An inspiring place to work
Join our wonderful Childrens Services team
We regularly have a range of job opportunities available with a key focus on attracting skilled Social Workers. Opportunities can arise across all aspects of our department, including management, support and administration so, whatever your skills, a career in Childrens Services is well worth a look.
To discover more about being a Social Worker on the Isle of Wight, take a look at our Recruitment Booklet – Social Worker.
Isle of Wight Employee Benefits
Childrens Services is not just a great place to work, as a valued employee at the Isle of Wight Council you can also access our competitive reward and benefits package including:
- Competitive rates of pay and allowances plus a market supplement
- A generous annual leave entitlement of 31 days per annum, plus public holidays
- Five dedicated days of professional development
- A relocation package
- Local Government pension scheme a defined benefit scheme based on your career average earnings. Further details available via Isle of Wight Pension Fund (website)
- Staff discounts & benefits schemes
- Solent ferry travel discounts via Red Funnel, Wightlink & Hovertravel
- Island bus network discount
- Staff parking permit scheme
- A range of discounts from over 100 local island businesses
- Access to a public sector benefits scheme that gives employees access to an extensive range of discounts to local and national goods and services
- Discounted island sports & leisure gym membership
- Access to private health care packages
- Salary Sacrifice
- Cycle to work scheme
- Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVC) pension scheme
Island Life
Living on the Island and staying connected to the mainland is a breeze. The Island is an easy commute from Lymington, Southampton and Portsmouth. The majority of our employees choose to enjoy the benefits of living here on the Island, whilst some prefer to commute on a daily or weekly basis from their mainland-home base, the choice is yours.
The Isle of Wight lies off the south coast of mainland England and covers an area of 147 square miles, we have a beautiful coastline that runs for 57 miles. Slightly more than half, mainly in the west, is designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, with 28 miles designated as Heritage Coast. While the overriding character of the Island is rural, about 60% of the Isle of Wight’s population live within the main towns of Newport, Cowes, East Cowes, Ryde, Sandown and Shanklin. Newport is the county town of the Island and is the main employment centre.
For a snapshot of Island Life to help you decide if this is the place for you, take a look at our video. You can also take a look at island life from our local tourism partners Visit Isle of Wight.
Local Offer
Who better than Childrens Services, to understand that all families need extra support from time to time, including those within our own workforce. Whether support is from family and friends, community groups or services that everybody can use such as schools, children’s centres, leisure centres, doctor’s surgeries and specialist services, all make a valuable contribution and difference to people’s lives. Knowing what is out there gives you choice and control over what support is right for you and your child. Our Local Offer website was designed to help parents and carers find the right support for children with special educational needs and disabilities. If you are considering a family relocation to the island you can also discover more about our Island schools and education.
Lower Housing Costs
Living on a beautiful Island is also rewarded by lower housing costs. In February 2019, Rightmove identified that Isle of Wight properties cost 40.7% less than the average house price bought elsewhere in the South East of England! In 2018 the average house price on the Isle of Wight was £238,613 compared to £402,268 across the South East region as a whole.
Help to buy South
Help to Buy South is a Help to Buy agent for the south of England offering affordable options to purchase or rent a home. The Isle of Wight is among the areas covered by the scheme.
Relocation Incentives
The Isle of Wight Council currently offers various incentives such as a home relocation scheme and pay a travel allowance in hard to recruit occupational areas. Our recruitment pack will state whether relocation expenses are applicable to each role. If you qualify, the Isle of Wight Council will help with relocation costs up to a maximum payment of £8,000.
If you would like some information on applying for jobs or help completing an application form, please visit the Human Resources website.
If you would like to be part of our team, please check our current list of job vacancies.