Jobs in London - Homelessness Support Worker • East London

Company: Waltham Forest Churches Night Shelter Ltd

East London

We are recruiting for an experienced, proactive Homelessness Support Worker to join colleagues in the Support and Resettlement Team.Hours: Mon-Fri, 9am-5.30pm.You will be an innovative, resilient ‘do-er’ who will thrive in an engaging environment where no two days are the same. Role Profile: Homelessness Support WorkerSalary: Starting salary £28,000 a yearFull-time Contract: 37.5 hours per weekDirect reporting to: Service Manager This is a Varied and Hugely Rewarding Role:• You’ll have a designated small caseload of clients• You will report to the Service Manager who is overseeing changes and additions to our service delivery offer. About you:To be successful in this role, it is essential that you:• Can provide consistently great levels of meaningful support and advice for the client group; and• Have excellent communication skills, able to adapt your communications appropriately according to individuals’ needs; and• Are resilient, not put off by setbacks, and able to cope with unplanned changes that can arise when working in a hostel; and• Are innovative, able to think out-of-the-box and take the initiative in your day-day work. Main Duties and Key TasksMaintaining hostel accommodation• Support individuals to maintain their Licence Agreement while living in Branches Hostel byensuring:-Individuals are kept informed of their rights regarding the service; and-That they also understand their own responsibilities while living in Branches Hostel. Support growth and change• Facilitate access to additional, external support services;• Support individuals to develop life-skills necessary for successful independent living;• Provide access to and encourage self-development activities for education, learning, training and volunteering, or apprenticeship opportunities. Key Tasks1. Assessment and Action Planning1.0 Carry out in-depth assessments of applicants referred to the service.1.1 Use SMART planning to provide support tailored to individuals’ needs:-Develop and keep under review support plans, getting the best out of opportunities for individuals moving towards independent living.-Develop action plans with individuals’ involvement; and keep under review to enable bothpersonal and skills’ development needed for successful, independent living.-Work with the client group, colleagues, and CBT Practitioner to develop move-on plans appropriate to the needs of individuals.2. Risk Assessment and Information Management2.1 Produce and keep under review comprehensive, high-quality risk assessment and riskmanagement plans adapted to individuals’ changing support needs; and liaise with colleagues and relevant external agencies to manage changing risks.2.2 Contribute to effective service delivery and evaluation by ensuring all relevant casework files are current, and that key and other performance information are correctly recorded on the CRM System.2.3 Share information appropriately with colleagues and other services involved with individuals’support.3. Supporting individual’s continuing development3.1 Signpost individuals to resources relevant to their ambitions including training, education,employment opportunities, and volunteering opportunities through the Volunteer Co- ordinator.3.2 Facilitate pathways to skills development for individuals, supporting them to maximise their potential to enable move-on to suitable accommodation and maintain independent living.4. Social inclusion4.1 Support individuals working towards achieving independence through encouraging theirengagement with the service, consultation on service provision and participating in activities in the wider community.4.2 Deliver group work and advice workshops for the client group.5. Partnership working5.1 A proactive approach to engaging with external agencies, creating and maintainingconstructive working relationships for the benefit of the client group.5.2 Participate in and contribute to cross-service initiatives, projects and training.5.3 Work collaboratively and constructively with all members of Branches Hostel staff teams.6. Finances and budgeting6.1 Working closely with residents, developing and keeping under review their personalbudgets Including service charge and rent contribution obligations.6.2 Ensure all service charges are collected, and Housing Benefit and Universal Credit claims maintained. Personal and Service Development▪ Keep under review and evaluate own performance to identify strengths and areas fordevelopment; and take personal responsibility for own development and learning.▪ Bring and maintain a flexible, ‘can-do’ approach to service delivery and problem solving in day- day work.▪ Contribute to the improvement of existing services as required, and development of new services.▪ Contribute to maintaining effective systems of service user consultation: collating feedback; and using information gathered and learning to develop the quality of service provision.▪ Contribute to promoting and maintaining effective joint working with external services, ensuring the range of support options offered remains accessible and relevant to individuals’ needs.▪ Fully participate in supervision meetings, team meetings, case management reviews; and case conferences with external agencies. Other▪ Represent Branches Hostel at external meetings, as required.▪ Comply with Branches Hostel’s policies and procedures and ensure that these are adhered to in all aspects of your work.▪ Work on a rolling rota: this includes early and afternoon shifts, and on-call duty cover, as required to maintain effective delivery of services. Person SpecificationWhen you complete your Supporting Statement you will need to answer the 7 essential knowledge, experience, skills and abilities’ requirements in the downloadable recruitment pack on this page.You will need to give at least one example for each point you address. Essential Skills and ExperienceKnowledge1. A good understanding of the complex support needs of former rough sleepers and homeless people, or other vulnerable client group.2. Understanding of risk assessment, planned support and SMART goal setting.3. Understanding of a person-centred outcomes-based delivery service.4. Knowledge of housing regulation and welfare benefits, relevant to Branches Hostel’sclient group.Experience1. Experience of supporting clients who have multiple complex needs, particularly homeless people and former rough sleepers and their specific support needs.2. Proven track record of achieving measurable outcomes with people who have complex needs. Essential Skills and AbilitiesSkills1. Excellent written skills – succinct and comprehensive communications.2. Strong negotiating and diplomacy skills, including pragmatic advocacy for the client group. Abilities1. Excellent interpersonal skills – comfortable interacting and communicating with theclient group.2. Excellent self-management – takes responsibility for own caseload and managing this effectively – planning and organising work so that deadlines, targets and standards are met; and prioritises and manages conflicting areas of work. A self-starter, uses initiative with a ‘can do’ attitude to day-to-day work and problem solving.3. Flexibility and able to provide solutions to working with people who may be reluctant to engage with services.4. Liaises and develops constructive partnerships with external agencies, which benefit the clients group.5. Responds calmly to crises, deals promptly and effectively to challenging situations.6. Solid IT ability. Desirable• Direct work experience within the area of mental health, alcohol or substance dependency.• Knowledge of the housing charity and voluntary sectors; and understanding of challenges faced by the sector.• Professional Housing Qualification (or working towards) such as NVQ Level 3 The Support Worker role requires the post-holder to have a current enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) Certificate. How to ApplyIf you have the right skills and experience we’re looking for, can work within our values and behaviours….and you are still interested in applying, then: Send in your CV and supporting statement (maximum 2 x A4 pages) addressing the 7 essential knowledge, experience, skills and abilities in the Person Specification in our recruitment pack. Email to: manager@wfcbranches.org.uk adding ‘Support Worker’ in the Subject.Please download a full recruitment pack from: https://wfcbranches.org.uk/jobs/