Youth Homelessness Adolescent Practitioner

The starting salary for this permanent, full-time position is £32,512 per annum based on a 36 hour working week.

This role is open to hybrid working and as a team we split our time between working from home and collaborating together in the office.

Rewards and Benefits

• 26 days' holiday (prorated for part time staff), rising to 28 days after 2 years' service and 30 days after 5 years' service
• Option to buy up to 10 days of additional annual leave
• An extensive Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support health and wellbeing
• Up to 5 days of carer's leave per year
• Paternity, adoption and dependents leave
• A generous local government salary related pension
• Lifestyle discounts including gym, travel, shopping and many more
• 2 paid volunteering days plus 1 team volunteering day per year
• Learning and development hub where you can access a wealth of resources

About the Role

The Central Hub Youth Homelessness provision offers support to young people across the county who are at risk of or experiencing homelessness. A key part of your role as an Adolescent Practitioner will be to support a child and family with situations which have led to, or have contributed to, increased risk of homelessness or precarious housing circumstances. Additionally you will support Social Workers and Adolescent Practitioners in responding quickly, effectively and with the requisite skills and capability to best support children in these circumstances.

You will play an important role in supporting and maintaining excellent relationships with housing colleagues in the districts and boroughs in Surrey and will ensure our responses to youth homelessness are collaborative and inclusive.

The Adolescent Service is built on the belief that relationships are the key vehicle for achieving change. The service is underpinned by 'Relational Practice' principles, an intentional way of working where establishing, attending to, and maintaining empathetic and honest interpersonal relationships are prioritised. This approach includes our relationships and how we work with each other. Adopting this approach supports us to create systems that can be trauma-informed and respond appropriately to individuals' different needs and experiences.

As a Youth Homelessness Adolescent Practitioner in our Central Adolescent Service you will:

• Provide support to both Surrey County Council and District and Borough colleagues where 16/17 year olds present as homeless / risk of homeless or are precariously housed
• Provide support through short term interventions
• Work with internal and external partners to ensure effective support is in place for young people who present as homeless or with risks of homelessness and to understand any wider contextual concerns
• Ensure policy and procedures are adhered to, are timely and accurate and record accurate case notes describing your work and the impact it has had
• Support Youth Homelessness Lead in ensuring the county wide programme of learning and development around homelessness and housing legislation reaches all parts of the practice system affecting adolescents
• Support whole families through a strengths-based and trauma informed approach, utilising motivational interviewing skills and effective relational approaches

Shortlisting Criteria

We are looking for skilled and passionate adolescent workers who are dedicated to working positively with young people in sometimes challenging and complex situations. Some experience working in a housing / homelessness capacity would be useful, but not essential in this role.

To be considered for shortlisting for this position, your CV and personal statement will clearly evidence the following:

• An understanding of the roles and responsibilities of practitioners working with vulnerable children and young people with experience of working in a social work, youth justice, youth work, teaching, or probation environment
• Appreciation of best practice approaches when supporting children and young people
• Basic awareness of relevant legislation affecting working with children, including the Children Act (1989) and the Children and Adoption Act (2002)
• IT skills, including use of databases, email, Word and Excel
• Ability to prioritise and manage under pressure with minimal supervision
• Willingness to learn and undertake training relevant to the role

Transferable skills and experience from a youth work, youth justice, education, residential children homes, social work background would align well to this role, where you will have the opportunity to gain further skills and experience in a dynamic and innovative environment.

Surrey has both urban and rural areas and you will be expected to have a valid driving licence to drive in the UK, access to a vehicle and be willing to travel to your contractual base and across a wide geographical area. Reasonable adjustments where needed will be made for successful applicants who have a disability or long-term health condition to enable them to fulfil the requirements of the job.

The job advert closes at 23:59 19th January 2025,?with interviews to follow.

An enhanced DBS 'Disclosure and Barring Service' check for regulated activity (formerly known as CRB) and the Children's and Adults' Barred List checks will be required for this role.

Our Commitment

Surrey County Council is proud to be a Disability Confident Employer. A guaranteed interview will be offered to all disabled applicants where:

• The candidate has evidenced the minimum criteria for the role through their application
• The candidate has chosen to share that they have a disability on the application form

Our application form and onboarding process will provide an opportunity to request any reasonable adjustments for the interview and/or the role.

We want to be an inclusive and diverse employer reflecting the community we serve and particularly welcome applications from all underrepresented groups.