Job overview

We are looking for a Forensic Social worker to join our team to provide a specialist social care service to an agreed caseload of clients and their carers. The service works across all areas of the Directorate including the Bracton Centre & Memorial Hospital, community and specialist aftercare hostel.

Working as part of the inpatient team you will provide advice to multi-disciplinary colleagues regarding social care in the inpatient setting and also be part of the Forensic Community Services.

As part of your role you may be involved in student Social Worker supervision.

Main duties of the job

• Work as part of the multi-disciplinary in-patient team with clients and carers to meet social care needs within a range of highly complex situations that arise from offending behaviour and mental health needs. Engage in a therapeutic process to assist recovery and, if required, undertaking family work.
• Take a lead role within the team to safeguard Adults and Children in line with safeguarding policies
• Identify and establish links with the Responsible Local Authority for each client to ensure good liaison and care planning and timely discharge from hospital
• Identify and obtain funding for appropriate care packages from the Responsible Local Authority
• Undertake role in the aftercare of clients as care co-ordinator under CPA in agreed cases
• Undertake Social Supervision of a mixed caseload of the Forensic Community Service patients subject to conditional discharge in agreed cases
• Take a lead role in the multi-disciplinary context in enabling clients and carers to exercise their rights and promote their equality and diversity including liaison with advocacy services to challenge oppressive practice
• Manage work to ensure own personal safety and the security of self and others, contributing to the development of a safe working environment
• Develop own knowledge and practice and provide evidence of continued professional development by means of a professional portfolio as outlined by SW England.

Working for our organisation

Oxleas – About Us

Oxleas offers a wide range of NHS healthcare services to people living in South East London and Kent and to people in prison. Our services include community health care such as district nursing and speech and language therapy, care for people with learning disabilities and mental health care such as psychiatry, nursing and therapies. Our multidisciplinary teams look after people of all ages and we work in close partnership with other parts of the NHS, local councils and the voluntary sector and through our new provider collaboratives. Our 4,000 members of staff work in many different settings including hospitals, clinics, prisons, children’s centres, schools and people’s homes.

We have over 125 sites in a variety of locations in the South of England. In London we operate within the Boroughs of Bexley, Bromley Greenwich and into Kent. We manage hospital sites including Queen Mary’s Hospital, Sidcup and Memorial Hospital, Woolwich, as well as the Bracton Centre, our medium secure unit for people with mental health needs. We are the largest NHS provider of prison health services providing healthcare to prisons within Devon, Dorset, Bristol, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire, Kent and South London. We are proud of the care we provide and our people.

Our purpose is to improve lives by providing the best possible care to our patients and their families.  This is strengthened by our new values:

• We’re Kind
• We’re Fair
• We Listen
• We Care