Social Worker - Early Intervention & Prevention Service, Pullar House, Perth

Main Purpose of the Role

Working within Perth & Kinross Council is more than a job, it's about being part of an organisation that puts people at the heart of all we do and provides opportunities to make a real difference by enhancing every life we touch.

We currently have the following opportunity:

Social Worker, Early Intervention & Prevention Service - PKC13984
£47,601 - £50,773
Pullar House, Perth

Perth & Kinross Council aims to work with the residents of the Perth & Kinross area to provide independent living across all communities.

Access Team within the Early Intervention and Prevention Service has vacancy for a Qualified Social Worker, the team has recently been reviewed with the scope of work focusing on critical and short-term interventions along with signposting and Adult Support & Protection. This is an excellent opportunity to join a highly innovative team, the work is extremely fast paced and varies each day with excellent training, supervision provided, average case time intervention being two to twelve weeks.

The successful applicant will assist in supporting people within the community by providing a range of social work tasks including carrying out Outcome Focussed Assessments, negotiating flexible support, promoting Self Directed Support, attending meetings and working closely with our colleagues in Housing, Locality Teams, Care providers, Commissioning and Health.

Responsibilities also include statutory work under the Adult Support and Protection Act, delivering a duty service and attending regular mental health triage meeting.

Benefits also include flexible working scheme, modern working practices, and generous annual leave entitlement.

If this sounds like a role where you could share your relevant experience and make a positive difference, then we would like to hear from you.

As we embark on an exciting and ambitious journey to transform how mental health services are delivered across Perth and Kinross, we are committed to creating a flexible, responsive and person-centred pathway of support for individuals experiencing mental health challenges.

Our vision is to ensure that support is available beyond the traditional 9–5 working week, extending into evenings, weekends, and out-of-hours periods. This reflects our commitment to meeting people at the point of need and delivering services that are inclusive and responsive seven days a week.

We are redesigning our model of care for individuals experiencing:

• Mental health difficulties
• Substance use challenges
• Suicidal ideation and distress

A key component of this transformation is our commitment to collaborative and partnership working, ensuring services are shaped and delivered in conjunction with:

• Third sector organisations
• Health services
• Individuals with lived experience, whose voices are central to designing meaningful and effective support

Why Join Us?

Do you want to help shape the future of mental health and wellbeing support? Working with us offers the opportunity to:

• Contribute to innovative service redesign and improvement
• Work closely with third sector partners, health colleagues, and people with lived experience
• Be part of a forward-thinking, collaborative, and multi-agency team
• Support individuals in crisis and at critical points in their lives
• Help develop a model of care that reflects best practice, compassion, and accessibility

If you are motivated by making a meaningful difference and influencing how services are delivered in the future, we would strongly encourage you to apply.

Please note, we are currently unable to offer sponsorship for this post.

Skills & Experience Required

Key Requirements

This post requires a high degree of flexibility and commitment to responsive service delivery.

The successful candidate will:

• Work across a range of shifts, including evenings and weekends
• Be part of a service aligned to seven-day working and extended hours provision
• Work collaboratively across agencies, including the third sector, health services, and lived experience networks, to deliver coordinated and holistic support
• Respond flexibly to service demand in line with evolving operational needs

Who We Are Looking For

We are seeking individuals who:

• Demonstrate a strong commitment to person-centred, strengths-based and trauma-informed practice
• Value and actively promote co-production and lived experience involvement
• Are confident working within dynamic, multi-agency environments
• Can build effective relationships across statutory, third sector and community networks
• Have the resilience and professionalism required to support individuals in times of need

The ideal candidate will be motivated, engaging and possess excellent interpersonal and communication skills. 

Effective time management is essential for the successful autonomous worker to manage a complex caseload with the ability to be flexible and respond to crisis / competing demands being integral to the role. 

A good understanding of Self Directed Support and how this is delivered is essential. Knowledge of services, challenges, demands, and demographics within PKC would be an advantage. 

You must have experience of assessment of Social and Personal Care needs along with working experience of Adult Support & Protection.  You must be able to demonstrate a sound knowledge and understanding of social work principles and values; Experience of Adult Support and Protection Procedures and all relevant legislation. 

You must have a DIPSW, CQSW, CSS and relevant Social Work Qualifications.  You must have a good level of experience in Adult Social Work, NQSW need not apply on this occasion. 

You will have a current registration with SSSC and be eligible to register with PVG scheme.  You will also hold a current UK driving licence as the Access Team covers Perth & Kinross in its entirety. 

You will demonstrate good written, IT and verbal communication skills, the ability to undertake assessment of mental wellbeing and demonstrate succinct good care planning and review processes.

You must have a genuine interest in working with people in a Recovery focussed approach to improve their mental health and wellbeing. You will have previous experience of working with people with mental health needs.

If this sounds like a role where you could share your relevant experience and make a positive difference, then we would like to hear from you.

Working at Perth & Kinross Council

Our values and behaviours influence our work and support us in the delivery of our key priorities. In your application, and should you be invited to interview, you will be asked to describe situations that support the criteria required in the role and which also demonstrate our values and behaviours. Find out more about Perth & Kinross Council and you could soon be joining our team!

Here's what we can offer you:

• A generous annual leave package
• 6 days public holiday and an additional discretionary day
• Eligibility to join our pension scheme
• Family friendly and positive work/life balance policies such as Flexible Working, Maternity, Paternity & Adoption leave, time off for volunteering and our Wellbeing Framework
• Access to a range of benefits
• Paid SSSC annual membership for relevant positions

We recognise there can be benefits to flexible working and where individual jobs allow, we seek to support this. You are encouraged to discuss potential options with the recruiting manager, if this is of interest to you. A healthy work life balance is important to us and we provide supportive management and, where possible, flexible working arrangements to help you achieve that balance. You will have access to training and support for continued professional development.

This role requires you to be registered with the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC)

All new employees have a four-month probationary period. Further details are available in the FAQs at “How to apply for a job or apprenticeship with us”.

Next Steps

We would love to hear from you and would encourage you to get in touch with Pamela Ritchie on 01738 475492 to find out more.

Click “APPLY NOW”

External candidates are required to provide contact details for 2 referees, including email addresses. One of these must be your current or most recent employer.

We welcome applications from everyone and as a Disability Confident employer, we guarantee to interview applicants who declare a disability and meet the essential requirements of the post. Please contact the hiring manager above or the Recruitment Team on (01738) 475555 or recruitment@pkc.gov.uk to discuss any reasonable adjustments. Appointments are based on evidence supplied during the selection process.

Diversity is important to us and although some of our jobs may be perceived to be traditionally gender specific, we welcome applications from everyone and would encourage you to apply if you meet the job requirements. That includes welcoming applications from former armed forces personnel/reservists. Many of the skills picked up during your military career could be transferred directly into a role with local government.

Working with children and/or protected adults is regarded as a regulated role and under the Disclosure (Scotland) Act 2020 you will be required to join the PVG Scheme or undergo a PVG Scheme update check.

If you have lived overseas for a period of 12 months or more (continuous or total) within the last 10 years, an Overseas Criminal Record Check will be required. You will be required to provide this check.

A confirmed offer of employment and commencement in the post will be subject to the outcome of the above mentioned mandatory pre-employment checks (including references) and will also include eligibility to work in the UK, qualifications and fitness to undertake the post.