Modern day slavery caseworker jobs in London

Caseworker - Sexual Violence

Location: Aylesbury (Hybrid)

Hours: 37.5 hours a week (5 days) 

Salary: £28,000 – £30,000 (FTE) per annum 

Contract: Permanent

Hope After Harm is an established, registered charity, delivering a range of support services to those who are vulnerable or at risk of exclusion. We want to see a society where everyone feels safe and can thrive, regardless of who they are and where they come from. We enable adults and young people in their journey to recover from harm and trauma. Through support, advocacy and education we empower people to rebuild their lives and reclaim their future, and we inspire others to do the same, creating safer, more inclusive communities.

Role Description

To provide holistic support to anyone who has experienced sexual violence and to identify and engage with these individuals on a one-to-one basis, enabling them to access services and make positive, empowering choices. 

Responsibilities:

• To provide support to service users who have experienced sexual violence.
• To provide support to the facilitation of group work within the service.
• To provide group work interventions on a 1-2-1 basis where the service user is unable to access groups.
• To lead on providing service users information sessions and informal group activities / events.
• To independently manage a small caseload of adult client cases, providing practical and emotional support.
• To conduct risk assessments, do case management and safety planning in partnership with other key agencies.
• To advocate in a range of settings on behalf of the service user and working towards them being their own best advocate.
• To help service users to make informed choices about their future options.

Skills, Knowledge and Abilities

Essential:

• Experience of direct support work with victims or other vulnerable people including providing emotional and practical support.
• Excellent Caseworker with good assessment, motivational and empowerment skills.
• Organising, prioritising, risk management and problem-solving skills.
• Experience of working cooperatively and effectively in a team.
• Willingness to be able to work flexible hours when necessary and be part of an on-call rota.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills including presentation skills.
• PC literate (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook).
• Compassionate towards the individuals the service supports.
• A driving licence and own transport.
• Sensitivity to cultural differences and the ability to work in diverse settings and with people with diverse needs.
• Good knowledge of a full range of civil, criminal and practical options available to service users.
• Good knowledge of restorative interventions or ability to learn them and make use of them with appropriate service users.
• Knowledge and skills to operate within a trauma informed approach.
• Ability to provide non-judgemental, non-directive and confidential support to service users in crisis.
• A clear understanding of the gendered nature of some crime types, and a clear understanding of how different crime types disproportionately affect different groups of people.
• A commitment to working within an equality and diversity framework and an awareness of barriers to accessing support.

Desirable:

• Ability to determine strategies, outcomes and opportunities to develop the role.
• Experience and knowledge of exploitation and modern-day slavery, sexual violence and other complex issues.
• Experience of working with groups with multiple complex needs.
• Mental Health Awareness including the impact on an individual and the services available.
• Have an ISVA qualification or be prepared to undertake training.
• Knowledge of domestic abuse – at least level 2 DASH training.
• Awareness of differing counselling approaches.

For this role you will also need:

• The ability to travel within Thames Valley and occasionally the surrounding areas.
• To be free from any criminal conviction which would conflict with the responsibilities of the post. You will be required to have a DBS Enhanced disclosure or a portable DBS.
• To be able to deal with all information on a confidential basis and understand data protection requirements.
• A driving licence and your own vehicle.
• To have Citizenship of the UK or have entitlement to work in the UK.

Thames Valley Partnership trading as Hope After Harm is an equal opportunities employer. The aim of our policy is to ensure no job applicant, employee or worker is discriminated against either directly or indirectly on the grounds of race, colour, ethnic or national origin, religious belief, sex, marital status, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, age or disability. We do not disbar applicants with criminal convictions and are mindful of the requirements of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act, 1974.

About the role

This is a senior leadership role and a key early appointment within EQUISS.

As Head of Advocacy and Safeguarding, you will lead the development of our advocacy and safeguarding work, shaping how EQUISS supports individuals navigating abuse, misconduct and safeguarding concerns across the equestrian sector.

You will establish and oversee the organisation’s advocacy service and support line, including recruiting and managing advocacy caseworkers, and ensuring individuals receive safe, informed and survivor-centred guidance. You will also lead the development of safeguarding frameworks, case management systems and organisational safeguarding practice.

As a founding leadership role, you will help shape the safeguarding framework of a new independent organisation, providing strategic oversight of the EQUISS safeguarding training programme and contributing safeguarding expertise to the development of our standards and accreditation frameworks, ensuring learning from advocacy informs sector practice.

Working closely with the leadership team, you will help establish EQUISS as a trusted organisation driving stronger safeguarding, clearer reporting pathways and greater accountability across the equestrian sector.

As a developing organisation operating with a small and collaborative team, this role requires someone who is comfortable balancing strategic leadership with practical delivery. We are looking for a compassionate and inclusive leader who can support and develop others, foster a culture of trust and reflective practice, and contribute positively to building the organisation as it grows.

Key responsibilities

Strategic leadership and safeguarding oversight

• Provide strategic leadership for EQUISS’ advocacy and safeguarding work
• Establish safeguarding frameworks, case management processes and risk management structures across the organisation
• Act as Designated Safeguarding Lead, providing oversight of complex safeguarding cases and ensuring appropriate referrals and partnership working
• Ensure EQUISS maintains robust safeguarding governance, confidentiality and data protection standards

Advocacy and support services

• Lead the development and delivery of EQUISS’s advocacy service and support line.
• Recruit, manage and support advocacy caseworkers, ensuring high-quality, survivor-centred support and safe case management practice
• Shape how EQUISS supports individuals navigating reporting processes, organisational complaints and statutory systems
• Oversee case management systems and triage processes to ensure safe, consistent and effective responses to safeguarding concerns

Safeguarding training and sector learning

• Provide strategic oversight of the EQUISS safeguarding training programme, ensuring training reflects the realities of safeguarding within equestrian environments and aligns with best practice across sport and safeguarding sectors
• Lead the recruitment, management and quality assurance of safeguarding trainers, including freelance trainers, consultants and subject-matter experts delivering EQUISS training programmes
• Work with trainers and external partners to develop and refine training content, ensuring consistency, accuracy and high standards of delivery
• Establish processes for trainer induction, guidance and quality assurance to ensure training is delivered in line with EQUISS safeguarding principles and standards
• Ensure learning from advocacy work informs training content, sector guidance and safeguarding practice

Contribution to standards and sector improvement

• Contribute safeguarding expertise to the development of EQUISS standards and accreditation frameworks, ensuring safeguarding expectations reflect best practice
• Use insight from advocacy and safeguarding work to inform sector learning, standards development and organisational guidance
• Support the development of sector resources that help organisations strengthen safeguarding practice

Sector engagement and partnerships

• Build relationships with safeguarding professionals, statutory agencies and specialist support organisations
• Represent EQUISS in sector conversations relating to safeguarding, welfare and organisational accountability
• Contribute to knowledge-sharing, policy discussions and initiatives aimed at improving safeguarding standards across the equestrian sector

Culture, learning and survivor-centred practice

• Ensure EQUISS’s work remains grounded in survivor-centred principles, independence and transparency
• Embed learning from lived experience into service design, safeguarding practice and training development
• Foster a culture of reflective practice, safeguarding vigilance and professional integrity within the organisation

Person specification

Qualifications

• A relevant professional qualification or degree in safeguarding, social work, psychology, law, education, criminology or a related field, or equivalent professional experience
• ISVA, IDVA or CHISVA qualification, or willingness to work towards one
• Advanced safeguarding training, including Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) training and Safeguarding Level 4 or Level 5 training, or equivalent senior safeguarding training
• Evidence of continued professional development in safeguarding practice

Essential experience and knowledge

• Significant professional experience in safeguarding, advocacy or victim-survivor support, ideally within violence against women and girls (VAWG), sport, welfare or related sectors
• Strong understanding of independent advocacy models, including ISVA and CHISVA frameworks, and how these operate alongside statutory services
• Experience overseeing complex safeguarding cases, including risk assessment, referrals and partnership working within multi-agency safeguarding environments such as police, social care and safeguarding hubs
• Experience leading and managing teams, including providing supervision or reflective practice support to staff working with complex safeguarding or advocacy cases
• Experience recruiting, supporting or overseeing trainers, facilitators or external practitioners, ensuring quality and consistency of delivery
• Experience supporting or working with individuals affected by sexual exploitation, sex trafficking, modern slavery or related forms of abuse
• Demonstrable understanding of trauma-informed and survivor-centred practice
• Strong knowledge of UK safeguarding legislation and guidance, including responsibilities relating to children and adults at risk, and experience contributing to organisational safeguarding policies, procedures or governance frameworks
• Ability to exercise sound professional judgement in complex safeguarding situations, maintaining confidentiality and appropriate professional boundaries

Leadership and personal qualities

• A compassionate and inclusive leadership style, with the ability to support staff working with complex and sensitive safeguarding issues.
• Ability to work effectively in a small and collaborative team, contributing to the development of systems, processes and culture as the organisation grows.
• Strong interpersonal skills and emotional intelligence, with the ability to build trust with colleagues, partners and those seeking support.
• A collaborative mindset and willingness to work flexibly in a developing organisation, balancing strategic leadership with hands-on delivery where required.

Desirable

• Experience working within sport, equestrian environments or athlete welfare contexts.
• Experience contributing to sector standards, accreditation frameworks or safeguarding policy development.
• Membership of, or engagement with, a relevant professional safeguarding body or network.

About EQUISS

EQUISS is an independent organisation working across the equestrian sector to improve safeguarding, welfare and accountability. We support individuals affected by abuse and misconduct, work with organisations to strengthen safeguarding practice, and drive systemic change through training, standards and advocacy.

Our work brings together three key areas: supporting individuals navigating concerns, strengthening safeguarding practice across the sector, and campaigning for meaningful reform where systems are failing.

As a developing organisation, EQUISS is building the structures, services and standards needed to ensure safeguarding and welfare are prioritised across the equestrian world.

Please note: There will be a requirement to travel for this role.

Employment package:

• 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays
• A personal pension plan provided through NEST after 3 months
• Private Healthcare insurance after successful completion of probationary period
• Reporting to CEO