Adults Senior Social Worker - Royal Surrey County Hospital (reference: SCC/TP/287930/4233)

Surrey County Council; Guildford; On-site; GBP 47,000 - 52,000; Full time

Job summary

A local authority service in Guildford is seeking a Senior Social Worker to join their team at the Royal Surrey County Hospital. The role involves conducting assessments and providing direct social work interventions. Relevant degree and social work registration are required, as well as significant experience in social work and supervision. The position offers a fixed-term contract with competitive salary and various employee benefits. The service runs Monday to Sunday, requiring onsite presence for 3 to 4 days per week.

Benefits

26 days' holiday, increasing with service

Generous pension scheme

Employee Assistance Programme

Learning and development opportunities

Qualifications

• Substantial post-qualification professional experience as a Social Worker required.
• Experience of providing professional supervision, including to unqualified staff.
• Knowledge of legislation and application in social care.

Responsibilities

• Assess social care needs of service users using strength-based approaches.
• Supervise and support junior staff within the team.
• Conduct Care Act and mental capacity assessments.

Skills

Care assessments

Supervision skills

Experience with The Care Act

Problem-solving in complex situations

Education

Relevant degree and registration with Social Work England

Job description

• Title: Adults Senior Social Worker - Royal Surrey County Hospital
• Reference: SCC/TP/287930/4233
• Positions: 1
• Salary: £47,884 to £51,175 per annum
• Category: Qualified Social Work - Adult's
• Contract type: Fixed term
• Working hours: 36 hours per week
• Posted on: 24 December 2025
• Closing date: 11 January 2026
• Location: Royal Surrey County Hospital, Egerton Road, Guildford, GU2 7XX

Description

This role has a starting salary of £47,884 per annum, based on a 36 hour working week.

"Working in a hospital setting is fast paced and time pressured. We are an integral part of discharge planning for patients, attending daily morning meetings with other professionals such as Consultants, Occupational Therapists, Case Managers, and Nursing staff. For those that love learning, working in a multi-disciplinary setting can be fun as well as supportive."

We are excited to be hiring a Senior Social Workerto join our fantastic Royal Surrey Hospital team. The team is based in Guildford and covers the Royal Surrey County Hospital and Milford Hospital. We're currently on a journey of growth and innovation where your passion and hard work will make a real impact.

This is a fixed term contract/ secondment opportunity until 31st March 2027. If you are internal and interested in applying for this position please see your Line Manager's approval before submitting your application.

This service runs from 8am to 8pm Monday to Friday and 9am to 5pm Saturday and Sunday. The role will require being based onsitefor 3 to 4 days out of 5 days throughout the week. Further information regarding the working pattern can be discussed at interview.

Our Offer to You

• 26 days' holiday, rising to 28 days after 2 years' service and 31 days after 5 years' service
• Option to buy up to 10 days of additional annual leave
• A generous local government salary related pension
• Up to 5 days of carer's leave and 2 paid volunteering days per year
• Paternity, adoption and dependents leave
• An Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support health and wellbeing
• Learning and development hub where you can access a wealth of resources
• Wellbeing and lifestyle discounts including gym, travel, and shopping
• A chance to make a real difference to the lives of our residents

About the Team

The team is based within the Royal Surrey County Hospital which is one of five Surrey's acute hospital teams and consists of qualified and non-qualified staff.

In addition to the Royal Surrey acute hospital, the Team also supports discharges from the community rehab beds at Milford hospital. Patients are supported on discharge with packages of care to return to living in the community or short term placements under discharge to assessment framework enabling assessment post discharge within a set timeframe as they regain their independence to the maximum.

About the Role

As a Senior Social Worker you will be expected to have strong experience in assessing the social care needs of service users and provide direct social work intervention to some of the most challenging and complex service users and their carers. You will provide effective support to individuals using a strength-based approach to enable individuals to live as independently as possible with more choice and control. As a Senior Social Worker, you will supervise and support staff, as well as work alongside the Assistant Team Managers and Team Manager to improve processes and shape the team. You will need to be flexible to work in a challenging environment. You will be supported and will benefit from a structured induction programme.

On a daily basis, you will be meeting with clients to understand their care and needs, how they can be supported and to provide the best outcomes for them. Your work will include but is not limited to:

• Care Act assessments
• Carers assessments
• Partnership working closely with our community Health, charity and voluntary organisations.
• Mental capacity assessments

Shortlisting Criteria

To be considered for shortlisting for this position, your application will clearly evidence the following:

• A relevant degree and registration with Social Work England.
• Substantial post-qualification professional experience as a Social Worker is also required.
• Experience of providing professional supervision (can include unqualified and non-professional supervision).
• You will be motivated and flexible with high professional standards and sound knowledge and experience of current legislation and its application to practice in a social care setting.
• An applied knowledge of The Care Act and The Mental Capacity Act and experience of undertaking safeguarding enquiries is essential alongside experience of working in complex situations using professional judgement and a range of interventions.
• You will have experience of, and be able to provide, professional, reflective supervision, guidance and advice to less experienced social workers, including those completing ASYE and social work students.
• Willingness to be based onsite each day

Surrey has both urban and rural areas and locality based social care workers will be expected to have a valid driving licence to drive in the UK, access to a vehicle and be willing to travel across a wide geographical area. Reasonable adjustments where needed will be made for successful applicants who have a disability or long-term health condition to enable them to fulfil the requirements of the job.

Before submitting your application, we recommend you read the job description & Our Life at Surrey handbook to get an insight into working at Surrey

Contact us

Please contact us for any questions relating to the role. This could be to discuss flexible working requests, transferable skills or any barriers to employment.

The job advert closes at 23:59 on 11th January 2026 with interviews to follow.

We look forward to receiving your application, please click on the apply online button below to submit.

Local Government Reorganisation (LGR)

Surrey County Council is undergoing Local Government Reorganisation, moving from a two-tier system to two new unitary councils in April 2027. If you are employed by Surrey on 1st April 2027, your role will transfer with current terms and conditions to one of the new organisations, supporting local devolution and greater powers for our communities.

We are a disability confident employer which means if you have shared a disability on your application form and have evidenced you meet the minimum criteria, we guarantee you an interview.

Your skills and experience truly matter to us. From application to your first day, we're committed to supporting you with any adjustments you need, we value inclusion and warmly welcome you to join and help build a workplace where everyone belongs.