Community idva jobs

Are you looking for a dynamic and rewarding role working for an organisation with the feminist agenda at the core of its ethos? Then Advance Charity could be the career choice for you!

We are looking for a Senior IDVA

Salary: £32,000 - £33,000 depending on experience

Location: Hammersmith

Hours: 35 Hours per week including Thursdays early shift (8am) and evening between 6-9pm on rota basis (so approximately every 4-5 weeks)

Contract: Permanent

This post is open to female applicants only as being female is deemed to be a genuine occupational requirement under Schedule 9, Paragraph 1 of the Equality Act 2010.

Please note: Any offer of employment will be made subject to references, confirmation of the right to work in the UK, and satisfactory enhanced DBS check.

About us

Advance is an award-winning and innovative women-only organisation, established in 1998, providing emotional and practical support to women and girls survivors of domestic abuse and supporting women with short-term sentences to reduce offending. We believe in empowering women and girls to lead safe, non-violent, equal lives so that they can flourish and contribute to the community.

We are a community-based organisation who lead in best practice approaches to supporting women in their local community. We achieve this by being available to meet and support women in local settings and at our women’s centres, and by working in close partnership with other agencies.

Our values are to listen and support, to empower and respect, collaboration, innovation, and accountability.

Job Summary

As Senior IDVA you will work within a dynamic, fast-paced crisis intervention, advocacy, and support service to ensure the voice of survivors informs every stage of the process. This role combines oversight of the Duty IDVA service with specialist responsibility for MARAC coordination and participation. You will lead on MARAC responsibilities, oversee the Duty service, line manage two Duty IDVAs, support the Angelou Service Manager with administrative tasks, and hold a reduced caseload providing high-quality advocacy and support based on client-led needs and risk assessments.

You will ensure that the Duty service runs effectively, maintaining referral pathways, ensuring that documents and procedures are in place and embedded into working practice supporting those covering duty as required.

You will line manage the Duty IDVAs and will manage the allocation of cases from duty, liaising with Managers. You will assist the Manager with data collection, data analysis and problem solving.

Acting as the MARAC lead for the team you will oversee the quality of the internal MARAC process, ensuring cases are prepared and presented effectively, attend MARAC meetings on a rota basis and follow up on agreed actions.

You will also contribute to duty work, conducting calls and initial assessments and responding to crises, working within the team to make proactive contact and provide high quality advocacy and support based upon a client led needs and risk assessment to women referred to our service.

You will have an excellent understanding of domestic violence and its effects on women and children and of best practice within the domestic abuse sector and in working with women with children. The post holder will be proficient in data collection and case work recording. As an experienced domestic violence advocate who has worked with complex and multiple needs, you will be skilled in risk management and safety planning, remaining calm in a crisis and in handling sensitive information on a daily basis. Experience of direct work with female survivors of domestic violence and of working within safeguarding procedures is essential for this post, as is the need to adopt and promote a strong partnership approach to service provision.

How to apply:

 Please submit your up to date CV along with a covering letter vie our careers site.

• Closing Date for Applications: 6th July 2026 @ 23:59

• Interviews will be taking place the week of the 13th July 2026

*Advance reserves the right to close the advert early, or on the appointment of a candidate.

What we can offer you - Employee Benefits:

• A 35-hour working week

• An exceptional 30 days of paid holiday per year (pro rata for part time), PLUS public holidays on top (that's nearly 40 days paid holiday per year!)

• Additional days off to celebrate International Women’s Day, and for religious observance and moving home

• Perkbox - an employee discount platform where you can receive free rewards as well as take advantage of savings on clothes, groceries, travel, leisure and more

• Pension scheme

• Enhanced maternity/adoption provision

• Access to our Employee Assistance Programme

• Employee eye-care scheme

• Clinical supervision for front line staff and first line management roles

• Refer a Friend Scheme - £250 for each referral who passes probation

• Organisation wide away days

• Thorough induction and training

• Career development pathways

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Under the Equality Act 2010, we are required to make any reasonable adjustments. If you have a disability as defined under this act and/or have special needs, please email the Talent Acquisition Team via the Advance website and will aim to make the necessary arrangements to accommodate your needs.

Diversity, Inclusion and Equal Opportunities

We are committed to providing equality of opportunity and actively seek to recruit people from groups underrepresented in our current team. We have policies and processes in place to ensure that all employees are offered an equal opportunity in recruitment and selection, promotion, training, pay and benefits.

Safeguarding

Advance is committed to safeguarding and creating a culture of zero-tolerance of harm and expects all staff, including volunteers to share this commitment. We believe all individuals have the right to live their life free from violence and abuse and the right to feel and be safe. We have a suite of safeguarding policies, procedures and practice guidance, accessible to all staff, which promotes safeguarding and safer working practices across all our services and activities. When we recruit staff, we follow rigorous safer recruitment practices, this involves carrying out pre-employment checks including references, Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks, and identity checks. We ensure all staff undertake mandatory safeguarding training relevant to their role and responsibilities, to empower them to be competent and feel confident in recognising and responding appropriately to safeguarding issues and promote wellbeing.

Victim Support is recruiting for an Independent Domestic Violence Advisor (IDVA) to support predominately high risk victims of domestic abuse living in Central Bedfordshire. This is a full time role on a fixed term contract until 31/3/27. Hybrid working is available for this role.

Do you want to make a difference every day? Do you want to contribute to change & improvement for those who need it?

Do you have resilience & adaptability? Can you work effectively with a focus on customer service and care?

If yes, then we'd love to hear from you…..

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 & options to buy or sell annual leave
• Pension with 5% employer contribution
• Enhanced sick pay allowances, maternity & paternity payments
• High Street, retail, holiday, gym, entertainment & leisure discounts
• Access to our financial wellbeing hub & salary deducted finance
• Employee assistance programme & wellbeing support
• Access to EDI networks and colleague cafes
• Cycle to work scheme & season ticket loans
• Ongoing training & support with opportunities for career development & progression

About the role

As an Independent Domestic Violence Advocate you will be supporting victims of domestic abuse, who live in Central Bedfordshire. This role will be part of our other wider specialist services covering Bedfordshire.

As an IDVA you will be:

• Providing a high quality support and advocacy service to victims of domestic abuse.
• Managing a caseload; identifying and assessing risks and needs, providing a tailored crisis intervention service trough individual safety planning, advocacy, emotional and practical support.
• Working with other agencies and advocating on behalf of service users in order to help them access services to keep them safe.
• Working within a multi-agency framework consisting of partners as well as MARAC and other local partnerships to offer a coordinated response to domestic abuse.
• Promoting the service and raise awareness of domestic abuse through the delivery of training

You will need:

• Experience of working in support and advocacy with victims of domestic abuse is advantageous
• To be able to prioritise work and deal with competing or conflicting demands/needs and interests and promote organisation interests and values.
• To ideally hold a SafeLives IDVA accreditation, relevant degree, vocational qualification or relevant experience of delivering a service and working with domestic abuse victim's/service users in a statutory, voluntary or community work setting.

Please see attached Job Description and Person Specification for further details.

About Us

Victim Support is an independent charity dedicated to supporting people affected by crime and traumatic incidents in England and Wales. We put them at the heart of our organisation and our support and campaigns are informed and shaped by them and their experiences.

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.

At Victim Support, we're proud to celebrate diversity and create a workplace where everyone feels they belong. We're committed to being an antiracist organisation, and we actively welcome applications from people of all backgrounds, including those from Black and Asian and other minoritised communities.

As a Disability Confident Employer, we will offer an interview to disabled candidates who meet all essential criteria for a job where it is practicable to do so. We are also happy to make reasonable adjustments during the recruitment and selection process.

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 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. If you have already registered & started an application, then we will contact you to advise of the amended closing date wherever possible.