London Victim and Witness Service is recruiting for 2 x DRIVE Independent Domestic Violence Advocate (IDVA). These roles are full-time working one-day per week in the office and the other days from home, with regular travel required to visit clients and attend meetings.
About DRIVE:
The Drive model is based on an intensive case management approach and explicitly targets high risk perpetrators of domestic abuse associated with victims who have been referred to the MARAC. The focus of this role is in increasing safety for victims-survivors, children and families, whilst those who cause harm, the perpetrators, have measures in place to disrupt abuse and change behaviour.
What we offer:
At Victim Support we believe in attracting & retaining the best people and offer a competitive rewards & benefits package including:
- Flexible working options including hybrid working
- 28 days annual leave plus Bank Holidays, rising to 33 days plus Bank Holidays
- An extra day off for your Birthday
- £500 bonus paid on successful completion of probationary period
- Pension with 5% employer contribution
- Enhanced sick pay allowances, maternity & paternity payments
- High Street, retail, holiday, entertainment & leisure discounts
- Access to our financial wellbeing hub & salary deducted finance
- Employee assistance programme & wellbeing support
- Ongoing training & support with opportunities for career development & progression
- Clinical supervision and group reflective practice
About the role:
This role will be part of our IDVA team in the London Victim and Witness Service. As a DRIVE Independent Domestic Violence Advocate your role will:
- Address the safety of victims at high risk of harm to secure their own & their chidlren's safety
- Serve as a victim's primary point of contact acting from the point of crisis to assess the level of risk, discuss the range of suitable options and develop safety plans
- Be pro-active in implementing the plans, including actions from MARAC, which address immediate safety and enable victims to protect themselves and their children, as well as longer term solutions, using sanctions and services via criminal and civil courts, housing options and other organisations
You will need:
- Have a knowledge of help-seeking barriers and support needs of victims of domestic abuse (in heterosexual or same-sex relationships).
- Have a good understanding of domestic abuse including the impact of domestic abuse on victims and their children.
- Understand the principles of risk assessment, safety planning and risk management for victims of domestic abuse and their children
- Understand safeguarding issues, and the legal responsibilities surrounding these issues.
- Direct service delivery to victims of domestic abuse or other vulnerable people.
- Have excellent communication, negotiation and advocacy skills, both written and verbal when interacting with a range of agencies and individuals. Understand and be committed to equal opportunities and diversity issues in policy and practice.
- Have a strong crisis management skills and the ability to deal with stressful and difficult situations.
Please see attached Job Description and Person Specification for further details.
About Us:
Victim Support (VS) is an independent charity providing a range of specialist services to people who have been affected by crime across England and Wales. We work towards a world where there are fewer victims but who have stronger rights, better support and a real influence in the Criminal Justice System. Everyone at VS is driven by our Vision Ambitions and Values to play their part in making a difference for those who experience crime and traumatic events. Working for VS gives you the opportunity to play a key role in a national charity providing high quality services to victims and witnesses and being a vital force for change.
Victim Support are committed to recruiting with care and to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Background checks and Disclosed Barring Service checks may be required.
Victim Support strives to represent the diverse communities we serve and are passionate about creating an environment where all staff and volunteers feel respected and heard. Being a diverse organisation with an inclusive culture is integral to us being able to meet our aim of ensuring that anyone who is a victim of crime gets the support they need.
As part of our commitment to the Race at Work Charter we particularly welcome applicants from Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities. VS is also a Disability Confident Employer and we provide a Guaranteed Interview Scheme for candidates that are disabled and meet all essential criteria for a role.
If you have a disability, a learning difficulty such as dyslexia or a medical condition which you believe may affect your performance during any aspect of our selection process, we'll be happy to make reasonable adjustments to enable you to perform at your best.
How to apply:
To apply for this role please follow the link below to the Jobs page on our website and complete the application form demonstrating how you meet the essential shortlisting criteria.
We look forward to hearing from you.
We reserve the right to close this vacancy early, if we receive enough suitable applications to take forward to interview prior to the published closing date.
HMP Peterborough
Ref WWC-241
Are you a dynamic, collaborative and compassionate individual with a proven track record as a caseworker delivering gender specific and trauma responsive interventions which support resettlement and rehabilitation of female adults in the criminal justice system, whether in the community or in prisons?
If so, St Giles and the Wise Group are looking for a Women’s Wellbeing Coach to be an integral part of a multi-agency team providing person-centred support, where you will deliver holistic and trauma informed Women’s services to females on remand or unsentenced.
Who are we?
The Wise Group and St Giles came together a few years ago to form a partnership with the aim of supporting the Probation Resettlement reforms by offering a high-quality service underpinned by staff who have lived experience and cultural competency. To date we have been awarded more than 20 contracts to deliver Personal Wellbeing, Finance, Benefit & Debt and Women’s Services across England and Wales.
The Wise Group is a leading social enterprise which is proud to be making a difference to people’s lives. We’re proud because we help people to find jobs, provide advice to people struggling to heat their homes and support people to find their feet following time in prison. To do this, the Wise Group works in partnership with everyone from large businesses to national and local government and third sector organisations who provide essential specialist support to our customers. Together, we’re greater than the sum of our parts.
St Giles is an award-winning social justice charity using expertise and real-life past experiences to empower people who are not getting the help they need. People held back by poverty, exploited, abused, dealing with addiction or mental health problems, caught up in crime or a combination of these issues and others. We show people there is a way to build a better future for themselves and those they care about and help them create this through support, advice, and training. Our peer-led services form the backbone of our work, putting people with lived experience at the centre of delivery, design, and evaluation of support and services across the UK.
About this exciting opportunity
As Women’s Wellbeing Coach, you will provide person-centred support to a caseload of service users, who will be female adults aged 18 years and above on remand and unsentenced within HMP Peterborough. This role will involve completing Trauma Informed assessments and developing, in collaboration with each service user, action plans which will result in timely and prescribed outcomes being achieved.
We will also rely on you to create a safe and trusting environment, using trauma informed practice to successfully facilitate a supportive and constructive relationship with service users and to deliver a range of interventions which contribute towards achieving pre-determined targets. Developing and maintaining positive working relationships with external agencies and working towards contractual targets and outcomes within agreed timescales are both essential aspects of the role, as is providing updates and reports, where required, using a range of formats.
What we are looking for
- Experience of working with females and supporting them to achieve positive outcomes.
- Experience of engaging successfully with challenging people.
- Proven record of delivering one-to-one and group coaching solutions.
- To have a relevant qualification to a good standard or be working towards one.
- Independent Domestic Violence Adviser (IDVA) qualification or willingness to be trained to the required level.
- Knowledge and understanding of the requirements of managing a caseload.
- The ability to assess clients’ needs and provide tailored, person-led support.
- Excellent interpersonal, relationship-building and communication skills, both verbal and written.
Please note this role requires Enhanced Adult Workforce only.
In return, you can expect a competitive salary, generous leave allowance, staff pension, flexible working, a mentoring programme, an advice and counselling service, clinical therapist sessions, life insurance (4 x annual salary), duvet days, season ticket loan, employee perks programme, eye care voucher and much more.
We are an equity and inclusion confident employer. We welcome all applications and we particularly encourage applications from people of the global majority (black, brown, multi- heritage ) and those who identify as disabled, neuroexpansive, neurodiverse, with any protected characteristics and/or social barriers or challenges. We value the empowering and informative impact that all lived experiences and diversity of thought can offer the organisation.
St Giles will guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria set out in the Job Description for the vacancy.
To apply, please visit our website via the ‘Apply’ button.
Closing date: 11pm, 2nd April 2024