Support Worker

DPST take a whole family approach and work flexibly with children in care in order to improve outcomes for our children and increase placement stability. The team works creatively to provide a range of support, underpinned by a therapeutic and trauma informed approach, with the aim of ensuring our children are able to reach their full potential and thrive. The main themes of the team's work are:

• Working directly with children/young people and their carers, using targeted interventions, including with parents where children are placed with them, using a variety of resources and approaches, including joint work where appropriate.
• Assessing the needs of children, young people and their carers, in order to inform the planning and delivery of work that will meet the needs of children/young people, in order to sustain positive outcomes for them.
• Supporting young people making transitions, particularly when 'stepping down' from a residential placement, or rehabilitation home.
• Increasing carers' understanding of therapeutic parenting and trauma informed practice.
• Supporting safety planning around a child or young person, by delivering strategies and interventions which address identified risk factors, and planning support that will meet the needs of an individual's care plan.
• Regularly monitoring and reviewing the provision of work and making adjustments when required, dependent on the needs of children, young people and their parents/carers.
• Using a variety of methods and to help sustain improved outcomes, including putting parents/carers in touch with community groups and other services as part of a care plan.
• Advocating for children in care, ensuring their voices are heard, and their needs are fully met, both physically and emotionally.
• Building effective and positive working relationships with families, encouraging greater social inclusion and involvement in pro social activities.
• Planning, delivering and evaluating group work.
In order to achieve this, you will of course have support from your line manager, including regular supervision. A DBS enhanced check for a regulated activity is required for this post. For information on our approach to the recruitment of ex-offenders, please see our policy statement., We are keen to support employees to balance their working life with other commitments. Therefore, wherever possible, we will consider working arrangements that suit an individual's personal circumstances whilst still meeting the needs of the Council. If you would like to discuss the possible flexible working options that might be applicable to this role, please contact the person named below. This may include requests for term-time working, part-time hours, compressed hours, flexible start and finish times, home/remote working, etc.


• NVQ level 3 in Childcare Diploma or Childcare Qualification, or evidence of continuing professional development.
• Experience of working directly with challenging children and young people, as well as vulnerable young people in at least one of the following settings: social care, education, youth offending or health.
• Knowledge of child development and an awareness of differing needs of children and young people and their carers, knowledge of other cultures, and have an understanding of the risk factors and prevention work that impacts upon children's attachment, and presenting behaviours.
• Good time management skills, organisational and planning skills, assessment skills, IT skills, and a good standard of case recording and report writing skills.
• Ability to build trusting relationship with children, young people and their carers with ability to observe and analyse behaviours, their causes, and put forward solutions to problems using a solution focussed and therapeutic foundation.
• The ability to communicate confidently, respectfully and persuasively with children, young people and carers.
• Be accountable for allocated casework & Maintain concise and accurate records either electronically or in manual written case files.
You must also have an understanding of, and commitment to, equality, diversity and inclusion. In addition, we also expect you to share our commitment to our values and will ask you to evidence when you have demonstrated them as part of the selection process., Disability Confident About Disability Confident A Disability Confident employer will generally offer an interview to any applicant that declares they have a disability and meets the minimum criteria for the job as defined by the employer. It is important to note that in certain recruitment situations such as high-volume, seasonal and high-peak times, the employer may wish to limit the overall numbers of interviews offered to both disabled people and non-disabled people. For more details please go to Disability Confident.