Refuge worker jobs in London

At Hestia, we are guided by our core values and are dedicated to fostering an equitable, diverse, and inclusive organisation. Our mission is to empower individuals to rebuild their lives and achieve independence. Right now, we are looking for a Refuge Worker to play a pivotal role in our Domestic Abuse Service in Merton.

Sounds great, what will I be doing?

We are looking for passionate individuals to provide intensive casework, support, and day-to-day guidance for women in our services. You'll play a vital role in delivering safety advice and information, including around domestic abuse and independent living, while co-producing personalised Support and Safety Plans that build on each woman's strengths and goals.

Your work will include liaising with statutory bodies such as Social Services to ensure safeguarding responsibilities are met, supporting housing needs and move-on accommodation, and facilitating empowering social activities and workshops that promote confidence, self-esteem, and assertiveness.

At the heart of this role is The Hestia Approach – a commitment to co-production and recovery. You'll work in true partnership with service users, helping them shape the support they receive, whether through peer networks, community groups, or local events.

What do I need to bring with me?

You'll need to be able to demonstrate the core skills this role requires as well as match our values and mission. You don't have to tick all the boxes right away; the important thing is that you're willing to learn. We also value lived experience of the areas we support, so if you feel comfortable, please do mention this on your application.

Here's what the team will be looking for

Applicants should have experience supporting individuals with diverse and complex needs, including mental health issues and substance misuse. This includes delivering high-quality floating or outreach support, developing support plans, conducting risk assessments, and liaising with external professionals. Knowledge of safeguarding, welfare benefits, housing legislation, and the ability to accurately record casework using computer systems is essential. The role also requires the ability to work independently in the community and travel throughout the borough.

Please note: This role is open to female applicants only, in accordance with Schedule 9 (1a) of the Equality Act 2010.

When will I be working?

You will be working between the hours on 9am - 5.18pm, Monday to Friday 

Interview Steps

We keep our interview process simple, so you know exactly what to expect.

• Shortlisting call: We have a team of dedicated recruitment specialists who will speak to you about your experience, motivations and values. They will also tell you about all the great work we do!
• Face to face interview: Now you will have face to face interview with the hiring manager. Our interviews are value and competency based.

Don't be alarmed if there are other stages in the process, it's all part of the plan for some of our roles.

Our commitment to Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion

Our services users come from all walks of life and so do we. We hire great people from a wide variety of backgrounds because it makes us stronger. We are committed to creating and maintaining a diverse and inclusive workforce and value the skills, abilities, talent and experiences, different people and communities bring to our organisation.

We are a disability confident employer

Hestia is proud to be a disability confident employer, dedicated to the employment and career development of individuals with disabilities. We offer a guaranteed interview scheme for all applicants with disabilities who meet the minimum criteria for the role they have applied for. We also provide reasonable adjustments during the selection and interview process, and throughout your employment with us.

Safeguarding Statement

Hestia is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of adults, children and young people who are potentially at risk, and we therefore expect all staff and volunteers to do the same. We require all staff to undertake internal and external safeguarding training throughout their employment with Hestia.

Important Information for Candidates

If your application is successful, please be aware that you will be required to undergo pre-employment checks before a formal offer of employment can be confirmed.

We reserve the right to close this job advert early should we receive a high volume of applications or if the position is filled before the closing date. We encourage interested candidates to apply as soon as possible to ensure their application is considered.

We are Hestia. We make a difference.

At Hestia, we are guided by our core values and are dedicated to fostering an equitable, diverse, and inclusive organisation. Our mission is to empower individuals to rebuild their lives and achieve independence. Right now, we are looking for a Part-time Floating Refuge Worker to play a pivotal role in our Domestic Abuse Service in Hackney.

Sounds great, what will I be doing?

We are looking for passionate individuals to provide intensive casework, support, and day-to-day guidance for women in our services. You'll play a vital role in delivering safety advice and information, including around domestic abuse and independent living, while co-producing personalised Support and Safety Plans that build on each woman's strengths and goals.

Your work will include liaising with statutory bodies such as Social Services to ensure safeguarding responsibilities are met, supporting housing needs and move-on accommodation, and facilitating empowering social activities and workshops that promote confidence, self-esteem, and assertiveness.

At the heart of this role is The Hestia Approach – a commitment to co-production and recovery. You'll work in true partnership with service users, helping them shape the support they receive, whether through peer networks, community groups, or local events. 

This role is part time and you will be working Monday - Thursday 9.30am - 3.30pm

What do I need to bring with me?

You'll need to be able to demonstrate the core skills this role requires as well as match our values and mission. You don't have to tick all the boxes right away; the important thing is that you're willing to learn. We also value lived experience of the areas we support, so if you feel comfortable, please do mention this on your application.

Here's what the team will be looking for

Applicants should have experience supporting individuals with diverse and complex needs, including mental health issues and substance misuse. This includes delivering high-quality floating or outreach support, developing support plans, conducting risk assessments, and liaising with external professionals. Knowledge of safeguarding, welfare benefits, housing legislation, and the ability to accurately record casework using computer systems is essential. The role also requires the ability to work independently in the community and travel throughout the borough.

Please note: This role is open to female applicants only, in accordance with Schedule 9 (1a) of the Equality Act 2010.

Interview Steps

We keep our interview process simple, so you know exactly what to expect.

• Shortlisting call: We have a team of dedicated recruitment specialists who will speak to you about your experience, motivations and values. They will also tell you about all the great work we do!
• Face to face interview: Now you will have face to face interview with the hiring manager. Our interviews are value and competency based.

Don't be alarmed if there are other stages in the process, it's all part of the plan for some of our roles.

Our commitment to Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion

Our services users come from all walks of life and so do we. We hire great people from a wide variety of backgrounds because it makes us stronger. We are committed to creating and maintaining a diverse and inclusive workforce and value the skills, abilities, talent and experiences, different people and communities bring to our organisation.

We are a disability confident employer

Hestia is proud to be a disability confident employer, dedicated to the employment and career development of individuals with disabilities. We offer a guaranteed interview scheme for all applicants with disabilities who meet the minimum criteria for the role they have applied for. We also provide reasonable adjustments during the selection and interview process, and throughout your employment with us.

Safeguarding Statement

Hestia is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of adults, children and young people who are potentially at risk, and we therefore expect all staff and volunteers to do the same. We require all staff to undertake internal and external safeguarding training throughout their employment with Hestia.

Important Information for Candidates

If your application is successful, please be aware that you will be required to undergo pre-employment checks before a formal offer of employment can be confirmed.

We reserve the right to close this job advert early should we receive a high volume of applications or if the position is filled before the closing date. We encourage interested candidates to apply as soon as possible to ensure their application is considered.

Location: Camden and Islington

Salary: £32,319 - £34,538 per annum 

(Please note that applicants are usually appointed at the bottom of the relevant band)

Hours: 37.5 hours per week 

Contract: Fixed Term Contract (Until 31st March 2027)

Closing Date: Sunday 8th March 2026

Closing Time: 00:00am

Are you looking for a rewarding role working for an intersectional feminist organisation? If so, we have an incredible opportunity for you to join our team as an Multiple Disadvantage Refuge Worker at Solace Women's Aid.  

You will be joining a team of committed and inspiring individuals whose dedication has saved the lives of thousands of women, men and children in the capital. We are looking for friendly and diligent individuals to join our services and help us make a difference.

Our core values reflect our history and were developed in consultation with staff and service users. Feminism and intersectionality are key to our work and we are committed to the principles of being survivor-led, trauma-informed, empowering, diverse, anti-racist and anti-discriminatory.

About the Service 

The Multiple Disadvantage role is aimed at providing specialist support services to women living in refuge with multiple needs, who have experienced domestic or sexual violence, and who have mental illness or use substances problematically. You will liaise with partner agencies ensuring services delivered are of the highest standard in line with the organisation aims and objectives.

About the Role 

You will work with women living in refuge within 2 London boroughs, to devise a support plan that meets their immediate practical and emotional needs and start the process of recovery, linking women into more specialist support services where required. The Multiple Disadvantage Worker will undertake risk assessments, safety plans and identify support needs of women such as accessing benefits, budgeting, and explore re settlement pathways from the refuge. You will promote social inclusion, encourage independence and development of personal resilience. You will build up support network for women, promoting and enabling engagement with other services. You will work in partnership with the refuge workers to deliver holistic support to the Multiple Disadvantage (MD) service users in each refuge. You will be expected to work with and support 5 service users in each borough.You will also be required to take on additional tasks in the refuge i.e. health and safety checks, reporting repairs, welfare checks etc.

About You 

You're an individual who has previous relevant experience and direct work within specialist support services to women/families with multiple needs. You'll also have case work experience, providing proactive and emotional support to women who have experienced domestic abuse and provide the support to enable them to recover and rebuild their lives.You bring experience of effective multi‑agency working and a proactive approach to building strong, collaborative partnerships, always representing the organisation with professionalism.

What we can offer you

We provide a comprehensive benefits package to all our employees, including:

• Flexible working
• Focus on learning and development (internal career progression and training)
• Generous holiday entitlement
• Employer pension contribution
• Family-friendly leave and enhanced maternity pay
• Access to Inclusion Networks
• Daily clinical debriefing
• Employee Assistance Programme providing free 24/7 support and advice
• Employee Benefits Platform offering staff discounts, benefits and savings
• Flow & Restore yoga classes
• Meditation sessions
• Cycle to Work Scheme

How to apply

When applying for this role, kindly highlight in your Supporting Statement how your values, knowledge, transferrable skills, and experience align with each point within the following sections of the Job Profile Document:

• Values, Behaviours & Competencies
• Knowledge, Experience and Skills

Solace Women's Aid values diversity, promotes equity, and challenges discrimination. We encourage and welcome applications from candidates of diverse cultures, abilities, perspectives, and lived experiences. 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. Our Inclusion Networks support staff with protected characteristics and offer inclusive spaces to connect.

We are a Disability Confident Employer and committed to an inclusive and accessible recruitment process. We anticipate and provide reasonable adjustments as needed and support employees who acquire a disability or long-term health condition, enabling them to stay in work.

This service is run by women for women and is therefore restricted to female applicants under the Equality Act 2010, Schedule 9, and Part 1. Section 7(2) e of the Sex Discrimination Act 1975 apply. The post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act.

As part of safer recruitment practices, we carry out pre-employment checks including references, Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) and right to work in the UK checks.

No agencies.