Hi,
I have been hitting a few barriers recently in trying to move on to a different field of social work because all of my post-qualifying experience has been as a supervising social worker in a fostering service. It seems that even when I have 'interviewed well' my lack of experience in conducting mainstream assessments (e.g. initial assessment, core assessments etc) has let me down. Despite different projects I have developed in my current role and having some experience of CAFS while on my placement it seems that without being 'case responsible' for children I cannot prove my worth and cannot really compete against all those other candidates who have been.
I am going to look into shadowing other teams and have even considered a voluntary role that will give me more direct contact with children, but am not convinced that these things would help me as I will still be missing that crucial experience in mainstream childcare - I am trying to get it by applying for other jobs but seems I am stuck in a bit of a cycle...
I completely appreciate that we are in a difficult time at the moment and am so grateful to be in a position where I am looking for a different job instead of just a job but I would just really appreciate any help and advice that people are able to give.
Thank you!