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You're interested in improving the lives of some of the most vulnerable people in society by becoming a social worker, but do you know about the range of specialisms and settings that you could end up working in once your course is complete?

Here are nine potential avenues you could pursue as a qualified Social Worker:

1.聽Senior Practitioner

Following your first post and approximately two years post-qualifying experience, there are opportunities to progress to a Senior Practitioner post in social work. This is usually a blend of very complex casework, supervisory responsibilities and managing some aspects of services such as a duty team or safeguarding cases. Such experience can eventually lead to positions at more senior management level.聽

2.听Practice Educators

Other Senior Practitioners who have an interest in training and development become Practice Educators responsible for supporting and assessing social work students during their placements. 聽

3.聽Best Interest Assessor

There are specialist social work roles that require postgraduate training and qualifications. Best Interest Assessors undertake Deprivation of Liberty Safeguarding assessments under the Mental Capacity Act 2005.听

4.听Team Managers

Social Work Team Managers聽lead, motivate, nurture and manage a聽team聽of聽Social Workers聽that will include experienced staff and newly qualified聽workers. They do so by managing performance and quality assurance, resources and budgets, in collaboration with others and key stakeholders.

5.听Hospital Social Workers

On a very basic level, hospital social workers act as a liaison for patients so that the patient and their family can better navigate the healthcare system, which can sometimes be quite confusing. Hospital social workers are a primary point of contact for patients and their families about policies, procedures, and services both in the hospital and after the patient鈥檚 discharged either to their own home or into another care setting.

6.听Mental Health Social Workers

Mental health social workers use聽talking therapy, support, and advocacy to enable people to manage the social factors in their lives, such as relationships, housing, and employment, that will help them to get well and stay well. By building resilience in individuals, their networks, and their communities, mental health social workers can help transform people鈥檚 wellbeing.

7.听Fostering and Adoption Social Worker

Fostering and adoption social workers聽spend much of their time visiting families in their homes. The primary role of聽fostering and adoption social workers聽is to recruit, assess and support prospective聽foster聽carers and adoptive parents and investigate their suitability to look after and bring up children.

8.听Child Protection Social Worker

On a day to day basis,聽child protection social workers聽are responsible for investigating any allegations of聽child聽abuse, endangerment, neglect, or other circumstances in which a聽child聽or聽children聽may not be safe in their current living situation. The ability to create and maintain a helpful relationship with children, families and professionals that prioritises the need of the child or young person is essential for a good child protection social worker. It is likely you will be managing a caseload where you are working with a range of personal differences as well as with many sectors in institutional public life, such as the courts, the police, health, education, immigration, housing and community and voluntary organisations.聽

9.听Family Court Adviser

As a聽Family Court聽Adviser for Cafcass (the聽Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service)聽you would work directly with vulnerable children and聽families, to advise the聽family courts聽on the best course of action for the child or young person. At the heart of this you will provide case analysis and recommendations to the聽court.