If you are looking to train in a career that makes a positive difference, Health and Social Care, or Social Work may be the right choice for you. Developing valuable relationships, supporting people to live the life they choose means that you build a strong bond. Working in any of these disciplines will ensure you meet fascinating people that open up their lives to you, meaning you can develop relationships that improve both your life and theirs.
Career opportunities with Fife Council
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Social Work
What do social workers do?
Social Work is a diverse career and you’ll find social workers in a variety of places like criminal justice services, hospitals, adult or children’s services and education.
It’s impossible to describe everything you might do as a social worker but here are some key examples.
Social workers can:
- get to know us in the context of our lives, experiences and relationships
- make sure we are involved in decisions
- support us to manage and overcome complex issues
- exercise legal duties if we need help to stay safe
- promote human rights, equality and social justice across all parts of society.
Amongst the larger Health and Social Care Partnerships in Scotland, we deliver a significant range of delegated services for a population of around 370,000 across the Kingdom of Fife. We are rooted in the communities and localities we serve and are driven by our vision to improve outcomes for our population, by developing integrated health and social services. This is delivered through a highly talented and committed workforce and close collaborative working with our partners in the Independent and Voluntary Sector. Being co-terminus, with both NHS Fife and Fife Council being part of Fife Health and Social Care Partnership, offers an excellent opportunity to deliver a whole system “Team Fife” approach.
It’s an exciting time to practice within the Health and Social Care Partnership. We can offer all Social Workers a diverse induction, access to a range of learning and training opportunities, coaching, and mentoring as well as the support and supervision needed to develop practitioners. We offer an extensive training plan and the opportunity to undertake post qualifying courses to enhance skills, knowledge, and career progression. By investing in our staff, we invest in our adults who receive our services.
We remain committed to ensuring that we achieve the best outcomes for all the adults we support. In Fife we put individuals at the centre of everything we do. We are a forward-thinking organisation, constantly seeking to deliver High Performance and the outcomes of integration, with a focus on quality, person-centred care, and sustainable services.
If you are a qualified Social Worker and wish to have a career in supporting adults and their families in a statutory setting, then a career in the Health and Social Care Partnership Social Work service in Fife awaits you. We offer extensive support and supervision to Newly Qualified Social Workers (undertaking their Supported Year Programme) as well as opportunities for experienced staff to develop and progress their careers. We offer post qualifying support, mentoring and supervision enhanced by a creative training programme (in house and external) to enable practitioners to confidently undertake a range of tasks including complex assessments of need and risk. If you relish a challenge and have a passion for public service, then Fife Health and Social Care Partnership will provide a great opportunity for you to realise your potential.
Don't just take our word for it! Hear what one of our colleagues had to say about the role
Working with adults | Jobs Fife
Meet Hannah
"Adult Services have a real focus on the development of its social workers, I’ve been supported by my manager to work on my professional learning and development to meet my career goals. I feel these opportunities for development then support me to offer a better service to the people that I am working with."
Social Care - Support Worker Level
If you are looking for a career which makes a positive difference, then a job in social services could be for you.
A support worker’s role is to provide person-centred care and support to people living in their own home or community. They use their values, knowledge, and skills to develop relationships and work with people to support them.
Job titles may include Care Assistant and Home Carer.
They register with the SSSC as a Support Worker on the Social Care Workforce register.
Support workers follow agreed care plans. They share their knowledge about the person to help their senior colleagues keep everyone’s care plan up to date. Support workers demonstrate respect for individual rights, such as the right everyone has to be in control of their own life.
The minimum qualification requirement is SVQ or an apprenticeship at SCQF level 6 which is gained while working.
You can apply for this SVQ when you’re in work. You don’t need previous qualifications to complete this SVQ. We will support you to access this qualification.
If you have an SVQ Healthcare Support (Clinical or Non-clinical) at SCQF level 6 you may already have some units in this SVQ.
You can find out more about qualifications and get information for providers here: Social services and healthcare | Careers in care | SSSC
Meet Angela
“I have worked as a Care Assistant for 2 years after working in a Fife Council administration role for 33 years. This was the best career move and one I wish I had done a long time ago”
Social Care - Practitioner Level
If you are looking for a career which makes a positive difference, then a job in social services could be for you.
The Practitioner role carries out similar tasks to support workers but have extra responsibilities too. They use their values, knowledge, and skills to:
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help assess what kind of care people will need
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share information appropriately with other health and care professionals
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monitor health, safety, and security in the home.
Practitioners need to create and maintain care plans in partnership with the people living in the care home and their families. They may take part in training to learn some healthcare tasks, like administering medication.
Job titles may include Social Care Worker and Community Support Worker.
They register with the SSSC as a practitioner on the Social Care Workforce register.
The minimum qualification requirement is SVQ or an apprenticeship at SCQF level 7, which is gained while working.
You can apply for this SVQ when you’re in work. You don’t need previous qualifications to complete this SVQ. We will support you to access this qualification.
You can find out more about qualifications and get information for providers here: Social services and healthcare | Careers in care | SSSC
Meet Chris
“I have worked as a Social Care Worker for the Health and Social Care Partnership for over 10 years. The best part of my job is supporting people to live meaningful lives and helping them to stay independent”
Social Care - Supervisor Level
If you are looking for a career which makes a positive difference, then a job in social services could be for you.
Supervisors are leaders and they guide and support other staff to provide the best care possible by:
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making sure all care plans are created in a person-centred way and reviewed regularly
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promoting quality of care and identify improvements
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helping staff stay up to date with policies, training courses and other learning opportunities.
Supervisors may also provide direct care and support. They usually have previous experience as a support worker or practitioner.
Job titles may include Senior Social Care Worker and Homecare coordinator.
They register with the SSSC as a supervisor on the Social Care Workforce register. Some supervisors, like those qualified as nurses, may be registered with a different regulatory body.
The minimum SSSC qualification requirement is the same as a practitioner plus a supervisory award, like a PDA Health and Social Care Supervision at SCQF level 7. Some supervisors complete the SVQ Social Services and Healthcare at SCQF level 9 which meets full requirements and can support progression to a management role.
You can find out more about qualifications and get information for providers here: Social services and healthcare | Careers in care | SSSC
Meet Cheryl
“Fife Council offers many opportunities to train and develop. Teamwork is a key part of the role and I find this very enjoyable”
Social Care - Manager Level
Managers have overall responsibility for how care and support is delivered. They also take the lead supporting all staff and making sure they get the right training to do their roles well.
They use their knowledge and skills to meet specific managerial responsibilities like:
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managing budgets
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contributing to the development of policies and procedures
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preparing for inspections.
Managers are often the first point of contact for families, new employees and agencies like the NHS and social work services. They need to be friendly, approachable, and professional.
They register with the SSSC as a manager on the Social Care Workforce register.
The minimum SSSC qualification requirement is an SVQ at SCQF level 9 or a social work, nursing, or other suitable university degree plus a qualification for leading and managing care (which can be gained while working).
You can apply for this SVQ when you’re in work. You need to hold the SVQ at SCQF 9 to be eligible for this role. We will support you to access the management component at SCQF 9 or above.
Some managers, like those qualified as nurses, will be registered with other regulatory bodies.
Some managers are known as the Registered Manager, this what is required to be the registered manager of a care service?
Before being appointed, registered managers (the named manager on the Care Inspectorate Certificate of Registration) are required by the Care Inspectorate to hold a relevant practitioner qualification as a minimum. In order to make decisions on the competency of staff and the quality of care being provided, managers of registered services must be qualified to at least the level of the practitioners working in the service.
You can find out more about qualifications and get information for providers here: Social services and healthcare | Careers in care | SSSC
Meet Daniel
"One thing that always overcomes the daily challenges of our working days, it is to see and hear that our service users are having a good quality of life, they feel safe and protected and their families trust and work with us to provide the best care possible to their love ones; it isn't a path full of roses or green, but we work together to overcome any obstacles and improve standards of care”
Social Care Services
Diverse careers
Assessment Review Practitioners
Assessment Review Practitioners work within the Short-Term Assessment Review Team, known as START and are based across the acute & community hospitals throughout Fife. The person will liaise with multi-disciplinary agencies to convey care arrangements and expectations and initiate, arrange, and participate in discharge planning to support the transition from hospital bed to home for Service Users who require reablement and/or an ongoing care package.
Schedulers
Schedulers arebased within the Resource Unit, the central hub for attributing Carers to their daily rotas throughout Fife. Schedulers play a pivotal role working closely with Home Care Coordinators to meet the capacity demands of the service. They are also a point of contact support for Carers who may require visits added or remove dependant on challenges and changes they could encounter on their rotas.
Scheduling coordinators
Scheduling coordinators provide supervision capability for the Schedulers by managing team performance, organising supervision and hosting team meetings. The person will have responsibilities including recording and updating of reports using appropriate IT systems and procedures by maintaining accurate up to date databases for Service User records and taking responsibility for the effective application of information management systems.
Service Improvement Officers and Assistants
Service Improvement Officers and Assistants involves leading and developing systems, processes, and procedures to assist the HSCP to provide responsive, effective, and efficient services and implement a programme of continuous service improvement and performance reporting. The role includes evidencing compliance with all Policy, Regulatory and Statutory requirements in the delivery of care; and to contribute to the HSCP’s Quality Assurance performance reporting. This role is ideal for people with good analytical skills, ability to work to deadlines and experience of collection, analysis, and interpretation of a range of data.
Drivers
Drivers are required to undertake driving and assisting of passengers. The role requires the person to hold a Full driving license including category D1 and to complete a MIDAS certificate when in post. If you have good communication skills and can use your initiative, take ownership whilst embracing technology and information this role might be right for you.
Activities organisers
Activities organisers aim is to initiate and develop a programme of meaningful activities that is informed by the needs, preferences, and interests of older people within a residential setting with the purpose of maintaining and/or improving quality of life. This role requires good communication skills and an ability to work as part of a team. Experience of planning, initiating and sustaining activities for older people is desired and the ability to obtain a SVQ at SCQ 6 is required. If you are a creative and practical person, this role might be right for you.
Find out more
Flexible Options
Working for the Fife Health and Social Care Partnership offers many flexible options to suit. If you are studying for a qualification, raising a family, or juggling other responsibilities, working for us can enable you to combine these commitments with your work. We are looking for caring people to join us don’t worry if you haven’t done this before. No formal qualifications are required to apply for most roles.
Scottish Social Services Council Registration
For some roles you will be required to hold registration with the Scottish Social Services Council, known as the SSSC. Being registered with the SSSC means you are part of a professional workforce. There is a range of support for you to gain a qualification for registration purposes which demonstrates you have skills and knowledge to carry out your role, it supports your career, increases your confidence, and improves your professional practice.
Induction and Training
We promote robust induction programme and lots of ongoing support and training because maintaining and improving knowledge and skills is in the SSSC Code of Practice for Social Service Workers and is a requirement of SSSC registration and you will complete your CPL centred on 7 core learning themes and many other topics. For more information you can access the SSSC here: https://learn.sssc.uk.com/cpl/
Employee Benefits
By choosing to work for us, you will gain access to a range of local and national discounts. Make savings on your shopping, restaurant and holiday bookings!
As we are an accredited Living Wage employer paying the Scottish Local Government Living Wage, we guarantee that you will earn more than the National Minimum Wage regardless of the role you choose!
We also offer an occupational pension scheme, generous holiday allowance and flexible working opportunities. If you need to travel for work, we can provide pool cars or pay travel expenses, so you are not out of pocket!
We want to make working for the Health and Social Care Partnership work for our staff! We provide a range of employee benefits to contribute to their welfare and a better standard of living.
Benefits include:
- Discounts – we want our staff to enjoy as many benefits of being a Fife Council employee as possible and they can get discounts through our national and local discount providers.
- Financial wellbeing – we want to support staff to look after their financial wellbeing as well as their physical and mental wellbeing. We’ve got some options to boost their pension as well as affordable loans through our partner providers.
- Lifestyle benefits – we offer a Cycle Scheme, Technology Scheme and Microsoft Home Use Programme.
- Buying annual leave – we normally run a scheme which allows staff to buy additional annual leave.
- Long service awards – we recognise staff who have long service with local government.
Wellbeing Matters
A wide range of health and wellbeing support services are available to all Fife Council employees to help with their mental, financial, physical and social wellbeing
Counselling
Any employee can access our independent counselling service Time for Talking. They provide psychological, emotional and practical support, normally over the phone. Most people who use this service do not have a mental health condition.
Fife Council Mental Health First Aiders
Trained employees who have volunteered to offer a confidential listening ear, over the phone, in person or via a voice or video call on Microsoft Teams. They can signpost you to a suitable support service if appropriate.
Employee benefits
You can enjoy a range of benefits including our Cycle Scheme, Technology Scheme and Microsoft Home Use Programme.
Pension scheme
If you’re part of the LGPS there are ways you can boost your pension.
Personal financial management
We all worry about money at some point in our lives, Salary Finance provides tools that can really make a difference.
More Benefits and money advice can be found at: www.fife.gov.uk/moneyadvice
Physiotherapy
To help prevent you needing to take time off, or to help you return to work, we provide a physiotherapy service Connect Health.
Occupational health
Supports the whole workforce, physically and mentally, helping to keep people well at work.
Supportive workplace
Be supportive and understanding of your colleagues. Always consider other people's health, safety and wellbeing - as well as your own.
Blended workstyle
We want staff to have a good work/life balance and support flexible working options wherever possible.