Upload your CV
Save time when you spot your dream job. Upload your CV with ease.
Save time when you spot your dream job. Upload your CV with ease.
Actively Interviewing
This organisation is scheduling interviews as applications come in. They're ready to hire as soon as they find the right person. Don't miss your opportunity, apply now!
We are looking for a Weekenders Journey Guide to support prospective Weekend Foster Carers from their first conversations with Now Foster through to the next stages of the recruitment and assessment journey.
This is a highly relational, candidate-facing role. You will be one of the main people helping applicants understand what Weekenders is, explore whether it is right for them, stay motivated through the process, and feel supported to take the next step.
Introductory conversations (our ‘intro chats’) will be a core part of the role. You will speak with people who are curious about fostering, but who may also feel unsure, nervous or are still working out whether they can foster. Your role will be to bring warmth, clarity and momentum: helping people feel welcomed, informed and confident, while also making sure the right people progress at the right pace.
You will use Now Foster’s digital platform (a bespoke CRM system) to manage the candidate journey, track progress, record key information and help the team understand where applicants are getting stuck or moving forward. You will play an important role in making sure we are attracting the right leads, supporting them well, and learning how to improve the journey as we grow.
This role would particularly suit someone with experience of fostering or working in fostering. It could also suit someone from a related background who is deeply motivated by innovation in this area and excited by what fostering could look like if it were designed around children, carers and relationships.
You do not need to be a qualified social worker, but you do need to be emotionally mature, reflective, organised and comfortable working closely with a social work-led team. You will need to understand safeguarding, and be confident holding thoughtful conversations with prospective carers.
What You’ll Be Doing
Supporting candidates through the journey
Acting as a consistent, warm and encouraging point of contact for prospective Weekend Foster Carers.
Carrying out intro chats with people who have expressed interest in the Weekenders programme.
Helping candidates understand the Weekenders programme, what the role involves, and what the journey looks like.
Supporting candidates to reflect on whether Weekenders is right for them.
Keeping candidates engaged, informed and motivated as they move through the process.
Helping people overcome practical barriers where appropriate, while being honest and clear about expectations.
Making sure candidate communication feels relational, timely and values-led.
Helping the right people progress
Helping identify candidates who are ready to move forward, as well as those who may need more time, more information or a different route.
Support candidates to progress, pause or close, as advised by our fostering service colleagues.
Using strengths-based and motivational approaches to help candidates reflect on their motivations, support networks and capacity.
Working closely with social work colleagues to escalate questions, concerns or safeguarding issues appropriately.
Supporting candidates to prepare for training, home visits and assessment stages.
Helping ensure the process is clear, efficient and supportive.
Supporting groups, events and community activity
Supporting information events, training sessions and candidate-facing events.
Co-delivering sessions with social workers and other colleagues.
Helping create a welcoming community for people exploring Weekenders.
Supporting socials and community-building activity for applicants and approved Weekend Foster Carers.
Helping candidates connect with the mission and feel part of something meaningful.
Administration, data and follow-up
Keeping candidate records, notes and next steps up to date on Now Foster’s digital platform.
Using Google Workspace, Trello and other tools to access key documents and manage your workload.
Making sure no candidate falls through the cracks.
Supporting data capture so the team can understand what is working and where candidates are getting stuck.
Helping improve templates, messages, prompts and workflows for the candidate journey.
Supporting home visit admin and logistics where needed.
Contributing to innovation and learning
Gathering feedback from candidates to help improve the journey and bringing this insight from candidate conversations into team discussions.
Helping the team understand what motivates people to become Weekend Foster Carers, what worries them, and what helps them move forward.
Supporting testing and iteration of new candidate journey approaches.
Helping us build a process that is warm, efficient, inclusive and effective.
Contributing to a new model of fostering that is relational, ambitious and designed around children and young people.
You’ll Thrive in This Role If You Are
Warm and relational – able to build trust quickly and make people feel welcome.
Emotionally mature – able to have thoughtful conversations about motivation, care, family life and uncertainty.
A strong communicator – clear, encouraging and confident across phone, video calls, emails and written updates.
Motivational and strengths-based – skilled at helping people see their potential while also being honest about what fostering involves.
Organised and proactive – able to manage a busy candidate journey, track next steps and keep people moving.
Tech-savvy – comfortable using digital platforms, Google Workspace and Trello.
Confident in your judgement – able to decide when someone should progress, pause or close, while knowing when to seek advice.
Safeguarding-aware – able to recognise when something needs to be escalated and comfortable working within clear safeguarding processes.
Reflective and curious – interested in learning what works and improving the candidate journey over time.
Comfortable with ambiguity – happy working in a small, growing charity where things are evolving.
Committed to better outcomes for children and young people – motivated by Now Foster’s mission and the potential of Weekenders.
Experience We’re Looking For
Fostering experience would be highly beneficial. For example, this could include experience as a foster carer, working in fostering, supporting foster carers, working with fostering services, or working in a closely related part of children’s social care.
We are also interested in people with experience in:
Volunteer management
Children’s social care or youth work
Community work
Social prescribing
Mentoring or coaching
Recruitment, onboarding or candidate support
Relationship-based support roles
Most importantly, we are looking for someone who understands the importance of relationships, can guide people through a meaningful decision-making process, and is excited by the possibility of building a different kind of fostering journey.
Bonus Points For
Lived experience of the care system or fostering.
Experience working directly with prospective or approved foster carers.
Experience using motivational interviewing, coaching or strengths-based approaches.
Experience supporting people through an application, recruitment, assessment or onboarding journey.
Experience delivering or supporting information sessions, preparation groups, training or community events.
Experience working remotely or in a flexible, fast-moving team.
An interest in innovation, service design or changing how fostering works.
About Us
Now Foster is a team of innovative social workers, designers, and entrepreneurs on a mission to change fostering in the UK.
We bring together social work, service design, public sector transformation and lived experience to create better outcomes for children and young people. Our overarching vision is to transform the fostering system by bringing many more wonderful people into it as foster carers, so that children and young people have the relationships, stability and support they need to thrive.
You will be joining a small, ambitious and passionate team, alongside our trustees, freelancers and advisors, all of whom play an active part in shaping our work. We partner with local authorities and not-for-profits who share our values and are ready to embrace change. As a registered charity, everything we do is driven by purpose, not profit.
About Weekenders
Weekenders is Now Foster’s flagship programme. It pairs children and young people in foster care with inspiring adults who can offer guidance, stability and encouragement on a regular basis. It is about showing up, making a difference, and being that person a young person can count on.
The programme is growing quickly. We are scaling Weekenders across London and beyond, testing new ways to support applicants, local authorities and independent social workers, and building the operational foundations needed for long-term growth.
A core part of this growth is making sure that people who are interested in becoming Weekend Foster Carers receive the right balance of warmth, encouragement, information and challenge as they move through the journey. That is where the Journey Guide comes in.
Working Pattern and Location
This role is offered at 4 to 5 days per week, with a salary of £34,000 pro rata.
The role can be based anywhere in England, with occasional travel to our Weekender delivery areas. Our Weekenders team is currently based across London and Manchester, and our wider organisational team is based in Oxford. Most work will be home-based, but there will be some in-person meetings, events, training sessions or bi-monthly co-working days.
The role will involve some work outside standard office hours. This is likely to include:
Around one weekend day per month, which you would take back as time off during the previous or following week.
Some evening work, for example around one information event per month.
Some evening intro chats with prospective foster carers, where this helps people engage with the process.
We work flexibly and will support the successful candidate to manage their time in a sustainable way.
Safeguarding
Now Foster is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people.
This role will involve contact with prospective carers, rather than direct work with children and young people. However, you will need to understand safeguarding, work within Now Foster’s safeguarding processes, and escalate any concerns appropriately.
This role will require an enhanced DBS check.
What’s In It For You
Joining Now Foster means being part of something different. We are small, ambitious and innovative, and you will play a key role in helping Weekenders grow.
You will be close to the people exploring whether they could become Weekend Foster Carers, and your work will directly shape whether they feel supported, confident and ready to take the next step.
You will join a supportive, collaborative and values-led team. We work hard, care deeply about what we do, and are building something bold and lasting: a new way of fostering that blends social work, design, technology and relational practice.
We will provide the tools and technology you need, cover agreed travel and expenses, and support you to work flexibly within the rhythm of the programme.
How to Apply
Please send us your CV and a short cover letter explaining:
Why you are interested in Now Foster and the Weekenders programme.
The experience you would bring in supporting, guiding or motivating people.
Any experience you have of fostering, working in fostering, children’s social care, community work, volunteer management or similar.
What excites you about innovation in fostering and what fostering could look like.
Your availability, including whether you are looking for 4 or 5 days per week and when you could start.
You must have the right to work in the UK.
We recognise that some candidates may use generative AI tools, such as ChatGPT, to support the preparation of their application. While this is acceptable, applications must remain an authentic reflection of your own experiences and motivations. We ask candidates to let us know if and how they used AI as part of the recruitment process.
Our Commitment to Equality
Now Foster is committed to being an equal opportunities employer. We celebrate diversity and actively encourage applications from individuals of all backgrounds, identities and experiences.
Recruitment and selection decisions are made on the basis of fair, objective and transparent criteria. We will also make reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process to ensure accessibility for all candidates.
Please Note: We are hoping to appoint as soon as possible and will close recruitment once we find the right person so candidates are advised to submit an application as soon as they are able.
Actively Interviewing
This organisation is scheduling interviews as applications come in. They're ready to hire as soon as they find the right person. Don't miss your opportunity, apply now!
Independent Living Advisor (Self-Directed Support Service)
Salary: £30,000 per annum
Hours: 35 hours per week
Contract: Permanent
Location: Action on Disability, Mo Mowlam House, Clem Attlee Court, London, SW6 7BF
The Organisation
Action on Disability (AoD), founded in 1979, is one of London’s leading Deaf and Disabled People’s Organisations. As we believe in the social model of disability, our values and principles embrace inclusive and accessible ways of working both internally and in all our activities, seek the participation and contribution of our members, and encourage and respect diversity.
The organisation is a medium sized charity with a Board of Trustees (at least 75% is disabled trustees), 20 staff and a strong ad hoc staff and volunteer base including many with direct experience of disability – all of whom are passionate about removing the barriers that disabled people face.
AoD provides five key services. These are: Youth, Employment, Welfare Benefits, Independent Living and Our Place.
AoD’s Independent Living Service
The Independent Living Service (Self-Directed Support Service) is a new service that will provide support to Direct Payment users within the borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. The service will enable disabled people to have genuine choice and control over the way in which they lead their lives.The post-holder will be working alongside disabled people to enable them to have more choice and control over their care and support needs.
Purpose of Post
To work with individuals, their family and friends (where appropriate) to provide them with information, advice and assistance to enable them to access and manage a Direct Payment
(DP) and recruit and manage a Personal Assistant (PA).
Main Duties and Responsibilities
Support to individuals employing their own Personal (care) Assistant (PA) or engage an agency to deliver care and support.
Ongoing support to individuals in receipt of Direct Payments
For all work:
Special requirements
Person Specification
To be considered for this role, candidates must have:
Desirable qualities
Closing Date: Friday 10th July 2026
N.B. we reserve the right to close this vacancy early and/or begin interviewing before the closing date if a suitable candidate is identified.
Early applications are therefore encouraged.
Interested?
If you would like to find out more, please click the apply button. You will be directed to our website to complete your application for this position.
The successful candidate will be required to undertake an enhanced DBS check.
We welcome applicants from all walks of life.
As a Disability Confident Employer, we actively encourage applications from Disabled people and people with long term health and mental conditions. We operate a Guaranteed Interview Scheme in that we will guarantee an interview to all Disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the post. Please state in a cover letter if you wish us to consider you for this guaranteed interview scheme.
AoD is a Living Wage Foundation registered employer and all of our employees, casual workers and contractors are paid above the London Living Wage.
No agencies please.
Pdap has been delivering services to victims of domestic abuse for 50 years through our emergency accommodation and community outreach services. We are a values-led organisation, and we believe that everyone has a right to live a life free from fear and abuse. We offer safe, effective and high-quality support to all those experiencing domestic abuse. Our flexible, inclusive and responsive services are shaped by our clients, with a focus on ensuring safety and supporting their path to recovery. The Accommodation Manager post will play a key role in the delivery of our mission and offers an exciting opportunity for the right candidate to be part of the continuing growth and development of our safe accommodation services.
Head of Operations Role Profile Role: Accommodation Manager Term: Permanent Salary: 38 - 40k Responsible to: Chief Executive Officer Responsible for: Accommodation Team Leader/Housekeeper & Maintenance officer Pension: 6% employer contribution Health: Cash Plan Health Scheme and Health & Wellbeing Assistance Programme Hours: 37.5 hours per week Annual Leave: 30 days (inclusive of birthday) plus 8 bank holidays
Pdap has been delivering services to victims of domestic abuse for 50 years through our emergency accommodation and community outreach services. We are a values-led organisation, and we believe that everyone has a right to live a life free from fear and abuse. We offer safe, effective and high-quality support to all those experiencing domestic abuse. Our flexible, inclusive and responsive services are shaped by our clients, with a focus on ensuring safety and supporting their path to recovery. The Accommodation Manager post will play a key role in the delivery of our mission and offers an exciting opportunity for the right candidate to be part of the continuing growth and development of our safe accommodation services.
Key aspects of the role
•
To ensure the effective management of Pdap safe accommodation services. We currently have 3 refuge sites across Kirklees and a combined bed space of 23, with plans for further expansion in 2027.
•
To provide regular line management and development opportunities to your team and ensure they are adequately supported on a day-to-day basis.
2
•
To be responsible for accommodation contract compliance and maintain effective relationships with our partners and commissioners in Kirklees.
•
Develop and maintain excellent links with our accommodation landlords ensuring they are kept up to date with any concerns, areas for development and opportunities for growth at each site.
•
To ensure our buildings and support services meet all legal regulations (e.g. Health & Safety/ HMO licencing conditions & Safeguarding).
•
Lead on the implementation and compliance of our Leading Lights accreditation within our accommodation team.
•
To work with the CEO to contribute to Pdap Strategic Planning, including opportunities for further development and expansion of our safe accommodation services.
•
To educate and inform the public and other professionals; raising awareness, increasing understanding of domestic abuse and improving the multi-agency response in Kirklees.
•
To ensure Pdap values are central to delivery of all services including that our homes are fit for purpose as welcoming places for our families to live.
• To ensure that the views of those with lived experience of domestic abuse are at the core of the work Pdap carries out and that they inform and shape the development of new services
Oversight of high quality service delivery
• To develop and implement policies and procedures relating to the accommodation service ensuring they are kept up to date and in line with current legislation.
• Embed accreditation requirements throughout service management and delivery.
• Monitor and evaluate the service, producing accurate data reports as and when required for commissioners, CEO and the Board of Trustees.
• Support the accommodation team in providing a safe, secure and welcoming environment for victims of domestic abuse.
• To ensure that our commitment to inclusion, equity and diversity is embedded across all aspects of employment and service delivery.
• To ensure our accommodation services are delivered and adequately resourced in line with the DA Act and the LA Statutory Duty requirements, identifying any gaps in delivery and working with the CEO and commissioners to address these.
• Take part in the out of hours (back up) on call management rota.
Supporting our Staff • To lead on the recruitment, induction and deployment of accommodation staff, volunteers and student placements ensuring effective cover across all sites.
• To provide regular supervision, support and development opportunities to the accommodation team leader, maintenance officer and housekeeper.
• Oversee training and development opportunities for accommodation staff, empowering them to develop their skills and knowledge whilst being managed with a fair and consistent approach.
• Act as Safeguarding Lead for Accommodation services.
• Promote and foster good working relationships between all Pdap staffing teams.
Working with our Partners
• To represent the values of Pdap in all our external partnership working.
• To represent Pdap at a strategic level including attendance at and chairing meetings, attending advisory groups and influencing how stakeholders respond to domestic abuse.
• To develop and maintain good positive working relationships and referral pathways with relevant agencies and professionals.
3
• To liaise with universities and external tutors in relation to student placements.
• Foster positive relationships with our commissioners, landlords and funders.
Finance & Administration
• To oversee and deliver agreed budgets relating to the accommodation service.
• To assist the Finance Director with setting annual budgets.
• To be responsible for the effective operation of accommodation services, ensuring that all resources, assets and monies are always properly accounted for. Promoting equity, diversity & inclusion
• Regularly review service level accessibility data and update the EDI action plan with actions to address these.
• Actively and appropriately challenge all forms of discrimination.
• Proactively promote equity, diversity and inclusion in all work with clients, ensuring fair access to services for all.
Other
•
Flexible working hours according to the needs of the project.
•
Evening and weekend work may sometimes be required.
•
Annual leave and time off in lieu to be taken at times to meet the requirements of the organisation, and with the prior agreement of the COO.
•
The role will predominantly be based across our accommodation sites or at our main office.
•
As our sites are across Kirklees, use of a car is desirable
•
Please note this post is restricted to women due to the nature of the role. The Occupational Requirement under Schedule 9 (part 1) of the Equality Act 2010 applies.
Person Specification
Skills & Experience Essential/Desirable
Experience of managing a HMO or similar supported housing service
Essential
Significant experience in a line management role
Essential
Ability to identify areas of development for staff and support them to improve their practice
Essential
Experience working in Domestic abuse or aligned sector such as substance misuse, housing, mental health, social care etc
Essential
Experience of working in the third sector
Desirable
Ability to work independently and within a team, to plan and manage a complex workload, meet deadlines, problem-solve and respond to unplanned demands
Essential
Ability to analyse data to identify gaps, and actions and write high quality reports and action plans
Essential
4
Proven track record translating strategy into operational delivery
Essential
Be able to demonstrate excellent literacy and IT skills, including case management systems, Word, Outlook and Excel.
Essential
Experience & confidence delivering presentations/ training and talks to a wide range of audiences
Essential
Ability to build and maintain strong partnership relationships with landlords, contract managers and commissioners
Essential
Able to demonstrate strong professional boundaries and maintain confidentiality
Essential Knowledge Essential/Desirable
Sound understanding of domestic abuse and VAWG
Essential
Knowledge of charity governance and financial management
Desirable
Understanding of the full range of housing management responsibilities including preventing rent arrears, supporting safe and planned transitions to permanent housing, health and safety, and the housing, legal and welfare rights of those experiencing domestic violence
Essential
Understanding of commissioning requirements and contract compliance
Essential
Understanding of housing legislation in relation to the delivery of supported housing and HMOs
Essential
Excellent understanding of quality assurance including Leading Lights or equivalent accreditation
Desirable
Commitment to working in partnership and building strong relationships with stakeholders
Essential
Excellent understanding of and commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion
Essential
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.