Placement Officer

Sutton Council is seeking an experienced Placement Officer to join its Fostering Service on an initial 3-month contract, supporting the effective placement of children and young people into foster care.

This is a fast-paced role requiring excellent coordination skills, sound judgement, and a strong understanding of fostering and placement processes within a local authority setting.

Key Responsibilities

• Identify, coordinate, and secure appropriate foster placements for children and young people in line with care plans and statutory requirements
• Work closely with social workers, fostering teams, providers, and partner agencies to ensure timely and suitable placements
• Maintain accurate placement records and ensure compliance with internal procedures and regulatory standards
• Contribute to placement matching, stability planning, and placement reviews
• Respond to placement requests, including urgent and unplanned placements
• Support effective communication between internal teams and external fostering providers

Essential Requirements

• Previous experience working as a Placement Officer or in a similar placements role within Children's Services / Fostering
• Strong knowledge of fostering placements, safeguarding, and local authority processes
• Ability to work under pressure and manage competing priorities
• Excellent communication and organisational skills
• Experience using local authority case management systems (e.g. Liquidlogic, Mosaic - desirable)