Independent Guardian (Social Worker)

BARNARDO'S

35,390 - 43,392 per year

Belfast

Full-time

20th November 2025

Are you motivated to work in partnership with, support and advocate for children and young people who have arrived in Northern Ireland, many of whom who are Separated or Unaccompanied and may have been the victims of trafficking and/or exploitation?

Have you got strong interpersonal skills and a desire to ensure that children and young people's rights are upheld?

Do you have a strong Human Rights based approach to your work and a desire to effect change for children and young people who need a skilled, value driven and knowledgeable advocate?

Are you able to work in a fast paced environment and be flexible to respond to Risk and Need as it presents?

Barnardo's NI, through the Independent Guardian Service, is seeking to employ a skilled and experienced Social Worker to work within our regional Independent Guardian team.

The role of an Independent Guardian is derived from the Human Trafficking and Exploitation Act (2015) and is a crucial role in ensuring that the rights of children and young people who may be victims of trafficking or exploitation, are upheld.

If the nature of this work appeals to you as a Social Worker, we are very keen to hear from you - please see the attached Job description and Additional information sheet as part of this advertisement.

Please ensure that you outline on your application how you meet the criteria below:

Essential Criteria:

Professional qualification in Social Work with at least 1 year's post qualifying experience
Registration with the Northern Ireland Social Care Council
Demonstrable experience of direct work with ethnic minority young people, refugees and/or asylum seekers within the Statutory or Voluntary sector
Demonstrable experience of completing Assessments in relation to Risk and Need relating to vulnerable Children/Young people or families
Demonstrable experience of effective Case planning when working with vulnerable Children/Young people or families
A working knowledge in relation to human trafficking, exploitation and asylum processes as they relate to Northern Ireland
Demonstrable experience of advocating on behalf of vulnerable Children/Young people or families
Knowledge, understanding and experience of working with issues related to trauma, resilience, attachment, child development and loss and impact of violence
Experience of direct work with vulnerable children and families
Experience of working in a multi-disciplinary environment
Hold a valid driving licence and have access to a vehicle with business class insurance to use during working hours (alternatively those applicants with a disability that prevents them from holding a driving licence should be able to demonstrate how they can meet the mobility requirements of the post).

📍 Location: Hybrid with a specific Barnardo's base to be agreed with the applicant upon appointment. The main office for the service is based at 230C Belmont Road, Belfast BT4 2AW.
📅 Contract: Funded until 30 June 2026 (May be extended subject to funding).
🕘 Hours: 37 hours per week
💷 Salary: £35,390 - £43,392

If you're committed to making a real difference in the lives of families and young children, we'd love to hear from you!

📧 Contact Email: recruitment.support@barnardos.org.uk
🕛 Closing Date: Midnight, 20th November 2025

A waiting list will be held in the event that similar vacancies arise during the next 12 months

Successful applicants will be required to undertake an Enhanced Access NI with Child and Adult Barred List Check.

Please note due to the high volume of applications for some posts, this advert might close before the displayed closing date. We recommend that you apply for this role as soon as possible.

We know that our colleagues go above and beyond in delivering our vital work, driven by their passion and commitment to Barnardo's values.  We also know that we can only realise our ambitions and achieve better outcomes for more children, thanks to the talent, hard work and creativity of our people.

For all these reasons, we are committed to a new approach to pay and reward, to ensure it is fair, attractive and progressive, which was rolled out in April 2023. This is a positive change for the charity, and a part of our People & Culture Strategy. It will assist us in supporting colleagues to belong, thrive and grow in their colleague journey at Barnardo's and in time will offer clear routes of progression for colleagues in both their career and their pay.

Whilst the full pay band and salary range is advertised, our approach to starting salaries is to appoint between the minimum to mid-point of the pay band – this ensures that pay steps are available to reward our colleagues annually based on their contribution to excellence and alignment to our values and behaviours.  More details on Barnardo's pay framework can be found upon application.

Workplace Offer: What it means for you

Our hybrid working initiative is based on trust, flexibility and empowerment. We understand our workplace offer means different things to different people, and we encourage those conversations. This may mean working at one of our stores, services, working at home, in the community, at one of our Collaboration Hubs or depending on the role any combination of these. Please read through the advert carefully to understand the remits of hybrid working that will be specific to the role.

Barnardo's believe in creating equality of opportunity in the workplace and supporting people to manage their work-life balance; we are therefore open to offering flexible working arrangements.
Annual Leave entitlement for full-time colleagues is 26 days per annum, increasing to 27 days per annum, after 3 years Barnardo's service, 29 days per annum, after 5 years Barnardo's service and 30 days per annum, after 7 years Barnardo's service. Those working less than full time are entitled to the same level of holiday pro rata
The ability to buy up to another 5 days annual leave via our HolidayPlus scheme
A host of family friendly leave options including company Maternity Paternity and Adoption pay; together with all family additional leave options
Service related sick pay from day 1
Access to a Group Personal Pension with a matched 4% or 6% contribution from Barnardo's. Ability to pay via salary sacrifice to garner both tax and NI savings on your own contribution
Death in service cover of 4x annual earnings for all staff contributing to our Group Personal Pension
Cycle2work scheme
Interest free season ticket loans
Discounts and cashback from at high street shops including major supermarkets, cinemas, gyms, leisure/theme parks, holidays and much more via our Benefit Portal
20% discount at Barnardo's stores
Opportunity to purchase a health cash plan to claim towards dental, glasses, therapy etc
Free access to round the clock employee assistance program for advice and support
Access to Barnardo's Learning and Development offer

*T&C's apply based on contract

We are committed to being an inclusive employer and cultivating a culture where everyone can belong and thrive through inclusion and connectivity. We want our workforce to be reflective of the communities we work with, and for equality, diversity and inclusion to be embedded in everything we do. We are a Disability Confident Leader, are progressing our ambition to be an anti-racist organisation with Anti-Racism Commitments and actions in place and have networks for colleagues who are disabled, LGBT+, Black and Minoritised Ethnic and Women. We particularly encourage applications from Black and Minoritised Ethnic and/or disabled candidates who are currently underrepresented in our workforce. For disabled applicants, we offer reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process.

Reference number:21897
Job Title:Independent Guardian (Social Worker)
Location:Belfast
Locality:Belfast
Contract type:Fixed term
End date:30/06/2026
Hours:37
Salary:£35,390 - £43,392
Closing Date:20 November 2025
Interview Date:TBC

Benefits

Vacancy Alerts

Additional Info