Social Worker

Contract Type: Permanent

Hours: 37 per week

Salary: NJC Grade H1/H2 SCP 27-35 £38,220 - £46,142 per annum

Closing Date: Wednesday 13th May 2026 at 23:59

AWAKEN - Multi-Agency Child Exploitation Team

An exciting and rewarding opportunity has arisen in Blackpool’s Awaken child exploitation Team. Awaken is a multi-agency team led by Children's Social Care, Police and Health who’s primary function is to support children and young people who are at risk/ victims of child criminal exploitation and/or child sexual exploitation and bring offenders to justice.

Awaken is a non-statutory team, so in your Social Work role you will not be responsible for completing statutory functions i.e Children and Family Assessments; S47 enquiries; CIN plans or CP plans. Your work will be focussed on building trusted meaningful relationships with the young people using a therapeutic model of intervention in order to build on their resilience and strengths to bring about positive change.

This way of working ensures that our Social Workers can dedicate the necessary time to children and young people who need our support the most. Our innovative and creative approaches allow us to engage young people outside of statutory constraints.

The team are looking to recruit a motivated individual with a diverse range of skills who is able to demonstrate a flexible approach and clear understanding of child exploitation and has a passion for working with adolescents.

As a Child Exploitation Social Worker, we require;

• A UK driving license with access to own car

• Knowledge and experience of supporting children and young people at risk of / or being criminally or sexually exploited

• Social Work Degree

Our promise to employees

We’re focused on safeguarding children and improving their outcomes but don’t forget our employees. We offer:
•Dedicated induction programme for all new employees
•Manageable caseloads in small teams, with clear line management mentoring support
•Dedicated time for quality reflective supervision and to learn from regular quality audits
•Lower caseload, allowing you to focus on undertaking high quality work with children and their families
•Structured career paths, starting from family support roles, the social worker assessed and supported year in employment, all the way up to the role of head of service, so there is no journey too big or too small
•Excellent learning and development opportunities, with bespoke training for every role across Children’s Services
•Easy and regular access to the leadership team and principal social worker

Employee benefits

We recognise our employees and like to offer some great rewards:
•Ongoing development and opportunities to move up in your career
•Pioneering new ways of working – help to shape and influence practise within the workforce
•Flexible working patterns and generous annual leave
•Relocation package of up to £8000
•Local government pension scheme
•Social Work England registration fee paid
•Supportive management team and diverse caseload
•Discounted gym membership and more

We want the best people, with the biggest ambitions. Nowhere else will you gain as much experience on the job, making us a sought-after place to work. If you are passionate, dedicated to making a change and ready for a challenge – you could be the candidate we are looking for.

With excellent transport links between Blackpool and major cities, a growing housing market and a developing economy, there’s never been a better time to work in Blackpool. With a direct route along the M55/M6 your journey could be less than you think, along with Blackpool North rail station and secure, modern parking directly opposite our town centre offices, commuting is straightforward (no need to park and ride).

For further information about the role please contact Team Manager Sarah via 07341070493 or sarah.grimshaw-hooper@blackpool.gov.uk 

to view the Job Description.

Please click here to see the benefits of working for Blackpool Council.

Are you a Blackpool resident aged between 16-24? Would you benefit from some free guidance on producing a quality application for job vacancies such as this one? Blackpool Council?s Youth Hub - The Platform, has highly skilled Employment Advisers that can support you with demonstrating how you can evidence you meet the Essential and Desirable criteria requirements on a Job Description.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children/vulnerable adults. This post is subject to satisfactory reference history of at least two years, Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) check, medical clearance, evidence of any essential qualifications and proof of Right to Work in the UK in accordance with the Asylum and Immigration Act 1996.

This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act and amendments to the exemptions order, which mean that certain offences are ‘protected’ and do not need to be disclosed, guidance on the "filtering" of offences can be found at New filtering rules for DBS certificates (from 28 November 2020 onwards) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

For further information on the health and wellbeing support on offer during your employment, please see here.

Have you got what it takes to ride the Roller Coaster ride of Social Work in Blackpool? for further information on the career path and development opportunities available at Blackpool please see here.