Social Worker

Job summary

This role is part-time (22 hours per week);

Join our outstanding-rated Trust as a Band 6 Social Worker in the Safeguarding and Social Work Team at Royal Papworth Hospital. You'll play a vital role in supporting patients with complex health and social care needs, including those with long-term conditions, terminal illness, and safeguarding concerns. Working within a multidisciplinary team, you'll lead holistic assessments, contribute to safe discharge planning, and act as a key liaison with external agencies. This role offers opportunities for professional development, supervision of junior staff, and involvement in service improvement. We're looking for a compassionate, resilient practitioner with strong knowledge of the Care Act, Mental Capacity Act, and safeguarding legislation. If you're committed to excellence, collaboration, and making a real difference in patient care, we'd love to hear from you.

Main duties of the job

We are seeking a compassionate and skilled Band 6 Social Worker to join our Safeguarding and Social Work Team at Royal Papworth Hospital. You will provide a comprehensive social work service across the hospital, supporting patients with complex needs, long-term conditions, and safeguarding concerns. Working autonomously within a multidisciplinary team, you will contribute to safe discharge planning, psychosocial reviews, and safeguarding strategy meetings.

You will have a strong understanding of relevant legislation including the Care Act, Mental Capacity Act, and Children Act, and be confident in conducting holistic assessments, mental capacity evaluations, and best interest decisions. Experience in mentoring, supervision, and delivering training is desirable.

We are looking for someone with excellent communication skills, emotional resilience, and a commitment to upholding our values of Compassion, Excellence, and Collaboration. Join us in making a difference in the lives of vulnerable patients while developing your career in a supportive and outstanding-rated Trust.

About us

Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is the UK's leading heart and lung hospital, delivering care to more than 50,000 patients a year in its new state-of-the-art hospital in Cambridge. We perform the most heart and/or lung transplants in the UK and carried out the UK's first successful heart transplant in 1979. It also offers emergency heart attack treatment, sleep centre care and is one of just five centres nationally for those in severe respiratory failure.

Based on the Cambridge Biomedical Campus the largest centre of medical research and health science in Europe the Trust is at the heart of treatments of the future. Royal Papworth became the first hospital trust in the country to be rated outstanding in all five areas assessed by the Care Quality Commission - a rating it still holds today. The Trust holds its values of compassion, excellence & collaboration at its core, and all colleagues joining the team are expected to uphold these in their day-to-day roles & interactions. Royal Papworth is proud of its diverse workforce and encourages people to embrace their individuality.

The Trust values difference and welcomes all applications irrespective of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy & maternity, race, religion & belief, sex and sexual orientation. Providing they meet the minimum post criteria, applicants with disabilities will be offered an interview.

For a street view tour: https://royalpapworth.nhs.uk/virtual-tour

Job description

Job responsibilities

On this page you will find a Role Profile which provides information about the hospital and full details about the role. We recommend that you review this and refer to it as you complete your application. Please include how you will meet the Trust Values Compassion, Excellence and Collaboration. If you would like more information about the role or working at Royal Papworth Hospital, please get in touch with the contact for this role.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential
-Social Work Degree or Postgraduate degree with Social Work England registration
-Significance post qualification experience as a social worker including evidence of supported practice
-e.g. Completed Assessed and Supported Year in Employment. (ASYE ) or Evidence of continued professional development (CPD) through alternative professional development and experience and practice

Desirable
-Additional Leadership qualification (Edward Jenner, Mary Seacole etc)

Experience

Essential
-Direct experience with vulnerable children/adults, safeguarding practice, multidisciplinary working, care planning, discharge coordination
-Knowledge of Children Act, Care Act, MCA, DoLS, Prevent Duty, Working Together 2018
- Local safeguarding boards and policy
- Think Family, Mental Capacity, Human Rights, Domestic Abuse Act
-Excellent communication (verbal and written)
- Emotional resilience
- Mentorship/supervision experience
- Ability to lead and contribute to MDT meetings
-Communicate highly complex, confidential, and sensitive condition related information through a range of developed interpersonal skills to patients, colleagues, multidisciplinary team and families
-Able to manage frequent exposure to distressing and highly emotional circumstances, including disclosures of abuse, complex safeguarding concerns, and unexpected death.
-Aware of cultural and social influences on health and of the importance of respecting diversity and differences
-Able to facilitate and support learning
-Able to plan, organise and prioritise own and others' workload

Desirable
-Experience of leading audits or service improvement
-Experience deputising in the absence of more senior staff, demonstrating leadership and decision-making capabilities.
-Awareness of Trust-wide and national safeguarding strategies
-Experience contributing to policy/practice development

Additional Criteria

Essential
-Please provide evidence of your commitment to uphold the Trust's values: Compassion, Excellence, Collaboration
-Competent in using electronic patient record systems
-Ability to maintain accurate records in line with professional and organisational standards
-Comfortable using Microsoft Office applications (Word, Excel, Outlook, Teams)