Progression – SW/SSW
Progression
On this page you can find out how to progress to Senior Social Worker, Professional Education Consultant and Practice Manager or IRO/CPA.
Progression to Senior Social Worker
There are two stages to becoming a Senior Social Worker:
To become an experience social worker (as described in the PCF) and moving from grade 11 to 12 you will need to produce a portfolio for moderation, which evidences:
- Completion of the development opportunities identified in the pathway for social workers:
- Connected practice
- Core Skills and Practice
- Evidence of development in an area of specialist expertise taking a lead role in the team
- Evidence of sharing knowledge and good evidence informed practice based on current research relevant to casework
- Evidence of contribution to the assessment, mentoring and support of social work students and newly qualified social workers, for example through group supervisions and mentoring. See Supervision and leadership pathway for training and support available to so this.
You do not have to do anything for this process to begin; you will be contacted by the Social Work Education Team and be invited to submit your portfolio at the appropriate time.
East Sussex Children’s Services offers 2 pathways for demonstrating readiness to apply for a Senior Social Work (SSW) role. Both routes still require a successful application to a Senior Social Worker vacancy and are not an automatic progression to the SSW grade.
Upon successfully achieving progression via the Senior Social Worker Portfolio, and with support and agreement from their Practice Manager, Social Workers can commence the SSW ‘Readiness to progress’ development pathway via 2 routes:
• Route A − via completion of the PET1 of the Practice Education Traineeship. See Leadership and supervision – SW/SSW – Social work career pathways.
• Route B − via completion on the SSW Practice development portfolio.
Progress to Professional Education Consultant
This is achieved through application to vacancies. You will be passionate about:
- about social work practice and supporting students and qualified social workers to develop their practice
- research
- working collaboratively with colleagues and their managers
- developing and delivering/facilitating training and group work.
The additional expectations you will need to evidence:
- Become a Senior Social Worker
- Completion of Practice Educator Stage 2 part of our Practice Education Traineeship.
Progression to a management or IRO/CPA role
Progression from Senior Social Worker to a management or IRO/CPA role is achieved through application to vacancies.
You will be able to demonstrate:
- Application of Connected practice methodology throughout your social work practice at an advanced level, including training detailed in the CPD pathway at senior social work level.
- Application of Core Skills and Practice throughout your social work practice at advanced level including relevant Senior Social Worker training and development
- Evidence of development in an area of specialist expertise taking a lead role in the team; this could be through reaching advanced level training in at least one thematic – Domestic Abuse, Drugs and Alcohol, Mental Health, Sexual Risk, Neglect or demonstrate equivalent advanced knowledge and skills in another area of social work practice such as attachment, adoption, direct work with children, systemic intervention
- Evidence of sharing knowledge and good evidence informed practice based on current research relevant to casework
- Evidence of assessment, mentoring and support of social work students and Newly Qualified Social Workers, through practice education. See Supervision and leadership pathway for training and support available to so this.