Role Summary & Benefits

Category: Social care – Children’s service

Salary:

• Year 1: bursary of £18,000-£20,000 (depending on location)
• Year 2 and 3: salary of up to £34,000, higher in some London boroughs

Location: Various, including South West

Job description: 

Approach Social Work (formerly known as the Frontline programme) 

Looking for a career with purpose and a clear path for development? 

As a social worker, you’ll work directly with children and families to make sure children are safe, supported and able to thrive. It’s a career that offers stability, progression and the chance to make a lasting difference. On this programme, you’ll be supported from day one and gain the skills, experience and master’s degree to succeed, wherever your career takes you. 

About the programme 

Approach Social Work is a fully funded training programme that helps you step into children’s social work with the training, tools and support to make a difference.  

On the programme, you’ll develop a deep understanding of child-focused practice and how to build relationships that create real change. You’ll also explore anti-discriminatory, anti-oppressive and anti-racist approaches — and earn a master’s degree along the way. 

What to expect 

Year one: 

• Begin study for your postgraduate diploma 
• Learn alongside children and families within a local authority, supported by experienced tutors and practice educators 
• Receive a bursary of £18,000 or £20,000 (depending on location) to help with living and travel costs 

Year two and three:  

• Move into a paid role as a newly qualified social worker (up to £34,000, or more in some London boroughs) 
• Keep working towards your master’s degree 
• Join the Frontline Fellowship, a national community offering career-long support and development 

Eligibility criteria

In addition to demonstrating our competencies throughout your application, you must meet the following criteria to join Approach Social Work.

• Have at least a 2.2 (predicted or obtained) in an undergraduate honours degree (or international equivalent)
• Have obtained GCSE English Language at Grade C/4 or above (or approved equivalent qualification – higher qualifications will not be accepted in lieu of GCSEs)
• Possess the right to work and study in the UK (including access to public funds) for the duration of the programme (until September 2029)
• Be resident in England by the time the programme commences
• Not be a qualified social worker

Real support. Real skills. A career that matters.

Key Responsibilities

You’ll learn how to build relationships, make difficult decisions and advocate for children’s safety and wellbeing. That means:
– Visiting a child at home or school
– Supporting a parent through difficult circumstances
– working with teachers, health professionals or police
– writing reports and helping decide what’s safest for a child

It’s a role that takes empathy, resilience and strong judgment, rooted in anti-racist, anti-oppressive and anti-discriminatory practice.