Child Welfare Placement Worker

Office of Shared Administration•Braxton, WV

About The Position

Child Welfare Placement Workers perform home-finding services in child welfare. They recruit, locate, and evaluate prospective kinship and resource care homes; train new and active home providers; conduct periodic provider reviews; and initiate corrective action plans when needed. The work involves interaction with professionals in social work, mental health, courts, and the legal system, as well as written documentation of casework and related activities. Frequent travel using a personal vehicle is required, and after-hours or weekend emergencies may occur. Overtime may also be required. Workers identify safe placement options for children affected by abuse or neglect, assess prospective placements, and evaluate whether children’s needs can be met. They support providers and review changes in care environments, attend and testify at court hearings, make appropriate child placements, and evaluate progress toward safety, service, and treatment-plan objectives. A bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university is required; no experience is required. Applicants must have a valid driver’s license, reliable transportation, access to a phone, strong oral and written communication skills, and the ability to maintain detailed case records. Successful completion of a background check is required. The position serves Braxton, Clay, Gilmer, Pleasants, Randolph, Ritchie, Webster, Wirt, and Wood counties. The Bureau for Social Services, operating under the West Virginia Department of Human Services, works to promote the security, permanence, and welfare of children and vulnerable adults and to strengthen families.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university.
No prior experience required.
Valid driver’s license; the posting also specifies a valid West Virginia driver’s license.
Reliable transportation and accessibility to a phone.
Strong oral and written communication skills.
Ability to maintain detailed case records and extensive documentation.
Successful completion of a background check.

Responsibilities

Attend ongoing training on state and federal social welfare laws, rules, regulations, and evolving protocols related to child abuse and neglect.
Recruit, locate, and evaluate prospective kinship and resource care homes.
Interview prospective providers and visually observe their homes or facilities to identify safe placement options.
Assess prospective placement candidates using established guidelines to determine whether children’s needs can be met.
Train new and active home providers.
Conduct periodic reviews of care providers and identify dynamics or problems that have arisen since placement.
Initiate corrective action plans when needed.
Develop effective communication with home providers about children’s safety, well-being, and permanency.
Attend court hearings and testify before the court.
Make appropriate placements of children, including with relatives, in foster homes, or in residential treatment facilities.
Evaluate family or living-environment progress toward safety, service, and treatment-plan objectives; determine whether plans need modification and assess eventual case disposition.
Maintain detailed case records and written documentation of casework and related activities.