Job Opportunity

Family Support Worker

Job Description

We are looking for a passionate and enthusiastic team member, committed to supporting vulnerable and excluded families.

Hours: 37.5
Contract Type: Full-time
Location: Todmorden Family Hub, Todmorden Community College, Burnley Road, Todmorden, OL14 7BX
Delivery Area: Children and Families
Deadline: Friday 31st January 2025 @ 5pm
Salary: £26,954.12

We are looking for someone with:

A professional qualification at NVQ Level 3 or above in childcare or equivalent (or keen to work towards this)
Considerable experience of working with children, young people and families
Considerable experience of engaging and working with families
Knowledge of the developmental needs of children aged 0-18
An ability to build and maintain relationships with multi-agency colleagues
A non-judgemental, patient and sensitive approach to families under stress
A willingness to work flexibly to meet the needs of the service, which will involve weekend/evening work
The ability to work from other Family Hubs within Upper Valley and Central Calderdale area
A full driving licence and the use of a car for work

About the Role

Working directly with parents, carers and their children you will introduce and encourage new families to engage with the service, supporting them in groups and on a 1-1 basis to improve the quality of their lives and opportunities.

Application Information and How to Apply

Job Description

Reports to:

Senior Family Support Worker/Family Support & Outreach Manager

Job Overview:

To work with a delegated caseload of families, supporting children and families with complex issues, including assessing need. Planning and achieving positive outcomes for children and families.

Responsibility and Duties:

To visit individual parents and families at home, as well as groups of parents, to listen to their requirements and inform them of services, groups and projects that the Family Hub can provide
To support and encourage the participation of ‘hard to reach’ parents, (ethnic minority groups, asylum seekers, lone parents and teenage parents)
To take on the role of key worker with families and children, case working under the supervision of a manager or senior member of staff
To work under the Early Help Assessment Process and to work as Lead Professional where required
To develop and facilitate relevant support groups to meet parental need
To work with children and families in a flexible way to meet their assessed needs
To understand child protection issues, and to act appropriately should areas of concern arise, in line with Safeguarding policies and procedures
Responsibility for planning and preparation of individual and group work that may form part of a child protection plan
To attend and participate in court proceedings, case conferences and child care meetings, as required
To contribute to the development of both centre based and outreach programmes
To contribute with the decision making
Assess, and identify need. Plan, develop and implement packages of care to meet the identified need, meeting outcomes of the Family Hub Agenda. If required provide parents and families with high quality intensive support, working directly with all family members
Deliver evidence-based parenting programmes, being sensitive to specific needs of the community and individuals in order to promote positive parenting
Responsibility for planning and preparation of individual and group work that may form part of a child protection plan
To be involved in the development and promotion of community provision through open access groups, adult education classes and similar services
Adhere to and assist with completing risk assessments
To monitor the needs of families and service users to inform the business plan to improve the outcomes for children and families
To be responsible for using initiative when making day to day decisions regarding the welfare of children and parents, in consultation with line manager

General Responsibilities

All staff must comply with Halifax Opportunities Trust policies and procedures including Health & Safety, Safeguarding, equal opportunities, confidentiality and Data protection
Take responsibility for own personal and professional development, in line with agreed annual performance objectives
Adopt a creative and innovative approach towards practice by being open to opportunities for improvements and making suggestions.
To undertake any other tasks and duties that may be reasonably requested by management
Attend and complete actions from regular Supervision sessions with line-manager
Establish and develop collaborative relationships within and across the organisation
Establish and develop collaborative partnerships outside the organisation that support Halifax Opportunities Trust brands, images and values
Attend training days and other training as required
Maintain up to date knowledge regarding legislation

The responsibilities reflect the core activities of the role and are not intended to be exhaustive. Other activities or duties may be required, or changes in emphasis needed, from time to time to meet the needs of the organisation and it is expected that the role-holder will adopt a flexible approach in this respect. All roles and responsibilities are regularly reviewed and revised where necessary to ensure that organisation needs continue to be addressed.

Person Specification

Experience and Knowledge:

Essential:

Considerable experience of engaging and working with families.
Considerable experience of working with young children and their families.

Desirable:

Work in or liaison with statutory and voluntary agencies.

Education and Qualifications:

Essential:

GCSE or equivalent grade C or above in Maths and English.
NVQ Level 3 or above in Family Support, Social Work, Childcare, Play Work, Community Development or Children’s Health, working towards or willing to obtain this level of qualification.

Desirable:

First Aid certificate.
Teaching, Counselling or equivalent qualification.
Degree qualification relevant to the post or working towards.

Abilities and Skills

Essential:

Knowledge of and ability to provide for children’s development needs.
Skills in direct work with children and their parents.
Ability to promote positive parenting skills and self-esteem.
Community engagement skills.
Understanding of the issues related to disadvantaged sections of the community.
Ability to communicate fluently in English.
Ability to write detailed records and reports.
Sympathetic understanding of situations involving high levels of family stress.
Working knowledge of child protection and domestic violence.
Working knowledge of the Family Hub Agenda.
Basic computer skills (Microsoft Office, email and internet).
Ability to organise own time and workload.
Good organisational and planning skills.

Desirable:

Ability to speak a second language that reflects the local community.

Traits and Characteristics:

Essential:

A caring and pleasant approach to work and people.
A positive approach to difficult situations and challenges.
Ability to work both on own initiative and cooperatively as part of a team.
Ability to work in a non-discriminatory, sensitive and respectful way.
Patience and consistency in working with children and adults.
Commitment to the Family Hub policies and developing quality services

Desirable:

Circumstances:

Essential:

Ability to work flexible hours, which may include occasional weekends and evenings
Fit to carry out all tasks associated with the post

Desirable:

How to Apply

Closing date for applications is Friday 31^st January 2025 @ 5pm

For an informal discussion regarding the above post please contact Carol Ormerod on 01706399976

To apply, please view the job description and personal specification and complete the online application form

Privacy Notice

Halifax Opportunities Trust is registered with the Information Commissioners Office (ICO) under the provisions of the Data Protection Act 2018. Halifax Opportunities Trust takes its responsibilities under the Act very seriously.

The information provided by you is collected for the purposes of processing your application for employment against the Job Description and Person Specification. Application forms are used to determine who to interview for the advertised position by way of shortlisting.

If you are successful in your application and are subsequently offered a position with Halifax Opportunities Trust, the data collected will be used to carry out pre-employment checks and ensure your suitability for the position. The data will then be transferred onto your personnel file.

You may withdraw consent at any time to recruitment@regen.org.uk. In addition you have the right to see what information is held about you, to have inaccurate information corrected, to have information removed from our system unless we are required by law or a statutory purpose to keep it and the right to complain to the Data Protection Officer if you feel that the data has not been handled in accordance with the law. Halifax Opportunities Trust Data Protection officer is Malgorzata Ciewiertnia and can be contacted at Privacy@regen.org.uk .

Application forms will be kept for a period of six months for unsuccessful candidates. For successful applicants, the information will be transferred to your personnel file and will be kept for a maximum of the individual’s employment with us plus seven years or as per recommended guidelines for jobs working with children and vulnerable groups, term of employment plus 25 years or until such a time as the data is reviewed.

What makes HOT a

great place to work?

We’re a Real Living Wage employer because we recognise the benefits of paying a decent wage to all our staff.

We are a Mindful Employer which means we take our employees’ wellbeing very seriously and find ways to promote good mental health within the organisation. We offer a dedicated, confidential phone-line support service (Mindful Employer Plus) through which staff can access practical advice and support 24 hours a day 365 days a year.

We are a Disability Confident committed employer.

The Trust offers a NEST auto-enrolment pension to all qualifying staff.

How we create opportunities

Pay

Perks

progression

People Powered

Purpose Driven

It's people who makes us great

As a charity, our day-to-day is underpinned by doing good. This doesn’t only apply to the 1,700 people we reach each day, it also applies to the 180 people who work at Halifax Opportunities Trust. We like to recognise the good things our employees do, which is why we celebrate when people go above and beyond to bring our values to life, with acknowledgement awards. Furthermore, we’re driven by the following three principles:

Our Values

In our daily endeavours to achieve our goals, we are guided by our values. They reflect our culture, the way we want things to be and our expectations of the people we work with.