Family Support Worker

Family Support Worker

Location: Office-based in North Shields

Responsible to: CEO

Hours: 22

Salary: £23,690 - £25,235 (pro-rata for part-time hours)

Main purpose of the post: 

• To offer support, information and advice to parents and carers who have been referred to Acorns services, in North Tyneside and potentially into Northumberland
• To provide or facilitate advocacy for parents/carers seeking help from, or needing support with dealing with other agencies
• To support the Family Support Service Co-ordinator to develop enrichment and engagement activities for parents and carers 
• To support and develop volunteers to provide enrichment and engagement activities for parents and carers 
• Support parents/carers on a 1-1 basis to develop their confidence and emotional wellbeing and reduce their sense of isolation
• Manage own caseload by maintaining accurate and confidential  records of all cases, monitor outcomes and work in a proactive manner to support and further develop service provision
• Develop methods to elicit the views of parents/carers and prepare reports that will feed into the evaluation of the service 
• Produce reports highlighting positive areas of work, case studies, areas of concern and summary of outcomes, when required
• Plan and deliver training and awareness raising sessions to multi-agency teams and service users
• Prepare accurate monitoring reports and statistical information
• Participate in regular training opportunities
• To respect diversity and support clients to access services on an equitable basis
• To comply with Acorns equal opportunity statement at all times

Administration:

• To provide regular reports as required
• To record appropriate data 
• To maintain accurate paper and electronic records as required 

Equal Opportunities:

• To comply with and implement Acorns equal opportunities statement at all times.
• To respect diversity and support clients to access services on an equitable basis.

Please Note: This job description is not exhaustive.  The post holder will be expected to adopt a flexible approach to the tasks, which may vary from time to time following discussion with line management.  Any variations, however, will be in keeping with the general profile of the post.

Person specification

Qualifications - Essential 

• A good general level of education to level 3

Qualifications - Desireable

• Qualification in information advice and guidance, e.g. NVQ
• IDVA Qualification

Assessed by application, certificates, interview

Experience and Knowledge - Essential

• Experience of working with vulnerable client groups 
• Experience of case work and record keeping including recording case notes
• Experience of advocating on behalf of service users 
• Knowledge and experience of child protection procedures and confidentiality
• Competent user of IT systems
• Experience of multi-agency partnership working
• Knowledge of domestic violence and the effects on victims and children

Experience and Knowledge - Desirable

• Knowledge of legal frameworks/court legislation for domestic violence
• An understanding of the relevant socio-economic factors in the local area 
• An understanding of local services and agencies in order to signpost service users effectively when required
• Use of CRM systems to manage and record client work

Assessed by application, certificates, interview

Skills and Abilities - Essential  

• Good interpersonal and communication skills
• Enthusiastic, self-motivated approach with ability to think creatively and apply initiative
• Able to work constructively as part of a team
• Ability to manage time effectively, work under pressure and to deadlines while maintaining high standards of work
• Flexibility to work outside of ordinary office hours if required
• Commitment to the principles of equal opportunity and the empowerment of individuals
• To work with service users in a non-judgemental manner 

Skills and Abilities - Desirable  

• Analytical and report writing skills

Assessed by application, certificates, interview