Carrie is a Social Worker in the Assessment Team
I enjoy working at Bedford because it is a small local authority so you get to know staff and management really well. This has meant that professionals and teams in Bedford work really well together to provide interventions and better outcomes to children and their families.
Bedford has a community feel to it which makes it a lovely place to work as everyone helps one another out. Bedford also has a really good early help team which provides a range of interventions which I haven’t experienced elsewhere.
My manager supports me by providing advice and guidance when I need it. She also challenges my thinking when necessary to ensure we are considering all hypothesis about families and ultimately to make better outcomes for children.
We have regular supervision and she is always a MS Teams or telephone call away in between should I need it.
Training is regularly put into our calendar or circulated via email which we are welcomed to attend. I am also encouraged to seek out other training courses if I have a desired interest or learning need. The Head of Service is always available for us to speak to for support and guidance should we need it.
There is good communication between the different levels of staff and complex cases are often discussed jointly to ensure effective safety planning and decision making for children. Decisions aren’t made alone and senior leaders are here to support with that. Bedford is a great place to work and I think most people would say the same.