You First Advocacy provide an independent professional Advocacy service to a wide range of vulnerable adults in Renfrewshire, who require short-term advocacy to address specific issues arising from health, community care or legal interventions. The service is provided by paid staff and trained volunteers.

“Our vision is to provide independent professional advocacy support to individuals who reside in a community, residential or hospital setting, giving them a voice and supporting their rights and wishes”

This post will contribute effectively to the You First Advocacy Service.

The post holder will be required to clearly show an understanding of the concept of advocacy for people affected by issues arising from health, community care or legal interventions.

• An awareness of individual rights, objectivity and empathy will be required.
• A mature ability to challenge individuals/organisations on behalf of the service user, without recourse to confrontation is essential.

This is an exciting and challenging post for a person who supports social justice and the rights of vulnerable individuals. It is essential that you have knowledge and experience of Mental Health, Learning Disabilities and other generic service user groups. A knowledge of Advocacy is also essential. You should have excellent interpersonal skills and be self-motivated.

Our team in Renfrewshire are recruiting for a Community Links Worker, to join them in providing high quality care to a diverse client group.

As a Community Links Worker, you will be at the forefront of helping people in Renfrewshire to improve their health and wellbeing.

If you are an enthusiastic and creative individual and are passionate about changing people’s lives for the better, we’d love to hear from you.

This position is based in Paisley but travel will be required throughout Renfrewshire. Working hours for this position will be Monday - Wednesday, 22.5 hours per week. Please note, the salary advertised will be pro-rated for the part-time hours.

This a fixed term opportunity until 31/01/2025.

Our Community Link Workers are uniquely placed third sector workers operating within GP Practices in areas of high deprivation, where people are experiencing health inequalities. Through 1:1 support appointments and small group work we help people change their lives for the better. It is all about getting the right support to people at the right time. This role is for you if you really care, are proactive, and are great at making community connections and love working with people to find solutions

Whilst we are not medical staff, we bring a unique skill set and a third sector perspective that complements the work of the multidisciplinary team in the GP Practice. We support people to tackle their health and wellbeing problems and connect with community support services. Common reasons for referral to our service include low level mental health difficulties, problems with housing, poverty, relationships and bereavement.

This is an integral role for WithYou - as a frontline worker, you will deliver continuity of care through effective partnership working, delivery of interventions and key work responsibilities.

REQUIRED SKILLS

You will be a compassionate and motivated individual, with the ability to connect quickly with the people we support, treating them respectfully and with dignity. To be successful in this role, you will have:

• SVQ level 3 Social Services and Healthcare or SVQ level 3 Community Development
• Knowledge and experience of working with people who are experiencing complex social and emotional circumstances including mental health difficulties
• Ability to work in a structured service, to follow a service model and collect information about the impact of the service
• Extensive effective interpersonal skills in working with people on a 1:1 basis, including the ability to learn and use recognised therapeutic techniques
• Knowledge about the impact of poverty and health inequalities on health and wellbeing
• Ability to establish professional relationships with multiple stakeholders; i.e. GP Practice teams, Social Work, Mental Health Services and Money Advice Services
• Evidence of creating and maintaining community connections and networking abilities
• Experience of working independently, whilst upholding the policy and procedures of the organisation
• Ability to organise own workload and appointment system and use time efficiently to deliver a targeted number of appointments

DESIRABLE SKILLS

A full job description will be provided upon request

ABOUT THE COMPANY

Everyone should feel comfortable getting the support they need for issues with drugs, alcohol or mental health.

At We Are With You we work with people on their own goals, whether that’s staying safe and healthy, making small changes or stopping an unwanted habit altogether. We give people support in a way that’s right for them either face to face in their local service, community or online.

We provide a free and confidential service without judgement to more than 100,000 people a year.

We use our expertise to improve the help available and raise awareness around drugs, alcohol and mental health so that more people can get support.

We Are With You.

As an organisation, we continue to build an inclusive culture that encourages, supports and celebrates the diverse voices and experiences of our staff. We know that representing the communities we serve is key to us meeting our goals of radically improving people's lives. We welcome the unique contributions that you can bring and we encourage people from underrepresented communities and backgrounds to apply to join our team, including people with lived experience, people with disabilities, people from racialised communities, LGBTQ+ people and armed forces veterans.

As part of our commitment to the Armed Forces Covenant, we provide a guaranteed interview scheme for candidates that are veterans and meet all the essential criteria for a role.

With You is also a Disability Confident Employer and we offer a guaranteed interview scheme for candidates with a disability and meet all the essential criteria for a role.

If you have a disability, a learning difficulty such as dyslexia or a medical condition which you believe may affect your performance during any aspect of our selection process, we’ll be happy to make reasonable adjustments to enable you to perform at your best.

BENEFITS

• Competitive salary
• 28 days annual leave, plus bank holidays
• 2 days paid volunteer leave per year
• Auto-enrollment into We Are With You’s pension scheme
• Access to a Blue Light Card - giving you great savings on big high-street and online brands
• Flexible working opportunities and access to a range of services and resources to support you with your wellbeing
• We have an excellent Refer a Friend scheme which offers you a £500 bonus for any recommendations, any role! Our scheme allows you to recommend your friends and family to work with us and earn a £500 bonus payment for every successful referral you make. Please note, the Refer a Friend scheme is only applicable if your recommended friend completes their 6 months probation period

Should you be successful in your application, you will be required to provide 3 years' worth of references and where applicable, will need to undergo an enhanced DBS/PVG check.

RASASH is looking for a Support Worker to join our team (21 hour post).

Are you passionate about gender equality and supporting survivors of sexual violence? Do you have the skills necessary to provide trauma-informed support and information?

We have an exciting opportunity to join our team and play a key role in supporting survivors of sexual violence in their journey towards healing.

You will provide in-person therapeutic support in Inverness and the surrounding areas as well as help deliver RASASH’s group-based activities.

Travel and subsistence expenses are reimbursed by RASASH in line with HMRC mileage rates.

Are you a creative and motivated individual with the passion and drive to support people with a recent diagnosis of dementia to live well in their community?

If so, you can be part of a National Team of Post Diagnostic Support Link Workers (PDS Link Workers) providing high quality, person centered support to people living with dementia and their families for a minimum of a year following diagnosis in line the Scottish Government’s minimum guarantee.

The aim of the PDS National Service is to enable people to live well with dementia and is centered around Alzheimer Scotland's 5 pillar model so that people move on to a period of supported self- management.

The model includes understanding the illness and coming to terms with the diagnosis, peer support, connecting and maintaining links with their community along with planning for future care and decision making to develop an outcome focused plan to support their future hopes, desires and aspirations.

Supporting our Dumfries and Galloway locality, the post will be based within the Community Mental Health Teams. Alzheimer Scotland’s PDS Link Workers are required to be effective team workers and have the skills to build and maintain relationships with colleagues both within Alzheimer Scotland, the NHS and other stakeholders.

Skills in using digital platforms are essential as we use a blended approach to support people that involve some virtual meetings and on-line groups.

Applicants must hold a recognised relevant professional qualification to a minimum of SVQ level 4, have a good understanding of dementia and how it affects people and their families along with excellent communication skills, a warm flexible approach, combined with skills in empathy and relationship building.

In addition, you should have skills and knowledge at the Enhanced Level of the Promoting Excellence Framework or be able to evidence you are working towards its completion.

This post requires a full driving license and access to a car.