Practice Supervisor – Care Leavers Service – 12 months fixed term secondment

Job Introduction

Practice Supervisor – Care Leavers Service – 12 months fixed term secondment

Location: Bradford

About the Care Leavers Service

Care-experienced young people face significant challenges as they transition from care to independence, often leaving home at a much earlier age and without the consistent family support their peers enjoy. Many have experienced trauma, instability, and adversity, which can impact their confidence and opportunities. Sadly, care-experienced young people are statistically more likely to face poorer long-term outcomes compared to their peers: they are less likely to be in education, employment, or training, and more likely to experience homelessness, long-term mental health difficulties, and involvement in the criminal justice system.

At Bradford Children and Families Trust, we are committed to changing this narrative by reducing barriers, enhancing strengths, and increasing opportunities for care-experienced young people to succeed and thrive. We celebrate their resilience, skills, and achievements, and work to empower them through meaningful relationships, trust, and consistent support.

To support this ambition, Bradford Children and Families Trust is expanding its Care Leavers Service as part of a planned development to strengthen resources and enhance support for care-experienced young people. This includes creating a new team, increasing the number of Personal Advisors, Managers, and Practice Supervisors to ensure we deliver the highest quality support, be the best possible corporate parent we can, and provide consistent care and guidance as children and young people transition from care to independence.

Our service is built on strong foundations: a permanent and experienced management team, high levels of permanent staff, low staff turnover, and a culture of high-quality support and supervision. This stability enables us to continue to develop practice standards and provide a reflective, learning environment where staff and young people can thrive

We want young people leaving care to feel loved and cared about and to know that we have high aspirations for their future. If you believe this too, believe that you can be that caring person for young people leaving care and make a positive impact on their lives, we want to hear from you.

Ready to make a difference? Join us and help shape a brighter future for Bradford’s care leavers.

About the Role

As a Practice Supervisor, you will:

• Drive high standards of practice to help care leavers thrive.
• Support Personal Advisors and social workers through coaching, mentoring, and reflective supervision.
• Contribute to Bradford’s Care Leavers Local Offer and develop expertise in areas such as supporting separated child migrants and care leavers at risk of exploitation.
• Focus on practice development rather than holding a caseload.
• Collaborate with service managers and the Principal Social Worker to deliver training, quality assurance, and practice improvement initiatives.
• This role is ideal for experienced social workers aspiring to progress into management.

Key Responsibilities

• Act as Practice Educator and mentor for Personal Advisors, social workers, ASYEs, and students.
• Provide reflective supervision and practice observations.
• Drive quality assurance through audits and dip sampling.
• Deliver training and practice development activities.
• Co-allocate complex work and champion best practice.
• Collaborate with partners and contribute to performance oversight.

What We are Looking For

• A qualified social worker (Degree, DipSW, CQSW or equivalent) registered with Social Work England.
• Completed Practice Educator Level 1 or 2 (or willingness to work towards this).
• Strong communication and teamwork skills for multi-agency collaboration.
• Up-to-date knowledge of safeguarding, policy, and practice relevant to care leavers.
• Ability to act as a consultant on complex cases and lead on challenging assessments.
• Enthusiasm, adaptability, and commitment to improving outcomes for care leavers.
• Full driving licence and access to a car (unless exempt due to disability).

Benefits

• Annual retention payment (paid monthly, reviewed annually).
• Enhanced annual leave: 31 days rising to 34 (plus bank holidays).
• Generous Local Government pension contributions.
• Competitive salary and structured pay progression.
• Flexible working and hybrid options (subject to service needs).
• Paid Social Work England registration fees.
• Comprehensive wellbeing support, including Occupational Health and counselling.
• Enhanced parental leave policies.
• Access to Blue Light Card discounts.
• Professional development and career progression opportunities.

To arrange an informal discussion, please contact Service Manager Jon Nevill Jonathan.Nevill@bradfordcft.org.uk or via Phone number: 07483 442923

For full details of our benefits, please see the attached ‘Our Benefits’ brochure.

Bradford Children and Families Trust is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all employees to share this commitment.

If shortlisted, you will be required to disclose relevant information regarding criminal history prior to interview.

A Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check including a check against the Children’s barred list, will be carried out on preferred candidates.

Closing Date: 20th September

Interviews: 28th September