Description Assistant Practitioner | 10160 | fixed term contract for 18 months/secondment opportunity | 37 hours per week | £31,537 to £33,699 per annum | Grade G | Wymondham, South Norfolk An exciting opportunity has arisen for an enthusiastic assistant practitioner to work alongside housing colleagues in South Norfolk and Breckland, as part of a pilot providing specialist support to autistic adults. This pilot is part of Adult Social Services’ transformation programme. We’re evolving the way we work through a Human Learning Systems approach — focusing on relationships, understanding people’s lived experiences, and learning together. The pilot also relates to the Norfolk All Age Autism Strategy 2024-29, which highlights the need to improve services for autistic people in Norfolk, and the importance of early intervention and specialist support. We believe that intervening early and providing an autism informed approach will mean that we can support autistic adults to develop skills and strategies for independent living, improve relationships and prevent crisis situations. You will be part of the South mental health social care team based at Gateway House in Wymondham but will be expected to spend much of your time working alongside housing colleagues and staff from other agencies at Breckland Council’s offices in Dereham and within the Help Hub at the office for South Norfolk and Broadland Councils in Norwich. You will also spend much of your time out in the community working directly with autistic people and their families. You will develop excellent working relationships with housing colleagues and staff from other agencies in the local area to enable you to work effectively together. You will support autistic people to understand their housing options, identify the skills they need to develop for independent living and strategies to gain them. You will work directly with autistic people, supporting them to access resources to build their confidence and develop skills, and connecting them to other support and services. You will also work with families and carers, enabling them to access support and resources to help their autistic relative develop daily living skills. We are seeking somebody who has experience of working with autistic people, and the skills to tailor their approach to the needs of the individual, and support those around them to interact more effectively. You will have the confidence to work independently alongside housing colleagues and staff from other agencies. You will be able to demonstrate that you can work autonomously, taking the initiative when needed. Knowledge and experience of supporting people with their housing needs would be an advantage. You will mainly be working with autistic people who have emerging social care needs, and who may not have previously been known to Adult Social Services. We anticipate that you will sometimes complete assessments under the Care Act 2014 when this is needed, but most of your work will be aimed at preventing the need for longer term support from Adult Social Services. You will be a member of the South mental health social care team. This team works with autistic people as well as those with mental health needs. You will benefit from regular supervision and support from colleagues in the team. You will also share your knowledge and skills and use the relationships you have built up with other agencies to support other members of the team in working with autistic adults. You will be a key member of the Adult Social Services autism champions network. You will be supported to develop your knowledge and understanding of housing options by colleagues in South Norfolk and Breckland District Councils. This role is offered on a fixed term/secondment basis. It is part of an eighteen-month pilot, aimed at testing and learning what works best when supporting autistic adults to prevent the need for longer term care and support. We expect the pilot to evidence the benefits of this new way of working, and the need for this role to be expanded across Norfolk. You will support the Autism Strategic Business Lead to gather evidence of the impact of your role and will meet regularly with the pilot team (including a new autism social worker) to share learning and support each other. If you are excited about the opportunity to shape a new type of role in Adult Social Services and to use your skills to be part of an organisation which makes a positive difference to those living in Norfolk, then we want to hear from you. For an informal discussion, contact Karen Dures (Autism Strategic Business Lead) on 01603 679229 or Mark Blunt (Team Manager, South Norfolk Mental Health Team) on 01953 450873. How to Apply We recommend reading the full Job Description and Person Specification to help you demonstrate you meet the criteria. Please ensure you include a supporting statement in your application to demonstrate why you feel you meet the person specification and job description for this post. CVs submitted without a supporting statement about this post may not be accepted. These are some benefits you can enjoy by working for Norfolk County Council: Competitive salary Generous holiday entitlement Health and Wellbeing services including fast-track physiotherapy and a free counselling service Flexible working opportunities including flexi-time, part time, remote and hybrid working – dependent on your job role and business need. Financial benefits such as: ‘ Norfolk Rewards’ our employee discounts programme which helps you save money on almost anything, from everyday groceries and clothes, to holidays, new technology, gym membership, trips to the cinema and days out. A Blue Light card for Fire Service and Social Care Workers Relocation expenses (where applicable) An advance of your expenses if you travel for work Local Government Pension Scheme with generous employer contribution, life assurance, death in service payments and dependants’ pensions. Tax efficient ways of getting extra pension and new bikes Access to our tax efficient car lease scheme for greener travel enabling you to lease a brand new, ultra-low emission vehicle (subject to eligibility) A payment if you refer someone you know to a hard to fill job You can find information on our Terms and Conditions here. Already a Norfolk County Council employee? See and apply for internal and external vacancies in myOracle using your @norfolk.gov.uk or @nccal.ac.uk email. We would like to make you aware that priority consideration for this post may be given to current employees who are at risk due to restructure within the organisation or are in a redeployment position. Redeployment closing date: 27 March 2026 23:59 All other applicants closing date: 07 April 2026 23:59