Senior Play Worker LBS-007

To deliver and supervise high quality play activities to children & young people, parents and carers, in playgrounds and parks in the borough, in order to enable the service to achieve the aims and goals of relevant corporate plans and strategies in relation to children and young people.

To manage the day-to-day operation and development of an open access play facility and play workers, delivering play opportunities to children and young people of school age., 1. To take the lead in the front line delivery of a programme of adventure play activities, working directly with children and young people to support their personal development and contributing to the achievement of relevant corporate targets
2. To actively participate in the annual programme planning process to ensure a varied and interesting range of activities for young people
3. To be responsible for promoting children and young people's participation in all aspects of planning, monitoring and evaluating activity including the supporting of project based support groups such as, children and young people's user consultation groups (Play Forum) and local Friends groups.
4. To promote and publicise a programme of positive activities available across the borough maximising the uptake of the facilities by undertaking outreach work, contacting other local providers and attending liaison meetings with appropriate partners/interested parties, including local tenants/residents groups, schools, parents and carers groups, Friends of groups and other community organisations.
5. To work in partnership with other agencies such as schools voluntary sector partners and council departments
6. To support and/or contribute to developing new play projects and facilities, fund raising initiatives, including grant aid applications and other income generating opportunities.
7. To line manage and provide supervision, guidance and support to up to three play workers, following Southwark's performance management process. This includes responsibility for individual performance appraisals, as well as the development of individual work plans.
8. To ensure high standards within the service recordings systems (electronic and paper), and all requirements for collection, recording, maintaining of data and reports are adhered to in all play sessions as well as user registers, contacts, doctors, accident books, financial transactions, risk assessments, output data and basic reports.
9. To ensure the effective completion of administrative duties and facilities management as appropriate such as ordering and receipting of materials and equipment for use in the playground in accordance with council procedures.
10. To support the team leader on ensuring that day to day operational tasks related to play facilities i.e. the service buildings, sites and installations (including IT) are good working order, safe, secure for both staff and visitors and compliant with relevant health and safety legislation.
11. To ensure the service actively promotes council policies in relation to equal opportunities, confidentiality of information, data protection, business risk assessment and Health and Safety of staff and service users.
12. To have due regard to safeguarding and promoting welfare of children and young people and to follow and implement the child protection procedures adopted by Southwark Safeguarding Children's Board and the service.
13. To participate in training and personal development activities which are appropriate to the role, to meet statutory and departmental requirements.
14. From time to time it may be necessary for the post holder to carry out additional tasks, compatible with the nature of the post, as requested the management team.

JOB CONTEXT

The Youth and Play Services are responsible for providing positive activities borough wide for young people aged 11 to 19 years (25 years with SEN) as well as delivery of Adventure playgrounds for older primary school children. These services are provided in a variety of building based youth centres and adventure playgrounds across the borough. The service also delivers the Young Advisors, the Youth Parliament, a commissioning programme and strategic work with a variety of partners from both the statutory and voluntary sector.
The service leads on the delivery and coordination of cross departmental youth related programmes with the overall aim to raise the profile of services for young people in Southwark so that no young person is left behind. It also aims to place young people at the heart of future service design to ensure that they can influence decisions affecting their lives. This includes ensuring that council's facilities are fit for purpose, of high quality and young people friendly and that services meet their needs and enable them to fulfil their potential.
The post holder will work independently and will receive regular supervision to enable delivery of high quality, modern and customer focused services to young people in the Borough.

The post reports to the Play Team Leader.
Line management responsibility for up to three play youth workers

Financial Responsibilities
None

Conditions of Service
Contractual hours will be varied in accordance with the needs of the service and will mostly take place in the evenings and weekends

A full DBS check is required for this post

The person specification is a picture of skills, knowledge and experience required to carry out the job., Possess a recognised youth work and/or play work qualification (NVQ level 3) or equivalent
E
S/I
Knowledge of health and safety relating to working with and providing service for children and young people
E
I
Knowledge of child protection legislation and safeguarding and its implications for service delivery
E
S/I
Knowledge of vulnerable groups and the challenges of working with children and young people
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I
Knowledge of a range of principles underpinning play work/childcare/youth support provision and understanding of Free Play and the delivery of Free Play opportunities
E
I
Experience:
Experience of developing, facilitating and delivering adventure play activities and facilities for children and/or young people, and their maintenance.
E
S/I
Experience of implementing services objectives across a range of play settings - which may include, facility based, detached projects, open or closed play spaces, targeted programmes.
E
I
Experience of developing and maintaining appropriate and positive relationships with children and/or young people
E
I
Experience of liaising with internal and external agencies
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I
Experience of managing and motivating teams, allocating resources, monitoring service provision and providing reports, Excellent organisational and administrative skills, including the capacity to manage competing demands and meet deadlines, Good interpersonal and networking skill and the ability to work well with a variety of statutory and non-statutory agencies as well as community and/or hard to reach groups, The ability to communicate simply and effectively to a range of audiences both verbally and in writing, Minimum age 18
At least 5 years of experience in a Senior role
Hold a level 3 qualification in Playwork/Youthwork/or equivalent
Experience on a Adventure Playground