The Vacancy Location: Engaging directly with children and families in Cumbria and Lancashire with a contractual base in Barrow or Blackburn. We are hosting a webinar / live event for people interested in finding out more about Child Focused Courts and potentially joining us in this area of the country. To find out more, please click here > Child Focused Courts event. Salary: £45,749 - £49,886 £4,000 joining incentive (see wider benefits below) A once‑in‑a‑generation opportunity to practice social work differently Family justice is changing, and Cafcass is at the heart of that change. With the national rollout of Child Focused Courts, we are leading a transformation in how children's voices are heard and how decisions are made in family proceedings. Child Focused Courts place children's safety, wellbeing and lived experience at the centre of decision-making from the very start of proceedings. This problem‑solving, less adversarial approach allows decisions to be informed earlier by a clear understanding of children's experiences, including through the preparation of Child Impact Reports. The role at a glance Working within Cafcass' Child Focused Courts teams, you will; Undertake direct work with children and families involved in family court proceedings Ensure children's voices are heard clearly and influence judicial decision‑making Collaborate closely with judges, legal professionals and partner agencies Practise social work that is purposeful, evidence‑informed and values‑led Many practitioners involved in early Child Focused Court pilots describe this way of working as professionally rewarding, aligned with core social work values, and genuinely impactful for children. What you will do As a Children's Social Worker / Family Court Adviser, you will: Conduct high‑quality assessments that focus on Children's lived experience, safety and wellbeing Engage directly with children, ensuring their views, wishes and feelings are understood and represented Prepare clear, analytical reports for the family court, including contributions to Child Impact Reports. Apply robust risk assessment and mediation skills to support child‑focused decision‑making Work effectively across private law proceedings, with a strong understanding of public law context Manage your caseload independently while contributing to a supportive, learning‑focused team environment Who we are looking for We welcome applications from qualified and experienced Children's Social Workers who share our commitment to child‑centred practice. You will need A recognised Social Work qualification To be registered with Social Work England An understanding of family court processes and private and/or public law Strong analytical, organisational and communication skills Resilience, professional curiosity and confidence in working independently We recognise that social workers bring experience from a wide range of settings, including local authority, court, voluntary, safeguarding and therapeutic roles. If your background aligns with our purpose, we encourage you to apply. In addition to the job description, we've created a factsheet providing some extra information on Child Focused Courts. Both documents - and any others we think you may want to view - are a 'vacancy document' you can access when you are on our recruitment system and available to you before you start to apply. The role at a glance Work within Cafcass' Child Focused Courts teams, you will: Undertake direct work with children and families involved in family court proceedings Ensure children's voices are heard clearly and influence judicial decision‑making Collaborate closely with judges, legal professionals and partner agencies Practise social work that is purposeful, evidence‑informed and values‑led Many practitioners involved in early Child Focused Court pilots describe this way of working as professionally rewarding, aligned with core social work values, and genuinely impactful for children. What you will do As a Children's Social Worker / Family Court Adviser, you will: Conduct high‑quality assessments that focus on Children's lived experience, safety and wellbeing Engage directly with children, ensuring their views, wishes and feelings are understood and represented Prepare clear, analytical reports for the family court, including contributions to Child Impact Reports Apply robust risk assessment and mediation skills to support child‑focused decision‑making Work effectively across private law proceedings, with a strong understanding of public law context Manage your caseload independently while contributing to a supportive, learning‑focused team environment Who we are looking for We welcome applications from qualified and experienced Children's Social Workers who share our commitment to child‑centred practice. You will need: A recognised Social Work qualification Registration with Social Work England An understanding of family court processes and private and/or public law Strong analytical, organisational and communication skills Resilience, professional curiosity and confidence in working autonomously We recognise that social workers bring experience from a wide range of settings, including local authority, court, voluntary, safeguarding and therapeutic roles. If your background aligns with our purpose, we encourage you to apply. Why work for Cafcass? At Cafcass, you will be supported to do your best work for children. We offer: Opportunities to contribute to nationally significant reform in family justice Strong professional supervision and reflective practice Access to learning from ongoing Child Focused Court pilots and national rollout activity A competitive salary and Local Government pension Generous annual leave and wellbeing support The resources, equipment and flexibility needed to work effectively, connect with children and your colleagues Together, we work to ensure that children and young people are heard when the family court makes critical decisions about their futures. Inclusion and belonging Cafcass is committed to building a diverse and inclusive workforce that reflects the children and families we serve. We welcome applications from individuals from all backgrounds and value professional diversity, lived experience and different career pathways. We are committed to making reasonable adjustments throughout our recruitment process and in the workplace. If you need support at any stage, we encourage you to tell us. Application process and next steps We aim to run a fair, transparent and supportive recruitment process. Indicative timescales are outlined below and may be subject to change. Closing date: 18/05/2026 23:59 Telephone interviews: We'll look to offer dates / times as close to when you apply as we can. Final Interview: We'll look to offer dates / times as close to when you have had your telephone interview as we're able to, taking into account your availability too. If you have any questions about the role or recruitment process, please contact Kiera Manuel / kiera.manuel@cafcass.gov.uk in the first instance. Successful applicants will complete several pre‑engagement checks, including a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check. If any criminal offences are disclosed, we will conduct an individual assessment in line with the DBS code of practice and the Cafcass DBS policy. We look forward to receiving your application! Be Their Voice We are Cafcass - the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service - and we represent children in family court cases in England. Independently advising the family courts about what is safe for children and in their best interests, we speak up for over 130,0000 children every year when the family court makes critical decisions about their futures, ensuring their needs, wishes and feelings are heard. Watch our video to find out we don't just listen to children's voices but we can be their voice. If our purpose resonates with you, and you share our ambitions for children - exceptional experiences, for every child, everywhere and every time - then if you join us, you will work alongside like-minded people in a diverse, inclusive and supportive organisation. You will be trusted to work flexibly and independently using outstanding technology (e.g. touchscreen laptops, iPhone, all with first class support, including IT Trainers) with access to substantial resources (e.g. Cafcass Library has over 27,000 resources on social work, child protection and related topics). You will also have opportunities to develop, whatever team you join, wherever you are in the country and at whatever stage you are at in your career. Whether you join us in one of our social work roles that work directly with children and families or our corporate and business services teams who provide technology, support and expertise, you will have the chance to make a difference for children and families. You can also find out more at www.cafcass.gov.uk/careers. Wellbeing The wellbeing of our colleagues is something we are truly passionate about, as demonstrated by everyone having four dedicated, additional days per year when they are encouraged to spend time focusing on their health and wellbeing. Colleagues can also have a health and wellbeing cash plan, for which Cafcass pays the basic premium (you can upgrade to include family members), which allows them to claim back some costs of routine health expenses, including dental check-ups, eye tests, physiotherapy sessions and more. Overall, we foster a holistic approach to supporting our colleagues, benefitting physical, mental and financial health. This is led by a dedicated in-house team, the benefits of which include meaning support is targeted and specific to what colleagues need. Our team can also offer support and guidance when it comes to specific health conditions, such as neuro-diverse conditions, cancer and the menopause. Our wellbeing offer is further strengthened by an external Employee Assistance Provider (EAP) which provides a free confidential support service 24 hours a day. This means access to clinical and professional expertise which gives you a chance to talk about all kinds of work and personal issues. If this wasn't enough, we are especially proud that over 125 colleagues have completed training and receive ongoing support to act as Health and Wellbeing Champions. Furthermore, we have nearly 100 people that have trained to be Mental Health Allies. Diversity We represent children and families from diverse backgrounds and having a diverse workforce helps us to fulfil this responsibility authentically. It also helps us to grow, evolve and innovate, so we particularly welcome applications from individuals from diverse backgrounds as we strive to ensure our workforce reflects the diversity of the children and families we work with. We are proud to be a disability confident leader, we invite you to join our team, we are committed to actively attract and recruit individuals with disabilities including "non-visible" disabilities and mental health conditions. Our inclusive and accessible recruitment process means we aim to accommodate reasonable adjustments as needed. This commitment highlights our dedication to employing, training, retaining, and developing the careers of our colleagues with disabilities. Our Diversity Networks provide a safe space for colleagues with shared aspects of identity and lived experience - supported by allies across the organisation. The networks help ensure we provide an inclusive working environment and a service which promotes the diversity and uniqueness of children and families from all backgrounds. For more information watch our video here. Our current networks include: Ability Matters Colleagues with disabilities and long-term health conditions. Carers Network Colleagues with additional caring responsibilities for someone close to them who has a disability or long-term health condition. Faith Network Colleagues who are part of, or have an interest in, religious or spiritual faith communities. Kaleidoscope Network Colleagues from Black Asian and Minority Ethnic backgrounds. Mental Health Network Colleagues who experience, or have an interest in, Mental Health issues. Pride Network Colleagues who identify as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans - LGBT. Neurodiversity Network Colleagues who are neurodivergent, or support someone who is. Together 'Together with Children and Families' (which we just call 'Together') is the name of our relationship-based practice framework. It applies to the work of every individual in Cafcass, from Social Workers to Leaders and includes our Corporate and Business Support teams. It is at the heart of what we do and is made up of our values, how these values work in practice, the tools to use to incorporate these values in our work and the impact this will have on the children and families we serve. This framework encourages us to be pro-active and to look for the strengths in ourselves and others. It also enables us to build positive relationships with our colleagues, our partners and most importantly, with the children and families with whom we work. We look forward to telling helping you learn more about Together should you join us. Benefits We know if you join us you want to be rewarded in a variety of ways, including time away from work to spend time with those important to you, manage your financial present and future, whilst also be trusted to manage your work/life balance. Therefore, in addition to our unique, holistic approach to supporting your health and wellbeing we also provide: Generous holidays 28 days holiday (including three for Christmas) rising to 33 days with five years continuous service, which could include your current employment. You can also sell any you do not need. Excellent pension 13.7% employer contribution to Local Government Pension scheme, potentially building on your current pension. Flexible working Most colleagues work in a hybrid way, having the benefits of working both from the office and home, we also accommodate flexible working requests (e.g. 9-day fortnights). Exclusive discounts Generous discounts with wide range of companies covering leisure, technology, travel, personal finance, fashion and supermarkets. Professional fees Social work colleagues have their annual Social Work England membership fees reimbursed. Car leasing schemes We offer a personal car leasing scheme which provides vehicles at competitive rates through a third party. This list is just a selection of main benefits and we have a range of policies and processes that allow us to support our colleagues - and their families - and we look forward to providing you with further information about these in due course.