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As the largest local authority in the North-East this is an exciting opportunity to influence the development and practice of the Adult Social Care workforce in Durham. Utilising your own experience and practice to influence and shape services you are invited to apply for the permanent Professional Development Officer (Social Work) post within the Quality Assurance and Development Team starting in as soon as possible.

WHAT IS INVOLVED? 
The Quality Assurance and Development team is part of the Assurance, Development and Practice service within Adult Care, Adult and Health Services. The team has a wide range of responsibilities such as:

• Supporting effective regulatory compliance assessed by our external regulator Care Quality Commission and service improvement and development across the service.
• Overseeing and managing key governance arrangements such as the scheme of delegation, the development, review and maintenance of the service’s policy and procedures along with the co-ordination and oversight on research approval applications.
• Effectively managing and co-ordinate the service’s statutory and corporate complaints functions and seek opportunities to learn and improve as an outcome.
• Ensuring strong workforce planning and sustainabilityIn addition to those responsibilities a key area linked directly to this role is to ensure support is given in the professional development of the social work workforce to meet regulatory requirements for continuing professional development and registration.

 To do this you will

• Undertake appropriate development needs analysis throughout the year to identify appropriate products and services, and design, develop, implement, commission and evaluate high quality professional development programmes; ensuring Service priorities and National drivers/agendas are reflected and statutory, mandatory and Corporate requirements are met.
• Manage a delegated budget for the relevant area of the development plan ensuring that regular and accurate information on commissioned and spent budget is provided.
• Design and deliver induction programmes, supporting documentation and procedures which meet national requirements (Assessed and Supported Year in Practice/Licence to Practice).
• Facilitate, provide expert advice, and act as a decision maker on a range of panels alongside Strategic Managers, operational staff and team managers. Panels will decide whether Social Workers have demonstrated the requirements of the Assessed and Supported Year in Employment, or for Social Workers and those working in related professions to demonstrate their practice is at a sufficient level to work as an Approved Mental Health Professional or the requirements of progression to be a higher grade worker.
• Use specialist knowledge and experience to support the delivery of multi-agency training.
• Develop and review policies and procedures linked to development and practice, ensuring advice of Legal Services and Human Resources advice is taken into account and Trade Unions are consulted.
• Establish effective working relationships with partner Universities working collaboratively to support the Service to meet National recommendations
• Promote development opportunities effectively, ensuring appropriate means are utilised for each opportunity.   

We strongly encourage you to contact Lesley Martin, Quality Assurance and Development Team Manager via email at lesley.martin@durham.gov.uk to arrange an informal discussion about the role.  

WHAT WILL I NEED? 
Required qualifications:

• Social Work Degree, DipSW, CQSW, CSS or equivalent and membership of a professional body i.e. Social Work England

You will have experience in working within a culture of continuous improvement. Know how to engage and work collaboratively with colleagues, stakeholders a range of professionals/agencies and service users and have taken forward development of social work/care initiatives.

You will need to be able to communicate clearly and effectively, tailoring messages to the needs of the audience; have excellent interpersonal skills and be able to take a collaborative approach to decision making.  You will be able to challenge constructively and appropriately and be able to research, gather data, carry out analysis, formulate action plans and write concise reports.
 
You should be able to work on own initiative, using excellent time management and organisational skills.
 
You should be able to maintain morale and commitment under pressure and motivate others and work effectively within a team.

Please refer to the attached Person Specification for the full criteria. 

INTERVIEWS
Interviews will be held on 28th May 2026.
 
We operate a guaranteed interview scheme for applicants that can show they meet all the essential criteria and have indicated they have a disability, are a looked after young person, care leaver or a veteran.

OUR OFFER TO YOU
We offer a competitive rewards package that includes attractive salaries, a generous annual leave entitlement of 27 days (rising to 32 after five years’ continuous local government service), membership of the excellent contributory career average Local Government Pension Scheme, and a range of flexible working arrangements including hybrid working (home and office) where applicable. Explore the full range of rewards and benefits on our website 

Rewards and benefits are subject to individual terms and conditions.

EQUALITY, DIVERSITY, AND INCLUSION
We are a proud equal opportunities employer and believe a diverse workforce brings fresh ideas and drives service improvement. We welcome applications from everyone and make employment decisions based on skills and ability. As a Disability Confident Leader, we actively encourage applications from disabled people and offer support throughout the recruitment process.

HOW TO APPLY 
Please note, we do not accept CVs. All applications must be submitted online via the Northeast Jobs portal. Use the ‘Person Specification’ section of the form to clearly demonstrate how you meet the essential (and where possible, desirable) criteria. Applications that do not evidence the essential requirements will not be shortlisted. For guidance on completing your application, visit our website 
 
If you require assistance when applying for this role, please contact our Recruitment Helpdesk on 03000 26 27 27, or via email RecruitmentAHS@durham.gov.uk
 
All correspondence relating to your application will be sent from donotreply@northeastjobs.org.uk. Kindly check your spam/junk folder regularly to ensure you don’t miss any updates.

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Company: Durham County Council

Salary: Grade 11 - £40,777 - £45,091

Location: Spennymoor, Durham

Sector: Education

Job Role: Officer