Description | Salary £36,363 - £40,777 Per Annum (Pro-Rata) | Permanent| Part Time 18.5 hours | Accrington, Lancashire | International Sponsorship – this role is not open to international sponsorship Social Worker, Fostering Service - Mainstream Suppport Location: Accrington Salary: £36,363 - £40,777 The Fostering Service is recruiting for a confident and compassionate Social Worker who is passionate about making a positive difference in the lives of children and our fostering families. We are looking for a social worker who genuinely commits to our ethos, culture, and values and who embraces diversity, equality, inclusion and who celebrates every individual's unique strengths and perspectives. About us Lancashire's Fostering Service is an exciting and dynamic place to work, we are focused on improving our service in co-production with our children, foster carers and staff team. All fostering teams work in partnership with all of Lancashire's Children's Social Care teams to ensure children’s care plans are progressed with minimum delay and children are provided with the best possible care, attending the required meetings to ensure appropriate planning at the early stages of a child's arrival, when considering Lasting Homes and to support stability for our children and fostering families. The Fostering Service seeks to build positive relationships with professionals working with our families, ensuring a strengths-based approach when meeting our children and carer's needs. This role will be based in our Mainstream Support team and is a Part-Time role, 18.5 hours per week, based in Accrington. As this position is part time, please note the salary quoted is full time equivalent, the salary received will be paid on a pro–rata basis. What we are looking for… We're looking for passionate individuals who hold a recognised Social Work qualification and are registered with Social Work England. In addition, we're also seeking candidates with the following qualities: Empathy & Resilience – you'll be supporting mainstream foster carers and our amazing fostering families who make a difference to our cared-for children. We work on a daily basis using trauma-informed approaches, compassion, empathy and understanding to help achieve positive outcomes for our children. We understand that social work is a challenging role, but rest assured, your well-being is equally significant to us. We are committed to providing ongoing support and prioritising your well-being effectively. Critical Thinking – You will be required to complete assessments, re-assessments, and annual reviews. you will be safeguarding children and, at times, supporting foster carers through allegations. You will work collaboratively with our foster carers, children's social workers and our partner agencies. You will use critical thinking to analyse and record information and to provide support to our foster families. Within our service, we encourage and promote peer support mentoring and provide a high level of manager support to maximise your ability to critically reflect on your experiences and enable your development. If you are flexible, adaptable, empathetic, have great organisational skills, and can be resilient in the face of challenges, we would love to hear from you. We welcome applications for students due to complete their social work qualification or those still in their ASYE year. Why join us… We are an established Fostering service and you will be supported by a Team Manager and Senior Practitioners with the Fostering Service. We have a range of dynamic fostering arrangements and a good support offer for our foster carers. If you have these qualities and are ready to join a dynamic, dedicated and supportive team, we encourage your application. How to apply Please click 'Apply Now' to complete our application form. We ask that you ensure you attach the following: An up-to-date CV Supporting Statement* For an informal confidential discussion please contact Ann-Louise Clarkson Ann-Louise.Clarkson@lancashire.gov.uk *Please ensure you have uploaded and attached your supporting statement to evidence how you meet the criteria for the role. The panel may be unable to shortlist you for interview without this evidence. Closing Date: 24th January 2026 We reserve the right to close down a vacancy early, before the closing date, if we receive sufficient applications. Social Work applicants must be registered with Social Work England (SWE) to be appointed as a Social Worker or have applied to register with SWE. For this role you are unable to commence post without Registration. The post you are applying for is covered by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (as amended in 2013). If successful you will be required to apply to the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) for a 'disclosure'. Further information can be found on the 'Our Recruitment Process' tab. You will be required to provide a car for use in connection with the duties of this post and you must be insured for business use. Job Description & Person Specification