Practice Development Social Worker (CDC)

We are currently recruiting for a temporary Practice Development Social Worker (PDSW) for a period of one year.

This role will be based within the Learning Academy, which acts as the central hub for supporting the directorate to drive, develop, and raise practice standards across Children's Social Care. Our aim is always to achieve the very best outcomes for children and young people.

We are looking for a passionate and motivated social worker who has a strong interest in quality assurance, audit activity, and practice improvement. The successful candidate will lead and undertake a range of audits, thematic reviews, and quality assurance activities to identify strengths, areas for development, and opportunities to improve outcomes for children and families.

As part of this role, you will analyse findings, identify themes and learning, and work with managers and practitioners to develop meaningful action plans that lead to sustainable improvements in practice. You will support services to understand performance information, evaluate the impact of interventions, and ensure learning is translated into tangible changes that improve the experiences of children and families.

You will work across the directorate, building positive relationships with social workers, managers, service managers, and senior leaders. The role will involve engaging directly with children, young people, and families to capture their experiences and ensure their voices inform service development and improvement activity.

In addition, you will contribute to workforce learning and development by sharing best practice, facilitating reflective discussions, supporting learning events, and promoting a culture of continuous improvement. You may also be required to support students, apprentice social workers, and colleagues through coaching, mentoring, and practice development activity.

The Learning Academy is an incredibly supportive team that understands the pressures and demands of working in social care. We are committed to delivering high-quality support to the workforce through robust quality assurance, reflective learning, and a relentless focus on improving outcomes for children.

We are seeking an enthusiastic individual who is curious, analytical, and passionate about improving practice. You will be able to identify what is working well, challenge where improvement is needed, and support services to implement meaningful change. If you want to play a key role in helping Doncaster on its journey from Good to Outstanding, we would love to hear from you.

1. Promote and safeguard the welfare of children and young people, aiming for ambitious outcomes across Doncaster.
2. Provide operational practice and management support to integrate learning into daily team activities.
3. Line manage and supervise one to two apprentice social workers.
4. Assess performance against core practice standards using audits, interviews, and observations.
5. Support the Service Improvement Manager in developing and overseeing audit methods and reporting.
6. Critically evaluate practice and feed insights into individual and team development.
7. Design tailored development packages based on audit action plans.
8. Review the reliability of information and assess risks to achieving council objectives.
9. Develop and implement specialist programs for individuals and groups, including mentoring and expert advice.
10. Coordinate staff input across the council, deploying skilled practitioners to support others.
11. Maintain a resource bank with updated toolkits and intervention packs for staff.
12. Collect and analyse data from audits and quality assurance activities, and monitor progress.
13. Coordinate and analyse customer satisfaction surveys from children, young people, and families.
14. Monitor the impact of development opportunities on practice improvement.
15. Contribute to strategic and operational service development, including training, research, and multi-agency collaboration.

Hours: 37 hours per week

Based at: The Civic, Waterdale, Doncaster

Contract Type: Temporary until September 2027, Full time

Flexible working arrangements: We welcome flexible working requests and hybrid options where possible.

Closing date: 17th November 2026

We value a range of experiences and skills. If you have transferable skills from other roles or voluntary work, we encourage you to apply.

• Competitive leave entitlement
• Generous local government pension scheme
• Wellbeing support and staff networks
• Development and training opportunities
• Staff discounts and benefits schemes
• More information on benefits can be found in the attached benefits booklet.

Please review the job summary and profile and demonstrate in your application how you meet the required criteria.

Shortlisting is to be confirmed and interviews are anticipated on 24th November 2026.

For further details or an informal chat, please contact: Tim Nicholson Email: tim.nicholson@doncaster.gov.uk to arrange a discussion.

We encourage applicants to use their own words to reflect their experience and skills and over-reliance on AI is discouraged.

The Advance Employment Team offers personalised support to help you take your next step into work. From building your CV and getting the right interview skills to accessing a wide range of free courses, the team will help you grow your skills and confidence and find a job you'll enjoy. Get in touch by email (advanceemploymenthub@doncaster.gov.uk) or visit the Advance website (www.advancedoncaster.co.uk) to discover the support available.