Job Purpose

To oversee and support a team of residential support workers whilst providing advice, assistance and support to young people in our care. Ensuing the young person is always appropriately safe guarded, driving our ethos of ‘every child matter’s.

Role Specific Competencies and Responsibilities

Young Person

• To maintain a high quality of care and support which meets the physical, emotional, intellectual, social and cultural needs of the young person within our care
• To provide a caring, supportive and nurturing environment in which the young person can feel secure and free from harm
• Establishing positive, trusted and secure relationships with the young person
• Be a positive role model to the young person, challenging unacceptable behaviour and rewarding positive conduct
• Ensuring that each young person’s care plan is followed and updated as appropriate to reflect their changing needs
• Attending to practical matters in relation to childcare and the family environment (cooking, cleaning, general maintenance around the home etc)
• Providing advice, assistance and support to enable the young person to address past and present difficulties
• Providing emotional support at times of difficulty or stress
• Advocate the importance of education and ambition with the young person, supporting them in their education and extracurricular activities, including supporting them in the classroom if necessary
• Keeping accurate records and providing written reports on young people for planning meetings, reviews or any other meetings as appropriate
• Empowering the young person and facilitating their active involvement in the decision making about their lives and future, sensitively supporting them where it may not be possible to act on their wishes
• Attending meetings with relevant professionals including social workers, CAMHS and LAC nurses, advocating for the young person
• Participate in the development and implementation of risk assessments to protect team members and the young person
• Ensure that the home operates in compliance with all relevant legislation including H&S, GDPR and care standards
• Ensure the delivery of high-quality child-centred care within the home

Team

• To work as part of the home and wider Arborvitae team
• Being instrumental in the creation of the aims and outcomes of the home, driving team members to achieve them
• Work with team members to consistently execute the young person’s childcare plans.
• Providing informal practical and emotional support to team members experiencing difficulties
• Attending and contributing to regular supervision sessions
• Being familiar with all policies and procedures and adhering to them
• Attending staff meetings and making a positive contribution to them
• Actively contributing to the development of the team
• Being willing to give and receive feedback on performance with team members and managers
• On call duties as and when required to provide safeguarding escalation support

Person Specification:

• Strong communicator (E)
• Sensitivity and understanding (E)
• Ability to work well with others (E)
• Patience and the ability to remain calm in stressful situations (E)
• Active listening skills (E)
• Ability to deal with challenging behaviour from a young person (E)
• Level 3 Diploma in Children’s Residential Care (E)
• Suitable enhanced DBS on the update service (E)
• Knowledge of current childcare policies and practices (E)
• Skills in budget control and monitoring (E)
• Experience of working within a children’s residential setting (E)