Jobs for the Disability sector

Summary of the Role

Inclusion Gloucestershire is commissioned by Gloucestershire County Council to carry out Quality Checks of residential homes, supported living settings, day services and domiciliary care providers across the county. The purpose of these checks is to ensure that disabled people who live in these settings are safe, healthy and happy, and that the care that they receive is appropriate to their needs.

Our Quality Checks are peer-led. Every Quality Check involves a team of two people, a Quality Checker (Expert by Experience) who has lived experience of disability, autism and/or mental ill health working alongside a Quality Checking Coordinator.  The Coordinator’s role is to facilitate the quality check on the day, record all of the information gathered and produce a report which identifies good practice and areas for improvement. The Expert by Experience will lead on asking questions during a Quality Check and contribute to the report by telling the Quality Checking Coordinator what they thought about the setting.

Inclusion Gloucestershire provides a comprehensive framework of questions asked by the Expert by Experience on the visit and used to write the report with. The framework focuses on questions for the people who are supported in the setting and also includes questions for the staff and manager.

Job Purpose: To organise and facilitate Quality Checks, working alongside and supporting Quality Checkers to complete Quality Checks in a range of care and support settings.

Reports to: Quality Checking Manager

Main Duties and Responsibilities

· Carry out a minimum agreed number of Quality Checks per month alongside an Expert by Experience. Quality Checks include questions for people who are supported, the staff who support them and the manager of the setting. They also include observations and checks of some paperwork and processes.

· Liaise with our administrator to ensure quality checks are risk-assessed and sufficient preparation carried out.

· Support the Quality Checker to prepare for the visit.

· Capture information about the setting and liaise with individuals and providers to ensure visits are accessible and inclusive.

· Support the Quality Checker to interview and interact with participants in the process.

· Make observations during the Quality Check and look at identified documentation.

· Record all information gathered during the Quality Check using the appropriate frameworks and tools.

· Review your findings with the Quality Checker, assess what is good practice and where improvements need to be made.

· Write an accurate and comprehensive report and action plan for each setting visited.

· Complete follow up visits, where necessary, to ensure actions are completed by Providers.

· Share reports and action plans with the Council and the Providers.

· Be aware and act on the need to report safeguarding concerns.

· Advocate for Inclusion Gloucestershire and its projects at meetings and events and within your own appropriate networks.

· This role profile is not exhaustive and may be subject to change to meet the operational needs of the charity.

Line management of Quality Checkers:

· Working according to the values of the organisation, promoting a strength-based and inclusive approach in support for your team.

· Providing day to day support for Experts by Experience with managing diaries, administration duties and facilitation of visits.

· Providing formal and recorded one-to-one support at a minimum of four times per year for identified colleagues but tailored to individual need and in line with policy and procedure.

· Ensuring identified colleagues have an annual appraisal in line with policy and procedure.

· Supporting Quality Checkers to identify their skills and training needs.

· Supporting Quality Checkers with their timesheets each month.

General:

· The role requires an ability to travel within the county. Any vehicles or drivers used will need to be insured for business purposes.

· The role requires an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.

This role profile is not exhaustive and may be subject to change to meet the operational needs of the charity.

Essential Skills/Experience

Items marked * will be used as shortlisting criteria for this post

· Understanding of what good and not so good quality looks like in care and support services. *

· Understanding of the social model of disability. *

· Able to plan, manage workload, prioritise tasks and meet deadlines *

· Able to be a proactive team player*

· Good communication skills and ability to easily build rapport with individuals, staff and managers.

· Able to work in a flexible manner, with a proactive and solution focused approach to overcoming obstacles.*

· Proven ability to meet deadlines in a fast-paced environment. 

· Able to show empathy and active listening skills.

· Observant and able to capture a large amount of information in a busy setting.

· Thoroughness and an eye for detail when reading through documentation.

· Ability to manage potentially difficult conversations including defusing tension and conflict management/resolution.

· Trustworthy and able to handle confidential information. *

· Understanding of key Safeguarding principles.

· High standard of written English.

· Excellent IT skills, including confidence in arranging video call meetings using Zoom and Microsoft Teams. 

· Willing to learn.

· Friendly, caring and understanding.

· Able to travel independently around the county.

Desirable Skills/Experience

· Experience of a range of support services for people with disabilities, mental ill health, autism. This could be in the role of staff, management, family/carer or as a disabled person.

· Experience of supporting or working with disabled people or people who face disabling barriers.

· Ability to communicate with people who may not communicate verbally.

· Previous experience of line management.

Values and Personal Beliefs

Inclusion Gloucestershire is driven by its values, at the heart of all that it does. Teams are expected to share and demonstrate these values:

· We are a user-led organisation, driven by the social model of disability, which sees people as disabled by society rather than by their impairment or difference.

· We make sure everyone is meaningfully involved and included

· We empower choice and control through peer leads and place experts by experience at the forefront of our delivery

· We challenge when things aren’t right and give people facing disabling barriers a strong voice

· We believe it is right to treat people fairly and always behave in a way that is honest and trustworthy even when nobody is looking

· We are a caring and professional organisation who work together towards shared goals

· We work in partnership to deliver exciting new ideas and support each other, our members and our community.

We are proud to have been recognised with an Inclusive Employer award but realise that people from some backgrounds are under-represented in our workforce and across the wider charity sector. A more diverse workforce will enable us to deliver even more impact and we particularly encourage applications from communities which are currently underrepresented. This includes people from ethnically diverse communities, people with lived experience of disability or mental ill health, and people who are neurodiverse.

This role isn’t funded by National Lottery funds, or any other funds raised through the proceeds of a lottery, gambling or through interest or investments.