Senior Practitioner

About Coram

Coram is committed to improving the lives of the UK’s most vulnerable children and young people.

We support children and young people from birth to independence, creating a change that lasts a lifetime.

Coram is the UK’s oldest children’s charity founded by Thomas Coram in London helping vulnerable children and young people since 1739. Today, the Coram group helps more than one million children, young people, families and professionals every year by providing access to the skills and opportunities they need to thrive.

About CoramIAC

CoramIAC is a Voluntary Adoption Agency which specialises in Intercountry Adoptions.

CoramIAC - Intercountry Adoption Centre - now part of the Coram Group of children's charities have been working with families adopting from across the world for over 26 years. CoramIAC is a charity, not-for-profit and an accredited, legally registered adoption agency. We run outstanding services to support children and families affected by adoption. With the majority of our adopters being from the global majority, adopting from countries where they have connections. We have a diverse staff team. We have had four consecutive outstanding judgements from Ofsted.

About the role

We are currently advertising for two positions, one within our Assessment team, and one within our Post-Approval team.

Assessment Senior Practitioner - To provide Coram IAC’s Intercountry assessment and support services in accordance with adoption guidance and regulations. To help coordinate intercountry adoption assessments, quality assuring and overseeing the work of sessional social workers.
Post-Approval Senior Practitioner - To provide Coram IAC’s Post Approval Services and Country Programmes in accordance with adoption guidance and regulations. Supporting and advising families through the post approval/post placement period and ensuring smooth progress through liaison with the Adoption Manager and Post Approval Administration Team.

Main duties:

To provide Coram IAC’s Intercountry assessment and support Services in accordance with applicable
Statute, Regulations, Statutory Guidance, Adoption Standards, Coram IAC’s policies and procedures
and good practice. The Senior Practitioner’s key responsibilities are:
1. To support the development of the Intercountry Assessment.
This will include:
▪ Monitoring and quality assuring Stage One of the assessment process and the preparation for the end of Stage One Reviews.
▪ Monitor, support and quality assuring the work of allocated social workers and case workers throughout the Stage Two processes, attending mid-way meetings and liaising directly with applicants as required.
▪ Undertaking complex case and/or second Opinion visits and risk assessments as required in consultation with the Manager
▪ Monitoring and quality assuring work sessional workers undertaking assessments.
▪ Review and support the preparation of Prospective Adopters Reports and attend Panel with assessing social workers when required.
▪ Support the preparation and signing off of Prospective Adopter Bundles in preparation for their transfer to the Post Approval Adoption Team.
▪ To use and maintain Coram IAC systems and manage the response to demand consistent with performance indicators and targets.
▪ Together with the Team, ensure that the Assessment Team work is reviewed and evaluated on a regular basis, to include undertaking case audits
▪ To attend all relevant meetings concerned with planning, developing, delivering, evaluating and promoting the wider agency services, including external meetings.
2. Take part in overseeing the induction, training, mentoring, review and liaison with Sessional Social
Workers - including assisting with recruitment, building relationships and maintaining Sessional
Social Workers records.
3. Supervising (administrative) Case Workers.
4. To ensure all calls and communications are handled with excellent customer care in a timely and efficient manner that upholds the values of Coram IAC and always exhibits the expertise we are
known for.
5. Attending Team Meetings and other relevant meetings concerned with planning, developing, delivering, evaluating, and promoting the wider agency services.
6. Participating in regular supervision and staff appraisal to ensure effective service delivery and further professional development.
7. Taking up such opportunities for training as are provided by the agency and maintaining an awareness/working knowledge of current practice issues and legislative requirements.
8. Working collaboratively with professionals (inter agency and multi-disciplinary services) to safeguard and protect the well-being of children and vulnerable adults.
9. Actively participating in the implementation of performance indicators and statistical information as required.
10. Together with the Team to ensure that the Team’s work is reviewed and evaluated on a regular basis, to include undertaking case and other audits as required.
11. To maintain, develop and provide information about Intercountry adoption for service users and other interested bodies and parties and to contribute to the general promotion of
intercountry adoption and Coram IAC’s Country Programmes;
12. To liaise with the Training and Development Manager regarding adopters’ needs for training and preparation and specific adoption support services.
13. Contributing to the review and development of relevant policies and procedures, as required.
14. Working in accordance with Coram IAC and Social Work England guidance regarding working hours, professional conduct and anti-discriminatory practice, and Coram IAC data protection and confidentiality standards.
15. Undertake any such other tasks as may be reasonably requested from time to time by the Adoption Manager, or the Leadership Team

Coram is an equal opportunities employer and we believe a diverse workforce enables us to improve the services to the children and families we help. We are genuinely committed to encouraging candidates from all sections of the community we seek to support. This includes those from global majority ethnic backgrounds, those that identify as LGBQT+, those with disabilities, those with lived experience of care, those with neuro-diversity, and those from other groups who are underrepresented at Coram.

If applicants feel comfortable, we would encourage them to draw on lived experience as well as professional experience in their personal statement as part of their application.

We are committed to the safeguarding of children and where appropriate will require the successful applicant to undertake a check from the Disclosure and Barring Service.

Registered Charity No. 312278.