Referral centre advocate jobs in birmingham

Job Title: Independent Visitor Co-ordinator

Service: Coventry & Warwickshire

Reporting to: Senior Independent Visitor Co-ordinator

Salary: £8,329.21 per annum (£24,293.53 FTE)

Location: Home based (with travel across the region)

Hours: 12 hours per week

Contract Type: Permanent

Job Introduction

• Are you passionate about supporting and developing volunteers?

• Are you looking for an opportunity to help make positive differences to the lives of children and young people who are looked after or care leavers of the local authority?

• Do you want to work with a leading national independent children’s charity?

Then come join us here at Coram Voice. We have an exciting opportunity for you to become a co-ordinator of our independent visiting service in Coventry & Warwickshire.

We are seeking candidates who are committed to our objectives for children and young people and equally committed to the organisation and the development of our services. We recognise we are a predominantly white workforce and are genuinely committed to encouraging candidates from diverse communities in order to improve the services to the children and young people we help.

Our work

Coram Voice is a national independent children’s charity established in 1975 and has grown to become one of the leading organisations for children and young people in the UK.

Coram Voice is a leading children’s rights organisation. We champion the rights of children. We get young voices heard in decisions that matter to them and work to improve the lives of children in care, care leavers and others who depend upon the help of the state.

We provide:

• Advocacy services direct to children and young people in care, in need, in custody and to care leavers and children and young people with severe and complex mental health problems. Advocates around the country support children and young people to get their voice heard in decisions about their lives. This may be through the telephone helpline or through an advocate working directly with a child, for instance, to support them at a review meeting or to help them make a complaint about their care. Coram Voice provides visiting advocacy services to most of the secure units nationally, to Secure Training Centres, Juvenile Young Offender Institutions, psychiatric hospitals, residential special schools and children’s homes.
• Independent Mental Health Advocacy (IMHA) to advocate for young people as qualifying patients under the Mental Health Act, in order to fully support them to get their views heard in matters relating to their mental health.
• Independent Visitor services offers a child or young person in care an adult volunteer who provides independent, one-to-one visiting, advice and befriending support. Our independent visitors can become the only long-term, consistent source of support throughout a young person's time in care.
• Independent services provide independent person services for complaints by children and for reviewing whether children should be locked up in secure units on welfare grounds.
• Policy and campaigning to create a better system for all children and young people looked after by the state, for their care to be more child-centred and to give young people a greater say in decisions about their lives.
  • Participation services to ensure children and young people have a voice in the development and delivery of services and campaigns, and through the process, provide the opportunity to develop relevant skills which will be of benefit to them in their future lives.
  • Training, development and information for young people, advocates and child care workers, offering courses in advocacy, children’s rights and child-centred practice across a range of areas including the National Advocacy Qualification.

About the Role

You will co-ordinate and deliver a statutory independent visitor service to children and young people in care or care leavers of Coventry & Warwickshire.

You will recruit, assess and train volunteers to become independent visitors, who are volunteer befrienders to children and young people looked after or care leavers. You will manage a cash flow to fund suitable activities for independent visitors to enjoy with the young person. You will manage data and reporting for this statutory service so that service leads and other stakeholders can understand the activity in the service.

We are a child led service, you will not act outside of the young person’s instructions (except in matters of child protection and safety.)You will build strong relationships with the child or young person, independent visitors and other significant adults, you will support Independent Visitors to develop long term, meaningful friendships with the young person.

You will work in partnership with other parts of the service, organisation and external agencies and professionals. This is to ensure there are pathways to attract and retain Independent Visitors in the area and sometimes out of area.

What you will receive

We wish to reward and recognise the valuable contributions our staff make to the organisation and offer an attractive benefits package to do so. Coram Voice benefits package includes a competitive salary, a matched pension scheme up to 5% of salary, generous leave entitlements of up to 25 days’ annual leave plus an additional 3 days paid leave between Christmas and New Year. A supportive work environment fostering a good work/home life balance and a suite of family friendly policies, which promote employee wellbeing.

You will get a genuine opportunity to make a difference every day.

Recruitment process

Shortlisting will be undertaken by Leanne Hughes, Children’s Rights Manager and Debbie King, Senior Independent Visitor Co-ordinator. Successful candidates will then be invited for interview. The interview process comprises of a written exercise and a panel interview. Successful candidates will have a further one to one interview in accordance within Warner recommendations. Internal candidates will need to notify HR of their interest in the post and they will provide further information on the internal application process.

Returning your application:

• We cannot accept general CVs. When completing your application form, you need to address each point of the person specification and demonstrate how you meet it.
• Applications must be fully completed.
• If you are a current Coram Voice employee you may submit a supporting statement only addressing the person specification requirements for the post.

Please return your application to: via Blue Octopus.

Closing Date: 10th December 11:59.

Proposed Interview Date: 18th December.

Coram is an equal opportunities employer and we believe a diverse workforce enables us to improve the services to the children and families we help. We are genuinely committed to encouraging candidates from all sections of the community we seek to support. This includes those from global majority ethnic backgrounds, those that identify as LGBQT+, those with disabilities, those with lived experience of care, those with neuro-diversity, and those from other groups who are underrepresented at Coram.

If applicants feel comfortable, we would encourage them to draw on lived experience as well as professional experience in their personal statement as part of their application.

We are committed to the safeguarding of children and where appropriate will require the successful applicant to undertake a check from the Disclosure and Barring Service.

Registered Charity No. 312278.

Job Title:            Children, Young People and Families Programme Co-ordinator

Salary:                SPC 32 £31,405

Responsible to:   Head of Children, Young People and Families

Location:             BVSC, Latham House, 33 – 34 Paradise Street, Birmingham, B1 2AJ

Hours of work:  35 per week

Contract Duration12 Months Fixed Term

· Are you passionate about making a real difference to the lives of children, young people and families across                  Birmingham?

· Do you have a flair for building strong partnerships and coordinating impactful community projects?

· Are you organised, proactive and ready to take ownership of meaningful work that changes lives?

If you’ve answered yes, we’d love to hear from you!

Birmingham Voluntary Service Council (BVSC) is the city’s leading infrastructure organisation for the Voluntary, Community, Faith and Social Enterprise (VCFSE) sector. We exist to strengthen and champion Birmingham’s voluntary and community organisations, supporting them to grow, collaborate and increase their impact across the city. Our work spans a wide range of areas including health and social care, children and young people, community development, and multiple complex needs.

The successful candidate will have the DreamTeam Project as their primary focus, coordinating referrals, managing orders and deliveries, and building strong partnerships to ensure families in need receive essential support. In addition to DreamTeam, they will also play a key role in supporting other CYPF initiatives, including the West Midlands Multibank and the VCSEF Early Help Programme, contributing to their growth and success across the portfolio.

The purpose of the role is to work closely with the Head of CYPF and colleagues within the CYPF portfolio to ensure that the DreamTeam project is coordinated and managed successfully. You will also support the coordination of other CYPF programmes as required, manage contracts to ensure effective delivery, and collaborate with the Head of CYPF, other CYPF staff, and BVSC’s Communications team to develop and deliver the communications strategy for the CYPF portfolio in line with BVSC’s wider communications strategy.

 We Are Looking For Someone Who:

· Has excellent organisational and coordination skills.

· Can build strong relationships and communicate effectively with a wide range of stakeholders.

· Is experienced in managing projects, budgets, and reporting.

· Works collaboratively and shows a genuine commitment to improving outcomes for children, young people, and families.

· Is proactive, adaptable, and able to support multiple programmes across the portfolio.

What You Will Need to Succeed in This Role:

To succeed in this role, you'll need a proven ability to manage multiple projects and meet deadlines, strong attention to detail and excellent administrative skills, and confidence in engaging with partner organisations, funders, and community stakeholders. You should have experience in monitoring, evaluation, and reporting of project outcomes, as well as flexibility, resilience, and a positive approach to problem-solving. Enthusiasm for working within a collaborative team environment and supporting wider portfolio activities as required will also be essential.

 Please see the job description for further details 

Working for BVSC

BVSC is proud to provide a place to work in which staff feel valued and motivated. Our talented and committed staff team are provided with competitive terms and conditions, and a supportive, flexible, friendly working environment.

Our organisation’s culture is underpinned by our 4 core values – Commitment, Collaboration, Inclusion and Integrity. These values are demonstrated in the work of our staff team, who are integral to the achievement of our mission to support and advocate for a vibrant, resilient voluntary sector in Birmingham.

Terms and conditions

· 35 hour working week 

· 29 days annual leave + bank holidays a year 

· 5% pension contribution 

· 3.5 times salary Death in service benefit

· BVSC is a Living Wage Employer

Work-life balance 

· Hybrid working, allowing staff to divide their working hours between our city centre office and their home 

· Flexible working arrangements available for staff 

· A flextime system is in place for staff 

· We offer up to 7 days paid leave per year for undertaking voluntary work or public duties 

· We provide generous maternity and paternity pay 

Staff development 

· We support staff to undertake training and development, providing funding and time off for study 

Values based approach

· We take a values led approach to the full employee journey including values based interview, and values based supervision and appraisals 

Wellbeing

· We offer free access to a range of wellbeing platforms 

· BVSC offers all employees a suite of wellbeing support 

We are looking for candidates that can demonstrate the following BVSC organisational values: 

Commitment:  Making a positive difference through passion, innovation and social action 

Collaboration: Connecting people and organisations to work together to improve lives 

Inclusion:        Empowering and involving everyone in creating a fair and equitable Birmingham 

Integrity:         Building trust through delivering excellent outcomes 

At BVSC, we are dedicated to promoting equality, diversity, and inclusion in all areas of our work. We actively strive to create an environment where all individuals - regardless of ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other aspect of their identity or lived experience - are welcomed, respected, and valued.

As part of our commitment to positive action, we take proactive steps, where needed, to address underrepresentation and create fair opportunities, particularly in recruitment. We aim to ensure that everyone has an equal chance to progress and succeed.

We stand in solidarity with all marginalised communities, ensuring that our policies, practices, and culture are inclusive, equitable, and empowering. We are dedicated to challenging discrimination and fostering a workplace where diversity is not only acknowledged but celebrated.

We strongly encourage suitably experienced applicants from a wide range of backgrounds to apply and join BVSC. 

We encourage applicants to think creatively about how they can meet the requirements of the role and person specification if there are essential criteria you do not meet, so please describe this in your application. We are looking for talented individuals who align with our values and support our mission – there are no barriers to how you demonstrate this.  From application to interview, we place inclusion at the heart of all we do. 

We are a Second Chance Charter employer, committed to ensuring that people with convictions can access employment. DBS checks, if applicable to the role, will be conducted once a job offer has been made and accepted.

Closing date for applications – Monday 24 November 2025 (1 PM)

Interviews to take place – Wednesday 3 December 2025

Shortlisted applicants will be contacted by Wednesday 26 November 2025. If you have not been contacted by Wednesday 26 November, you should assume you have not been shortlisted.

We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible.

Secondments will be considered.