About the Role
and our Ideal Candidate
This is an exciting opportunity for an inspirational and values‑driven leader to join our Senior Management Team as our Principal Social Worker. As the guardian of professional standards you will ensure that the work of our practitioners across children’s services remains ethical, effective and centred on the child. You will assist the organisation by helping to create the conditions for excellent practice to flourish and to be evidenced
As a Principal Social Worker your key responsibilities will be:
1. Strategic Leadership and Advice: Operating at a senior level to influence council strategy, providing professional advice to the DCS, and ensuring statutory compliance.
2. Overseeing frameworks to improve social work practice, auditing cases, and ensuring a consistent, high-standard approach across adult social care.
3. Leading and supporting the social care workforce, supporting effective supervision, and creating a positive learning culture.
4. Safeguarding Leadership: Driving the strategic safeguarding agenda to ensure a robust response to concerns and ensuring social workers are "making safeguarding personal".
5. Connecting Frontline and Strategy: Acting as a conduit to inform directors and senior staff about practice realities, including the impact of policies and demographic changes.
6. Championing Best Practice: Promoting trauma-informed, strengths-based, and human rights-based approaches to practice.
As our Principal Social Worker, you will play a pivotal role in ensuring Sutton meets the LGA Standard for Employers, working closely alongside the Principal Social Worker of Adult Social Care and their Occupational Therapy Services. You will provide confident leadership, expert and professional advice, and clear decision making on all aspects of practice.
You will champion the voice of children, young people and their families, ensuring their needs and aspirations shape service design, practice development, and partnership working. You will work closely with a skilled and committed workforce, acting as a critical friend, and ensuring that the voice of frontline practice is represented within senior decision making forums.
You will be the strategic lead for representing and developing our Practice Framework strengthening our restorative and trauma-informed practice models, ensuring they are consistently applied and evidenced within children's records Furthermore, you will maintain a strong focus on anti-racism and anti-discriminatory practice, promoting inclusivity both within the work with our families and within our workforce.
This is a demanding and high‑profile role in which you will hold lead operational responsibility for ensuring the Council meets its statutory duties under the Children Act, and all associated safeguarding and regulatory frameworks. You will work closely with internal and external partners—including health, education, and commissioned providers—to secure safe, stable, and ambitious social work practice. You will also contribute to the strategic direction of the wider service, driving innovation, quality improvement, and best practice in line with Ofsted expectations and national standards. You will play a pivotal role in ensuring that Sutton fulfils its promise to every child: to feel safe, support and be able to thrive.
For more information about the role and/or an informal conversation, view the Role Profile or contact Jackie McCarthy, Director - Children's Social Care and Safeguarding on
About You
This role offers an excellent opportunity for a motivated and values‑driven leader who is passionate about improving the lives of every child and family open to social care. We’re looking for someone who brings compassion, resilience, innovation, strong relationship‑building skills, and a commitment to delivering high‑quality, child‑centred practice.
It’s a great fit for:
7. an experienced Service Manager ready to step into a senior leadership role with wider strategic influence
8. an established senior manager looking to make an impact in a forward‑thinking, ambitious local authority
You’ll be supported to understand Sutton’s approach to working with our children, young people and their families with access to coaching, mentoring, and collaborative leadership to help you succeed.
We’re looking for candidates who can demonstrate:
9. strong experience in children’s social care
10. a proven ability to lead teams and partnerships to deliver improved outcomes for children
11. confidence in managing performance, driving service improvement, and leading change in complex environments
12. a clear understanding of statutory responsibilities under the Children Act and related legislation
This is a chance to shape the future of social work practice in Sutton and ensure every child or family who comes into contact with us feels the benefit of strong, relational social work skills.
About Us
The London Borough of Sutton “is uncompromising in its focus on improving quality of frontline social work” – Ofsted
London Borough of Sutton works closely with Kingston University and regional partners as part of the Developing Together Social Work Teaching Partnership (SWTP). The partnership offers staff a wide range of pre and post qualifying education opportunities to promote continuous learning and development. This includes staff being encouraged to support the practice education of Social Work students and those in the assessed and supported year in employment (ASYE). Staff are also given the opportunity to attend conferences, workshops and have access to research and practice resources to support their ongoing professional development.
As a Council, we are on an ambitious transformation journey to strengthen outcomes for our children, young people, and families, and to respond effectively to increasing levels of need. Our vision is to deliver outstanding, relationship‑based practice that enables every child to feel safe, supported, and able to thrive. We are equally committed to creating an inclusive, diverse, and stable environment where our workforce can develop, grow, and feel proud of the difference they make.
Children's Social Care is going through an important change to meet the growing needs of the children and families we support. We are making many improvements to ensure that care for children is better and to create positive working environments for our staff. With committed leaders and experienced managers, we are bringing fresh ideas to our work and are helping to make real improvements in how we support children and families. Our aim is to provide high-quality care that helps children thrive while also creating an inclusive, diverse, and supportive environment for our staff to develop their careers.
Our Offer To You
As an organisation that values and nurtures talent, we’re committed to helping you fulfil your potential and will offer you a supportive, friendly and collaborative environment to grow and develop your career and skills. We’re constantly striving to improve our ways of working so putting your ideas across however big or small; will be fully encouraged and supported by your colleagues and our dynamic and experienced management team.
Employees have access to a wide range of benefits to enable staff to achieve a work life balance, some of which include:
13. A generous annual leave entitlement of 26-32 days plus bank holidays (pro-rata if part-time working hours apply) depending on service and grade
14. Enhanced Maternity, paternity, shared parental, adoption and dependents leave
15. Two volunteering days per year
16. Flexible Working - Smarter Working Scheme (dependent on the role)
17. Adjustable and agile working arrangements using Google Chromebooks
18. Learning and development portal offering a range of courses
19. Discounts on a range of local shops, restaurants, gyms and leisure centres
20. Interest free season ticket loans
21. Local Government Pension Scheme
22. Bicycle loan facilities and cycle to work scheme
23. Electric vehicle leasing scheme
24. Confidential health & wellbeing and counselling support