Border Force is a Law Enforcement arm of the Home Office. We are responsible for handling the UK border control by implementing immigration and customs regulations and working with the wider Home Office on counter terrorism, organised crime, modern slavery, and trafficking.
The Illegal Migration Intake Unit (IMIU) is responsible for the timely processing of illegal migrants, consisting of the registration and screening of those arriving in the UK illegally, establishing the identity of asylum claimants from small boat arrivals, lorry drops and other clandestine arrivals.
About the role
We are hiring social workers to work alongside our Kent Intake Unit (KIU), which deals primarily with new arrivals detected either near the port, in the surrounding area in Kent, and small boat arrivals. The unit operates 24/7, 365 days of the year.
The Kent Intake Unit has a particular focus around processing unaccompanied children, so the work of the unit involves the identification of those children and working closely with Kent Children’s Services to ensure they are processed and placed into appropriate care as quickly as possible.
We are looking for candidates who are qualified social workers, with extensive post-qualification experience in a local authority setting. Alongside proven expertise and experience in complex assessments, you will thrive in a fast-paced environment with the accountability for a high-profile area of work.
This role is only open to individuals who are already qualified social workers.
Ensuring the welfare of people who have arrived in the UK is at the heart of what we do, and the successful candidates will provide critical safeguarding expertise and support.
Although these roles are based at our Kent Intake Unit, Dover, successful candidates will be required to regularly attend other Kent based Home Office approved sites, including Frontier House, Folkestone, Western Jet Foil, Dover, and Manston (near Ramsgate), to monitor and engage with young people and ensure their welfare. Occasionally you may be asked to travel to locations outside Kent. Travel and subsistence would be paid in line with guidance.
Working Patterns
Due to the operational nature of these roles, these are full-time in-person positions, with limited options to work part-time or flexibly. All post-holders are expected to work the full range of shifts and attend the office or required allocated location in person. It is therefore unlikely that fixed days off could be agreed. Despite the limited options for flexibility, should such a working pattern be agreed then you should be aware that this would affect the rate of Annualised Hours Working allowance paid.
Benefits
We offer competitive starting salaries – further details below – a Civil Service Pension with employer contribution rates of at least 28.9%, and a range of other brilliant benefits including 25 days annual leave on appointment, rising with service.
You will also have access to learning and development tailored to your role, and a culture encouraging inclusion and diversity.
Find out more about some of the other benefits we offer.
More about the role
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From £41,600 plus an annualised shift allowance (AHW) currently averaging 18%, which would equate to £7,488 based on salary minimum. This allowance is paid in addition to the monthly salary to compensate for out of office hours working and flexibility and is reviewed periodically.
Illegal Migration Intake Unit operate a shift working pattern, where (AHW) is paid in accordance with the operational needs of the business.
We are a 365-day operation and utilise a range of shifts including earlies, lates, weekend and public holiday working. Shift lengths can vary and be up to 12 hours. This allowance is paid in addition to the monthly salary to compensate for out of office hours working and flexibility.
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- Qualified and registered Social Worker with Social Work England, or the equivalent in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland
- A successful track record with extensive post-qualification experience in a local authority setting, including experience of working in children’s services
- Culturally sensitive with experience of working with service users from diverse backgrounds
- Proven ability to conduct complex social worker assessments and complete high quality written assessment reports, robust enough to withstand legal challenge, within agreed timescales
- Capable of maintaining up-to-date knowledge of research findings, legislation, statutory guidance, policy developments and case law relevant to age assessments and child safeguarding practice
- Strong planning and organisational skills, including proven ability to work independently and balance competing demands
- A full UK manual or automatic driving licence
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- Experience of conducting Merton compliant age assessments
- Experience of managing interviews and working with an interpreter
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To apply for this role, you must be a qualified Social Worker: you will need to provide details of your qualification along with the date it was obtained within your CV. Failure to hold such qualification or to provide proof when requested will mean your application will be withdrawn from this campaign.
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Apply before 11:55 pm on Thursday 19 September 2024
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For more information and to apply, click here.
