Start your social work career with Durham’s Social Work Academy. If you’re a current or soon-to-qualify Newly Qualified Social Worker (NQSW), this is your opportunity to join a respected academy that has supported new social workers since 2012. Our innovative programme incorporates the national Early Career Framework and is designed to build skilled, confident, and compassionate practitioners. Over your first two years, you’ll receive the right support to grow your knowledge and professional confidence. As an NQSW with Durham County Council, you’ll be based in a social work team undertaking meaningful work, supported by your Team Manager, Social Work Consultant, Enhanced Practitioner and colleagues. You’ll also have a dedicated Practice Lead providing reflective supervision, peer support, and guidance to help you evidence your development throughout the ASYE. Your caseload and development time will be protected, and from day one you’ll be employed on a permanent contract. As England’s 7th largest local authority—and the largest in the North East—we offer excellent career progression, a clear development pathway, and a strong CPD commitment of five days each year. You’ll join a well-resourced academy and a senior leadership team that listens, values your contribution, and promotes a culture of high expectations, high support, and strengths-based practice. Whether you want to broaden your experience, become a practice educator, or move into management, we’ll support your next steps. Learn more about what Durham has to offer We would love to hear from you, to arrange an informal chat please email our Practice Lead, Jane Farrell at jane.farrell@durham.gov.uk Please include your contact number and a suitable time and we will arrange for a Teams/telephone call. Please join us at one of our planned coffee meeting on Teams and find out about our Newly Qualified Social Work opportunities! We will discuss what your future could look like with Durham County Council onboard our fantastic Social Work Academy on 16th March 2026 at 2.30pm - 4pm for our external applicants and on 18th March at 10am, in person for our applicants currently on student placement within Durham. Link for joining online for 16th March 2026. WHAT WILL I NEED? Required qualifications: To be eligible to apply for these posts you must either already hold a degree in social work or equivalent social work qualification or expect to qualify with a degree in social work or equivalent social work qualification and be able to register with Social Work England following qualification. Alternatively, you may also be on your final placement at the time of interview/completed final placement or expect to qualify with a degree in social work or equivalent social work qualification and be able to register with Social Work England following qualification, Please indicate in your application when you expect to be able to start work. Please refer to the attached Person Specification for the full criteria. If successful, you will be required to apply for a Disclosure and Barring Service Enhanced Disclosure. Our commitment to safeguarding Durham County Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. We expect all employees and volunteers to share this commitment. This role is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and therefore if successful in your application, an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check will be sought inclusive of a check of the Children’s Barred List and Adults Barred List, due to the position working in regulated activity. Applicants should be aware that the DBS check will disclose both spent and unspent convictions, cautions, reprimands and warnings, in line with current legislation and will confirm whether an individual is barred from working with children, adults, or both. INTERVIEWS It is anticipated that interviews will take place from Monday 27th April 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. REMOVAL AND LODGINGS Removal, lodging and separation expenses may be available to the successful candidate if at the time of application for appointment their place of residence is outside the administrative area of County Durham and more than 30 miles in a straight line from their new administrative centre, along with several other criteria for eligibility. 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 and neurodivergent 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. Please visit our website to understand our position on using AI to support your application and for guidance on completing your application. If you require assistance when applying for this role, please contact our Recruitment Helpdesk on 03000 26 27 27, or via email RecruitmentCYPS@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. CONNECT WITH US Follow us on Instagram Like us on Facebook Visit our website VPRS/161