Refugee education casework manager jobs

Job Title - Homelessness and Housing Law Advisor or Solicitor

Contract - Fixed Term – 3 years

Hours - 21 hours per week

Salary Range - £36,000 - £39,000 FTE (£21,600 - £23,400 pro rata)

Location - Coram Campus, 41 Brunswick Square, London WC1N 1AZ

About Coram

Coram is the UK’s oldest children’s charity founded by Thomas Coram in London helping vulnerable children and young people since 1739. Today, the Coram group helps more than one million children, young people, families and professionals every year by providing access to the skills and opportunities they need to thrive.

One of the twelve members of the Coram group, Coram Children’s Legal Centre (CCLC) is the UK’s specialist centre for children’s rights in education, immigration, community care and family law, and provides significant international legal systems consultancy.  The centre is located on the Coram Campus in central London with a base in Colchester. We champion access to justice through information and advice, legal practice and representation, policy and strategic litigation.  Our Legal Practice Unit provides advice and representation primarily under legal aid contract.  Our Policy and Practice Change team promotes practice change through training and capacity building to professionals and secures systems change through research, policy and advocacy.

About the role

This is an exciting opportunity to be part of a multidisciplinary team working to tackle youth homelessness. 

This role is funded by the Oak Foundation and forms part of Coram’s Voices in Action programme which combines CCLC’s legal work, Coram Voice’s advocacy support and Coram’s policy and participation work to champion young people’s rights and create change.  It centres and amplifies the voices of young people through our young ambassadors with personal experience of homelessness or school exclusion. The young ambassadors campaign locally and nationally to change policy and practice and empower their peers with knowledge of their rights through workshop delivery and content creation. 

Working with others across the group, the purpose of this specific role is to provide specialist housing law advice, preliminary casework and onward referrals to young people under the age of 25 experiencing housing related issues.  This will include delivering regular outreach advice sessions in partnership with community organisations.  The post holder will work with the Head of Community Care Law on project design, co-ordination, delivery and reporting.  Supported by the Head of Community Care Law, they will be proactive in developing community partnerships and managing relationships with partner organisations.

The role will be integrated within the wider community care and public law team and will be supported by the Head of Community Care Law.  Building on the existing expertise and practice within the team, there will be a particular focus on advising and supporting young people who are care experienced, should have benefited from care or are young migrants.  The aim is to diagnose complex legal issues relating to housing and homelessness, to ensure young people understand their position and legal rights and are either supported to take steps to realise those rights, provided with preliminary casework to resolve issue at early stage, or where needed, referred on for complex casework and litigation either internally or externally.

The role would suit an experienced housing law advisor or caseworker. We welcome applications from solicitors and non-solicitors.  The priority is experience delivering high quality housing law advice and casework sensitively to vulnerable clients with a track record of delivering against project targets and meticulous case management skills. We are looking for a committed, resourceful and determined housing law advisor with a positive and solutions focussed attitude who is able to work both independently and collaboratively as part of a team. They will be well supported with access to training, supportive line management and will benefit from being part of a wider collaborative legal practice team. They will work closely with a paralegal and be responsible for helping to develop the paralegal’s knowledge and understanding of housing related law.

The role will be based in our offices and with regular advice delivery in outreach locations. However, some remote/ hybrid working may be possible depending on the experience of the candidate after the initial settling in period. There may be flexibility over how the three days will be spread across the week (within working hours) and in accordance with the needs of the project.

To apply for this role, please click on the 'apply now' button below to complete the application, please note we do not accept cv’s.

Closing date: Sunday 12th April 2026

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. 281222.

Job description 

Job Title:  Caseworker 

Reports to:   TBC 

Line Reports: N/A 

Location:   Flexible - hybrid 2 days a week from one of our offices 

Salary:  £29,000 - £32,000 (London)  ; £26,500 - £29,500 (outside London)  

Hours:  37.5 hours per week, with occasional evening/weekend work (TOIL provided) 

Contract:  Permanent 

Language requirements: Fluency in English essential.

Travel:  Expectations of travel between BB locations for in person meetings and events 

Overall purpose: 

Breaking Barriers exists to support refugees and people from forced migration backgrounds into meaningful employment. 

The Client Caseworker is integral to delivering that mission. Acting as a client’s primary point of support, you will lead and coordinate their progression toward employment — whether through language development, requalification, training or direct employability support. 

This role requires someone who can take ownership of client journeys, drive forward action plans, and deliver both one-to-one and group-based support that moves clients closer to work. Caseworkers may initially focus more heavily on one pathway area, but the role is designed to provide integrated, cross-programme support over time. 

Collaboration across programme teams is essential to ensure clients experience seamless, joined-up services and consistent progression.Your contributions are valued, and you can make a meaningful impact on people’s lives. 

Key responsibilities: 

1. Client casework and support 

• Manage a caseload of clients, providing structured one-to-one support in person and online. 

• Conduct holistic assessments to understand clients’ qualifications, skills, language levels, aspirations and barriers. 

• Co-create clear, outcome-focused action plans aligned to sustainable employment. 

• Drive forward client progression across relevant pathways, including: 

• Employment readiness and job search 

• CV development, applications and interview preparation 

• Professional requalification and accreditation routes 

• English language progression 

• Sector-specific training or volunteering 

• Deliver group sessions to help clients build knowledge and skills in a supportive peer-learning environment. 

• Maintain regular contact to monitor progress, adjust support and maintain accountability. 

• Identify and address barriers to progression, advocating where appropriate. 

• Safeguard clients appropriately and escalate concerns in line with policy. 

• Refer and signpost to additional support services where required. 

2. Stakeholder and volunteer engagement 

• Engage with stakeholders and partners to develop networks and identify job, training, education and work experience opportunities for clients. 

• Support outreach initiatives by developing and maintaining relationships with partners (e.g. referral partners, training providers, employers and professional bodies) 

• Advocate on behalf of clients to address specific barriers to employment or accreditation. 

• Collaborate with colleagues responsible for employer and partner engagement to match clients to appropriate opportunities. 

• Liaise with volunteers to source additional expertise and mentoring opportunities for clients. 

• Represent Breaking Barriers at occasional events or meetings as required. 

3. Monitoring, Reporting & Administration 

• Maintain accurate, timely and detailed client records on the CRM system. 

• Track and report on client progression against agreed milestones and KPIs. 

• Ensure documentation and evidence are completed in line with reporting requirements. 

• Complete enrolment and administrative processes efficiently. 

• Support monitoring and evaluation processes to inform service improvement. 

4. Cross-Organisational Collaboration & Integrated Working 

• Work closely with colleagues across all functions to ensure seamless client journeys, aligning support, avoiding duplication and maintaining clarity of progression plans. 

• Share knowledge of sector pathways, labour market developments and client trends to inform service development and team learning. 

• Contribute to service development as the service redesign evolves.

• Participate actively in team meetings, case reviews, reflective practice sessions, appraisals and inductions, contributing to strong team relationships and continuous service improvement. 

• Take advantage of training and development opportunities to build new skills and share knowledge across teams. 

• Foster a collaborative, solution-focused team culture. 

Person specification: 

Essential Criteria 

Experience 

• Experience providing one-to-one advice, guidance or support, ideally within employability, education, refugee support or a related field 

• Experience delivering or co-facilitating group sessions, workshops or training. 

• Experience working toward defined targets, outcomes or deadlines in a structured environment. 

• Understanding of barriers faced by refugees and people from forced migration backgrounds in accessing employment. 

• Experience maintaining accurate records, whether using a database, CRM or equivalent system. 

• Understanding of safeguarding principles and how to respond appropriately to concerns. 

Essential Skills & Abilities 

• Ability to support people in planning and taking steps toward a goal, with clarity and follow-through. 

• Comfortable facilitating groups and engaging diverse audiences. 

• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to build trust with people from varied backgrounds. 

• Good organisational skills and ability to manage multiple priorities. 

• Proactive and solution-focused approach to problem-solving. 

• Clear written and verbal communication skills. 

• Able to work collaboratively across teams and with external partners or stakeholders. 

• Attention to detail and administrative accuracy. 

• Adaptable and open to working in an evolving service environment. 

Desirable Experience 

• Lived experience of seeking sanctuary or forced migration to the UK. 

• Experience in refugee support, employment services, education or a related field. 

• Familiarity with UK labour market pathways, sector training routes or professional requalification processes. 

• Experience working alongside volunteers, mentors or external partners. 

• Ability to speak an additional language relevant to the client group. 

Other Requirements 

• Commitment to Breaking Barriers’ mission and values. 

• Eligibility to work in the UK. 

• Willingness to travel between offices and partner locations as required. 

• Occasional evening or weekend work (TOIL provided). 

If you meet most, but not all of the criteria, we’d still like to hear from you! 

Other considerations: 

• As part of our safeguarding commitment to our clients, we carry out pre-employment checks to ensure that successful applicants are suitable to work with adults at risk. These include criminal record disclosure, obtaining references and verifying a candidate’s identity and right to work in the UK 

• Breaking Barriers is committed to protecting an adult’s right to live in safety, free from abuse and neglect and for their views, wishes and beliefs to be fully taken into account when deciding action 

• We are an equal opportunities employer and welcome applications from all suitably qualified persons regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, sex, sexual orientation, marriage and civil partnership status, pregnancy and maternity status, race, religion or belief 

• Breaking Barriers particularly welcomes applicants with experience of seeking asylum and/or a refugee background 

• Some travel between our different areas of operation will be required

Purpose

Our Immigration Team works closely with Birmingham City University (BCU) to run the Immigration Law Student Clinic, a key source of free accredited immigration advice for people in Birmingham who cannot afford legal support.

The role involves supervising students as they research and prepare legal advice, coordinating day‑to‑day clinic activity, and supporting casework within CELC’s immigration team. You will recruit, train, and mentor students, ensuring they have an excellent student experience and helping them develop practical legal skills while ensuring clients receive an excellent service.

Responsibilities

Working closely with Birmingham City University the Law Clinic Supervisor will:

• Recruit and select students for involvement in the clinic
• Undertaking inductions with new students, in line with the Law Centre's Clinic practices ,including training on CELC systems and processes
• Develop and maintain student training manuals, policies, template letters, referral forms etc.
• Assess client cases prior to allocation to students
• Manage overall clinic calendar, allocating client cases to students
• Supervise all elements of student work, providing guidance to ensure accuracy and quality of research undertaken and advice provided
• Maintain accurate records of student inductions and supervisions
• Sign-off and submittance of applications
• Advise students to access other CELC teams for legal guidance where necessary e.g. family law, employment, housing etc.
• Create a positive and nurturing environment for students to learn practical casework skills  
• Monitor and report performance of the clinic to CELC and Birmingham City University
• Work positively with the Law Centre’s Clinic Lead and the other clinic leads in delivering the overall partnership and wider clinical legal education

· Ensure that the Clinic is run in line with the Team’s priorities and the strategy and priorities of the Law Centre

• Undertake professional development to ensure legal expertise is current and up to date

The Law Clinic Supervisor will also:

• Demonstrate their commitment to the aims and principles of CELC
• Abide by policies and procedures as set out in the Office Manual and Staff Handbook
• Attend Immigration and all CELC team meetings and away days
• Contribute towards the effective daily running of CELC
• Undertake any other task reasonably required within the context of the post

Person Specification

Essential

• A non-judgmental attitude and commitment to social justice and the aims of CELC

• One or more of the following professional qualifications: IAA registration at L2 or above, qualified solicitor, qualified barrister, Senior caseworker accreditation with the Law Society Immigration and Asylum Accreditation Scheme.

• Experience in the delivery of legal support to clients
• Experience in supervising and developing others
• Excellent organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple tasks and

provide realistic timescales for completion

• Ability to work sympathetically and effectively with a wide variety of individuals i.e. clients, students, and stakeholders
• Ability to work well with others, be polite under pressure and to work as part of a team
• Self-motivated - able to work independently and on own initiative
• Excellent oral and written communication skills
• An understanding of the importance of confidentiality
• Experience of using IT systems including Microsoft Word, Excel and Outlook

Desirable

• Experience of designing delivery of training to individuals and groups
• Experience of working with students
• Experience of working with the public and in a busy and demanding environment
• Experience of using a case management system
• Experience of using Microsoft Teams and SharePoint