Young Persons’ Support Worker – MT1916

Our client is an organisation dedicated to transforming the lives of young people and adults across the South; providing support, advice and guidance to help them find work, or move into learning or training and in doing so improving their life chances.
We are currently looking to recruit a Young Persons’ Support Worker, based at Cookham Wood Young Offenders Institution in Rochester, Kent on a Temporary, Ongoing to possibly Permanent basis ASAP.

Reporting to the Team Leader, the job purpose is as follows:

• Ensuring smooth delivery of services in the Cookham Wood Young Offenders visitors centre

Main duties and responsibilities:

• Establish and maintain positive working relationships with visitors to Cookham Wood.
• Support the running of the Visitors Centre – ensuring it looks tidy and professional at all times
• Booking in visitors and adhering with all security guidelines on visits.
• Giving appropriate advice and information to questions raised by visitors
• Ensure all relevant paperwork and records related to the service are completed to deadlines and in-line with the requirements of the contract being worked on.
• Provide cover for sessions/other programmes, when appropriate.
• Communicate effectively with partners
• Take an active role in relation to own Personal and Continuous Professional Development including attending regular line manager reviews, appraisal and planning own training and development needs through the use of the CPD file and process.
• Ensure that all policies and procedures – both our client and Cookham Wood - are read and understood. Policies may be revised for time to time so it is your duty to ensure you regularly review policies and procedures.
• Undertake any other reasonable duties that may be required from time to time. The duties may be changed and/or varied to meet changing circumstances at the discretion of Management
• Due to the nature of work undertaken by our client there is a requirement of all employees to work flexibly across the organisation to support teams and projects as required, including working out of hours and weekends where necessary, as well as attending residentials.

The service offer and its co-ordination arrangements will be developing substantially in the short to medium term. This will require all employees to work flexibly and creatively to contribute to the establishment of the service.

Qualifications and Training

• Relevant qualifications (achieved or working to a minimum of Level 3).
• Maths and English GCSE grade C/4 or above (or equivalent)
• First Aid qualification
• Mental Health First Aid
• A commitment to undertake all necessary training for the role

Knowledge and Experience

• Recent relevant paid experience of successfully delivering front facing services with good customer service
• Knowledge of local agencies and support organisations that could support our clients provision.
• Knowledge of the experiences of young people in a residential / secure setting.
• An understanding of the factors that affect young people lives and experience of supporting them to overcome barriers.
• Proven track record of successfully working towards targets and KPIs.
• Proven experience in carrying out administrative duties and meeting deadlines.


Personal Skills and Attributes

• High level of organisational skills, efficient and results orientated with good time management.
• Ability to work constructively as part of a team and independently. Creative and driven. Can display innovation.
• Ability to build effective and professional working relationships with service users. Confident and passionate about inspiring people.
• Ability to build effective and professional relationships with partner agencies and organisations. Transparent and personable.
• Ability to effectively reflect on and evaluate performance in light of feedback. Resilient with a proactive positive outlook.
• Trustworthy and honest. Can be relied upon to work with integrity to support the wider team’s success.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills.
• Effectively able to use of IT to include Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, internet and social networking sites.
• Flexible and adaptable


Other

• Ability to regularly work evenings and weekends
• Full, clean driving licence and use of a vehicle
• No criminal convictions that would affect the ability to work with children and young people.

All those successful will be subject to an enhanced DBS check.

Salary: £9.58 per hour plus holiday pay
Hours: Flexible, 8.30am – 5pm or 1pm – 5pm, Weekends 8.30am – 5pm

(Ash Employment Services Ltd. is an equal opportunities employer and positively encourages applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates regardless of sex, race, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, religion or belief, marital status, or pregnancy and maternity)