Family Safety Practitioner III - Protection and Preservation Services (PPS)

• Assists the supervisor in planning and carrying out training for new staff, providing guidance to staff;
• Serves as a policy and practice expert in mandated services that supports the protection and wellbeing of vulnerable populations, governed by state and federal laws, administrative code, state-level policies and procedures, accreditation standards, and/or court orders for compliance with public welfare or other court-mandated services;
• Provides clinical casework services for a caseload of children (and their families) who have experienced abuse/neglect or who are at-risk of abuse/neglect
• Casework responsibilities include but are not limited to completion of comprehensive assessments and service plans, care coordination, crisis intervention, and brief counseling
• Attends court hearings and provides professional and legal testimony as needed. Completes casework and documentation in compliance with federal, state, and local policies and procedures
• Develop partnerships with community agencies to provide a holistic approach to service delivery, guaranteeing collaboration and coordination of services offered to children and their families
• Coordinates and attends intra-agency and inter-agency meetings
• Uses automated information systems to maintain case documentation
• Travels throughout the county for the provision of services
• Responds to cases outside of traditional business hours
• Be part of an on-call rotation that includes evening, overnight, weekend, and holiday hours which may require immediate response into the field
• Performs other duties as assigned to ensure child safety and improve outcomes in families.

• Contributes to the development of protocols, policies, procedures, grants and contracts for a social services program, department, and other entities;
• Manages service contracts and provide and directs other contract-related functions;
• Assists the supervisor in planning and carrying out training for new staff, providing guidance to staff. May directly supervise staff, and covers for the supervisor in their absence;
• Serves as a policy expert in an area of social work specialization;
• Coordinates or oversees the daily activities of a program or project to include staff supervision, oversight of administrative functions/requirements associated with the program or project, evaluation of the program or project for its impact/effectiveness, and making recommendations for changes or improvements;
• Conducts comprehensive clinical assessments and prepares and implements service plans;
• Conducts initial and ongoing, comprehensive clinical and social assessments of the family system;
• Works with clients to develop a plan of service to meet social, health, emotional and economic needs. With the client, formulates objectives and identifies actions to resolve the clients' problems;
• Conducts home visits to families for the purpose of monitoring, counseling and supervision;
• Provides crisis intervention on a timely basis to clients or families whose well being is seriously and immediately threatened, to include Child Protective Services after-hours;
• Conducts mediation services to families in conflict;
• Investigates allegations of abuse and neglect of children, elderly persons and incapacitated adults who live in the community and institutional facilities;
• Makes assessment of risks posed to clients in accordance with state and local policies, and works to ensure risks are eliminated or minimized;
• Performs emergency removal of children from their homes when required, places children in foster homes and residential programs, and coordinates services for them as needed;
• Represents the agency in court proceedings; prepares testimony and testifies in Juvenile, Circuit, Criminal, Civil and Federal Courts;
• Interviews and counsels natural parents, adoptive parents, foster parents and children to be placed in foster homes or residential facilities and those involved in adoption placement;
• Evaluates child's readiness for placement and recommends placement, ensuring compliance with legal provisions;
• Conducts and documents interstate and intrastate family home studies to evaluate and make recommendations as to families' ability to provide a safe and nurturing environment for children;
• Works with the community to identify families, children and individuals needing services and to coordinate these services using a wrap-around approach;
• Advocates and assists families and individuals in obtaining services (e.g., mental health, intellectual disability, alcohol and drug, housing referrals, home based services, training and medical services);
• Communicates and works with colleagues, clients and the community in a manner that supports the agency and program goals and objectives;
• Participates as a contributing member on interagency, multi-disciplinary teams, community groups and professional organizations;
• Collaborates and contributes to child specific teams on non-agency cases as assigned to assist in identifying community resources and services for families;
• Participates, collaborates and contributes to Comprehensive Services Act activities for families on caseload;
• Uses automated technology and hard copy files to maintain and update case data, notes, documents, records, contacts and summaries of information;
• Manages and maintains program data and outcomes.
• Prepares written reports and required documentation supporting decisions related to immediate and ongoing safety needs.

• Knowledge or skill with crisis intervention or conflict resolution techniques;
• Thorough knowledge of the principles and practices of social work;
• Thorough knowledge of current social service problems and methods/approaches to address issues;
• Thorough knowledge of regulations and guidelines relating to the assigned area of social service specialization;
• Knowledge of casework supervision practices and procedures;
• Ability to collaborate as a team member to create and support safety planning and monitoring;
• Ability to engage with juridical systems and processes to support the safety needs of clients as needed or when required by statute;
• Ability to demonstrate advanced critical thinking and judgment by understanding and applying governing policy and statutes alongside best practices and unique case factors;
• Ability to engage with persons effectively and empathically from different cultures who may be experiencing stressful family situations;
• Ability to maintain a high level of sensitivity and confidentiality while performing client related tasks; Ability to engage children, adults, and/or families under safety-sensitive, time-limited, and difficult circumstances, to gather information and make informed decisions that are inclusive of their language, race, and culture;
• Thorough knowledge of the principles and practices of social work;
• Ability to analyze case information and to reach sound decisions on the basis of such information;
• Ability to communicate clearly and concisely, both orally and in writing;
• Ability to use automated technology to establish and maintain case records;
• Ability to maintain professional ethics and confidentiality of client information;
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with a variety of individuals.;
• Ability to schedule and manage workload sufficiently to meet deadlines;
• Ability to provide guidance, direction, supervision and coaching to less-experienced staff;
• Ability to provide management and oversight of a program or project.
• Skill in defining and explaining complex rules and guidelines in a variety of settings and providing sound guidance and direction to staff;
• Skill in writing and reviewing reports that are behaviorally specific, factually correct, include conclusions and recommended action.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:
Graduation from an accredited four-year college or university with a bachelor's degree in social work, psychology, sociology, or a *related field, plus four years of experience in social work, psychology, sociology, or a *related experience. A master's degree in a related field may be substituted for one year of the required experience.

*A related field/experience is based solely on the position description.

CERTIFICATES AND LICENSES REQUIRED:
Valid driver's license.
Positions within this class are required to complete the state mandated training in the functional area within a specified time period.

NECESSARY SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS:
The appointee to the position must satisfactorily complete a criminal background check, driving record check, and a Child Protective Services check.

This position is considered essential personnel and will be required to report to work during times designated countywide as approved for unscheduled leave regardless of the emergency situation (i.e., weather, transportation, other disaster).

Requires being part of an on-call rotation that includes evening, overnight, weekend, and holiday hours which may require immediate response into the field.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Master's degree in social work (MSW) or a related human services degree
• At least two (2) years of experience in child protective services
• At least three (3) years of experience in child welfare
• Experience working with a diverse multicultural population

Reasonable accommodations are available to persons with disabilities during application and/or interview processes per the Americans with Disabilities Act. Contact 703-324-4900 for assistance. TTY 703-222-7314. DHREmployment@fairfaxcounty.gov EEO/AA/TTY.