Engagement and Assessment Worker

About us

Crisis is the national charity for homeless people. We know that homelessness is not inevitable. We know that together we can end it.

It is an exciting and important time to be joining us at Crisis. We work with thousands of people across England, Scotland and Wales so they can leave homelessness behind for good. We have recently adapted the way our services work to maximise our impact in ending homelessness. We have increased our capacity to work with people one to one and also strengthened our ability to support those people facing the most barriers to preventing or ending their homelessness. 

Title: Engagement and Assessment Worker (Merseyside) 

Salary: £36,240 

Contract: Permanent 

Hours: 35 per week between the hours of 8.30am – 5pm on a rota basis   

Location: Based at Skylight Merseyside office and partner agencies on a rota basis 

About the role 

As an Engagement and Assessment Worker, you will be the first point of contact for someone who comes to Crisis for help to prevent or end their homelessness. You will: 

• welcome them to the service on site and at partner agencies,  

• listen carefully and non-judgementally to their story,  

• complete sensitively thorough Crisis and Mainstay assessments,  

• Agree realistic options and the support needed to assist them to prevent their homelessness or a pathway out of homelessness    

• Help them formulate a holistic plan and help them take the initial steps, where necessary. 

• Hold a caseload of members who require short term intervention to end their homelessness. 

About you 

To be successful in this role you will have: 

• Experience of working successfully with disadvantaged/or socially excluded groups and individuals, utilising a psychologically informed approach. 

• Ability to deliver excellent customer service, ensuring accessible, welcoming and safe ‘front of house’ environment in a busy service. 

• Experience of assessing presenting needs, and an understanding of strengths-based assessments. Empathy and understanding of the barriers to accessing services. 

• Ability to manage successful relationships with external agencies and relevant service providers and successfully advocate on members behalf. 

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills used to ensure accurate record keeping on a variety of Case Management Systems/Databases. 

• Excellent organisation and prioritisation skills, with the ability to successfully manage a busy and diverse workload. 

• The ability to use your own initiative to contribute to the effective running of the service and to work flexibly as part of a team. 

You may have experience in;  

• Homelessness, housing, mental health, harm reduction services. 

We believe diversity is a strength, and our aim is to make sure that Crisis truly reflects the communities we serve. We are actively working towards our organisation being a place where everyone can thrive and make their best contribution to our mission of ending homelessness for good. We know that the more perspectives, voices, and experiences we can bring to this work, the better. We particularly welcome applications from people who have lived experience of homelessness, and people from all marginalised groups, communities and backgrounds. 

Working at Crisis 

As a member of the team, you will have access to a wide range of employee benefits including: 

• Interest free loans for travel season ticket, cycle to work, and deposit to secure a tenancy 

• Pension scheme with an employer contribution of 8.5% 

• 28 days’ annual leave 

• Enhanced maternity, paternity, shared parental, and adoption pay 

• Flexible working around the core hours 10am-4pm 

• And more! (Full list of benefits available on website) 

Alongside our excellent staff benefits, we will support your ongoing development to build your skills, experience and career. 

When you join us, you will have the opportunity to join our staff diversity networks, which aim to champion issues across the organisation, enable staff to be their authentic and best selves and contribute to making Crisis a truly diverse organisation.   

How to apply

If you would like to know more about this role/the service, I would be delighted to speak to you or alternatively arrange for you to visit the Skylight.  

If this sound likes the opportunity for you, please click on the 'Apply for Job' button below. 

Closing date: Sunday 10th December 2023 (at 23:59) 

Interviews will be held on Wednesday the 20th December (PM) and Thursday the 21st December 2023