Senior ChISVA/ Consultant Social Worker

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This post is open to practitioners from a variety of professional backgrounds who have experience of working directly with children & carers who have been affected by child sexual abuse in the UK & have a working knowledge of Home Office ISVA Guidance, criminal justice & safeguarding processes & Children's social care procedures.

The Senior ChISVA/Consultant Social Worker will alongside the current Consultant Social Worker & Practice Development Manger supporting a team of Child & Family Practitioners to ensure the development, delivery, & continuous improvement of the Lighthouse services for CYP & their carers, particularly as it relates to victim experience & providing advocacy & choice during criminal justice process.

Holding a small case load of more complex cases the Senior ISVA/Consultant Social Worker will provide case management to the Child & Family practitioners within the Lighthouse & support the management process  for new referrals, support triage &  safeguarding oversight on all referrals.

The Senior ChISVA/Consultant Social worker will support colleagues across the Lighthouse services (including case management processes & management of risk issues) as well as providing liaison & advice regarding police processes for victims & to local social care teams & referrers regarding the criminal justice process & ChISVA support at the Lighthouse.

The Lighthouse Model

The Lighthouse is the first UK Child House, a multi-professional, child centred & trauma informed service for CYP who have experienced child sexual abuse & a national leader in the field.  The Lighthouse provides a holistic health assessment & medical support, emotional support & therapeutic interventions, advocacy & police interviews led by clinical psychologists. This child-centred concept has had proven success abroad, in particular Iceland, where there is evidence of increased convictions & improved health & well-being of the child/young person.

After a successful pilot, funded by the Home Office, NHS England, Mayor’s office for Police & crime (MOPAC) & Department for Education from 2018 - 2022, the Lighthouse secured recurrent statutory funding from April 2022.  NHS England commission the service which is provided by University College London Hospitals (UCLH) in partnership with NSPCC & Metropolitan Police Service. CYP who live in the five boroughs in North Central London: Camden, Islington, Enfield, Haringey & Barnet can be referred or can self-refer to the service. 

The Lighthouse Team

The service is jointly managed by the Lighthouse Operational Manager & the Clinical Lead.  The Lighthouse service includes a CAMHS team of therapists (including Clinical Psychologists, Psychiatrist, CAMHS practitioners), Lived Experience Consultant; a Case Management team including Child & family practitioners, who are ChISVA's & social workers: a Health team including Paediatricians, Clinical Nurse Specialist for sexual health, Play Specialist; & can  access  ‘Letting the Future In’ practitioners (NSPCC) in the Lighthouse.

The Case Management team

The Lighthouse is a service with a focus on quality & safety for children & young people. The posts will be within the Case Management team which is a busy, fast paced & responsive team made up of child & family practitioners who are ChISVA's & social workers.  The team is responsible for ensuring the seamless journey through the lighthouse & working closely with colleagues in the community particularly the Police & Children's Social Care . You will be a  good team member  & be able to contribute in areas of clinical practice & development; will be responsible for working independently, as well as being able to contribute to multi-disciplinary working, & managing a caseload of children & young people ensuring safe & effective practice.

With our focus on  safety & improving the experience of children  & young people who have been sexually abused, we are committed to advocating for victims' rights & the wishes of children & young people in the Lighthouse within the criminal justice process. We work closely with community colleagues addressing health & wellbeing inequalities for those child & young people who experience more barriers to accessing support in their recovery.

We are passionate about creating inclusive service delivery, where children are  & workplace that promotes & values diversity & actively addresses barriers faced by our children. We  particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian & minority ethnic candidates as they are underrepresented within the service.

Given the nature of the service & high level of exposure to information about child sexual abuse, you will be expected attend mandatory reflective supervision; you must be comfortable with both with formal process & "softer" engagement & development approaches; you will have good awareness of trauma informed practice; be committed to promoting psychological safety for yourself; & building on effective partnership working with colleagues in the community.

For the full Person Specification and more information regarding the main responsibilities of this role, please refer to the attached Job Description. 

Come and be a part of the best NHS trust in England to work for, according to our staff* 

UCLH top trust to work at in England – for the second year running! : University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 

*In the most recent NHS staff survey UCLH had the highest percentage of staff who said they would recommend us as a place to work, out of all general acute or acute/community NHS trusts in England – for the second year in a row.  

UCLH top trust to work at in England – for the second year running! : University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. 

Once again, UCLH has received the highest score of all general acute and acute/community NHS trusts in England for staff that would recommend us as a place to work.