Practice Educator (Social work)
| Posting date: | 23 March 2026 |
|---|---|
| Salary: | £39,959 to £48,117 per year |
| Additional salary information: | £39959 - £48117 a year |
| Hours: | Full time |
| Closing date: | 12 April 2026 |
| Location: | Exeter, EX2 5AF |
| Company: | NHS Jobs |
| Job type: | Permanent |
| Job reference: | C9369-26-0210 |
Summary
The post holder will be part of a multi-disciplinary team of Practice Educators responsible for the co-ordination and delivery of a number of practice education workstreams. This role will work across the Apprenticeship, Placement and Preceptorship workstreams with line management provided by the Apprenticeship Lead Student and trainee placements Planning and Coordination of the internal and external placements of all Social Work students and trainees across the Trust Induction and preparation for practice for a range of Social Work students and trainees Ongoing support to Social Work students, trainees, apprentices when on placement across the Trust Practice Educator support to individual Social Work students where this is not available within the clinical team Coordination and monitoring of Trust Social Work Practice Educators Coordination, recruitment and support of new Social Work Practice Educators undertaking PEPs training Advice and guidance on training and development opportunities for Social Workers within the Trust Preceptorship & Assessed and Supported Year of Employment ASYE Programme for Newly Qualified Social Workers Support, guidance and assessment to all ASYE candidates undertaking both Adult & Child Programmes Named Coordinator for the ASYE with Skills for Care/Department of Education Monitoring to ensure the Trust ASYE Programme meets all statutory requirements Support and guidance to Practice Educators and supervisors who are supporting newly qualified social workers undertaking their ASYE. To coordinate the internal and external moderation of Trust ASYE Portfolios Support with the coordination of the ASYE and preceptorship offer including facilitation of workshops and liaison with specialist facilitators Apprenticeships Delivery of career events for anyone seeking to join the NHS or looking to develop through the Social Work and other pathways Recruitment, selection and induction to the Social Work Apprentices in line with the Trust Apprenticeship Plan Ongoing support to Social Work apprentices and their line managers for the duration of their apprenticeship Liaise with universities and provide advice on all aspects of training to meet the requirements of the relevant professional body. Duties and Responsibilities Communication & Working Relationships Develops and maintains effective working relationships with managers, staff and their representatives. Using a coaching approach, develops and maintains effective communications with students, trainees, apprentices and new members of staff entering their professional roles using a range of formats including; group supervision,1:1 supervision, workshops and forums. Develops and maintains effective communications with partner and external organisations with regard to local and regional practice education programmes. Maintains effective communications with a range of universities and colleges regarding the allocation of students, trainees and apprentices. Develops and increases communication skills between disparate staff groups to enhance clinical decision making and the support of students, trainees, preceptees and apprentices when joining the organisation. Provides managers and staff with advice and guidance on matters relating to practice development, the trusts programme, policy and approach and any training available. Takes part in team meetings, personal development planning, 1:1 supervision meetings etc. Deal with sensitive situations involving students, trainees, apprentices on placement and seek guidance from other Workforce colleagues as appropriate. Communicates with others in relation to practice education initiatives as required. Planning & Organisation Effectively promote the redesign and on-going improvement of approaches and processes of delivering student/ trainees, apprentice placements and practice development programmes, through articulating national, organisational and local vision for the future delivery of this agenda. Co-ordination of student/ trainee and apprentice placements from a range of universities and colleges. Review and evaluate the practice development programmes, actively promoting understanding across the organisation of these programmes and key responsibilities for those involved in the process. Coordination and monitoring of the ASYE Programme for newly qualified social workers Take active part in own professional development, aligning personal objectives with organisational objectives supporting the senior management team. Support the Workforce and Organisational Development team in all areas of work relating to student placements, preceptorship and other practice education initiatives where required. Lead on training in area of expertise and engage relevant team members where appropriate. Co-ordinate and maintain a register of practice assessors/ practice supervisors and practice educators within the Trust and ensure that the Trust has sufficiently staff trained to provide support within teams. Responsibility for Judgement & Analysis Provides guidance, and training to all members of staff involved in student / trainee/ apprentice placements and their practice education requirements. This may include indicating useful sources of information/training, teaching new techniques or skills, providing guidance on dealing with the situational aspects of the job or encouragement to learn particularly useful skills. Practice assessor or practice educator support to individual students where this is not available within the clinical team including undertaking clinical judgements on formal assessment of practice in conjunction with other members of the clinical team. Guidance to preceptees and preceptors on achievement of the skills development requirements for the Preceptorship Programme. Recognises areas of work through day to day activities that could be undertaken as part of remit if relevant. Identify mistakes and errors made in current working practices and review and redesign processes requiring improvement, while also addressing any training and development requirements of self of colleagues. Assesses information requirements against desired outcomes in order to gather or request high quality, robust information that will produce the answers required. Challenges any data anomalies recognised through report analysis, through discussion with relevant leads and with staff members responsible for management of the information on a day to day basis. Undertakes audits, training needs analysis, surveys, self-assessments in order to collate and analyse progress, need, gaps in service etc. Interprets complex information which relates to staff development and ensure this is communicated effectively to the line manager, project team and others as required. Policy, Service, Research & Development Responsibility Review local, regional or national guidance, best practice and case studies to appraise development opportunities and suggest areas for implementation within this organisation where appropriate. Ensure views of stakeholders are fed into process of implementation. Actively seek out and interpret national policy, guidance and examples of best practice with regard to student placement and practice education programmes nationally. Review this information and adopt it as appropriate. Review and update the current policies in relation practice education and engage with as many relevant staff as possible in the process of review and planning of implementation. Develop high standards of practice throughout trust through promotion of legislation, guidance and models of best practice identified through research and reading. Gain peer support where required from local, regional or even national colleagues where relevant and appropriate. Have a good understanding of Trust policies to ensure that all practice education activity is delivered within these frameworks and knowledge base. Any Other Specific Tasks Required Identifies whether some or all of the skills and training needs are satisfied by existing training provided. Ensures access to this training for the service involved and is connected to the programme. Able to develop and deliver a programme of training in a way that is stimulating for the learners, encouraging them to become involved in the learning experience thus enabling learners to achieve their ands the organisations learning goals appropriately. With others, review core training requirements for staff and design and develop education programmes which may be delivered to staff across the trust by post holder or by other staff as appropriate. Has an in depth knowledge and understanding of the organisations learning and development priorities. Links closely with the wider workforce team in order to maintain this knowledge and understanding. To work under own initiative managing competing demands with only minimal supervision To actively participate in ones own professional development, supervision and annual appraisal.