker with extensive experience in children’s social work.

Key Responsibilities – Independent chairing services for looked after children and children who are in need or at risk of abuse. Other responsibilities include;

  • Consulting with children
  • Chairing review meetings of a multi-disciplinary nature.
  • Attending and chairing any meeting in conjunction with the review of a child’s case
  • Occasionally chairing other meetings within the safeguarding unit
  • Monitoring the local authority’s performance in relation to a child’s case
  • Checking that the agreed actions are being implemented
  • Working effectively in partnership with personnel within the local authority, key partner agencies, children and young people, their parents and their carers
  • Complying with relevant legislation

Where can you find a Social Worker – Independent Reviewing Officer role?

5. Social Worker – Children Looked After & Care Leaver teams

Salary – £28,000-£36,000

Who can apply – Experienced social workers

Skills and Experience – A Social Work England registered social worker with experience of working with children, care leavers.

Key Responsibilities – Managing a caseload of looked after children.

Where can you find a Social Worker – Children Looked After & Care Leaver teams’ role?

6. Social Worker – Independent Reviewing Officer

Salary – £44,000-£65,000

Who can apply – Experienced social workers

Skills and Experience – A Social Work England registered social worker with extensive experience in children’s social work.

Key Responsibilities – Independent chairing services for looked after children and children who are in need or at risk of abuse. Other responsibilities include;

  • Consulting with children
  • Chairing review meetings of a multi-disciplinary nature.
  • Attending and chairing any meeting in conjunction with the review of a child’s case
  • Occasionally chairing other meetings within the safeguarding unit
  • Monitoring the local authority’s performance in relation to a child’s case
  • Checking that the agreed actions are being implemented
  • Working effectively in partnership with personnel within the local authority, key partner agencies, children and young people, their parents and their carers
  • Complying with relevant legislation

 

Where can you find a Social Worker – Independent Reviewing Officer role?

newly qualified social worker salary expectations

7. CAFCASS – Family Court Adviser role

Salary – £35,000 to £48,000

Skills and Experience – A Social Work England registered social worker with extensive experience in children’s social work.

  • Minimum of 3 years post qualifying experience working within safeguarding services for children and their families in the statutory sector.
  • An understanding of the needs of children involved in private and public law proceedings within the family justice system, including the importance of timely reporting and avoiding delays in decision-making for children.
  • Evidence of effective case planning and recording casework with child/ren and families according to the Code of Practice for Social Workers.

Key Responsibilities – Family Court Advisers assess the needs, safeguard and promote the welfare of individual children involved in Family Proceedings and provide advice and reports to the family courts to achieve the best possible outcomes for these children.

Where can you find a CAFCASS – Family Court Adviser role?

8. Qualified Social Worker – Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children

Salary – £30,000 to £36,000

Skills and Experience – Post qualifying experience of working within a statutory Asylum Team within the UK statutory setting.

Key Responsibilities

  • Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children in need.
  • Analysing information and making recommendations on the appropriate services or support for individual children and their families.
  • Co-ordinating or contributing to assessments of need, including initial, core, court and other specialist assessments.
  • Knowledge of Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 – Broad understanding immigration rules/Home Office guidance
  • Dealing with more complex or unusual cases, assessing and managing risks appropriately.

Where can you find a Qualified Social Worker – Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children’s Social Work role?

social work salary expectations

9. Social Worker – Youth Justice Team

Salary – £27,000 to £34,000

Skills and Experience – A Social Work England registered social worker with extensive experience in children’s social work.

Key Responsibilities – Managing cases of young people within the youth justice system. You are likely to liaise with other stakeholders.

Where can you find a Social Worker – Youth Justice Team role?

10. Management roles:

  • Service manager
  • Head of service

Salary–£50,000 – £70,000

Skills and Experience

  • prior management experience in children’s services,
  • proven ability to manage staff within a multi-agency setting
  • excellent leadership and communication skills

Key Responsibilities

  • the ability to drive high-quality practice with a focus on both quality and compliance, particularly children.
  • shape and deliver a service that puts children at its core
  • managing performance of a team of social workers
  • developing strategy.

Where can you find social work management roles?

11. Social Work Lecturer or Professor

Salary–£32,000 – £70,000

Skills and Experience–minimum bachelor’s degree, ideally a master’s or a doctorate degree.

Key Responsibilities –

  • Teach students about social work theory and legislation, what social work entails, preparation for practice, child development theories, evidence-based practice, and social work law.
  • Engage in research activities.
  • Part of school admission procedures, including interviews.
  • Thesis or Dissertation supervision

Where can you social work lecturer or professor roles?

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