Barnardo's Highland are developing a new partnership service with the Highland Council, supporting care experienced children and young people with additional needs.

This is a new service within Highland which will look at the individual needs of children and young people and develop bespoke residential care packages using a right based, trauma informed approach working with the whole family around the child.

The team working with the children will enrich their lives through care, support and activities which will be aimed at raising self-esteem, promoting a sense of mastery, and enabling the children to access experiences that are individually tailored to their interests and nurture their talents. The team will work with the wider partnership to ensure that Educational and Health needs are met.

We are looking to appoint a Team Manager to join this service and who has the below experience.

• Excellent communication skills, verbally and written.
• Experience in working with Children with additional and complex needs.
• Experience working in a supervisory role.
• Experience of Leading and Managing Care Services.
• Ability to demonstrate a strong understanding of child protection, safeguarding and working with vulnerable children.
• The post holder must have an excellent working knowledge of Children in Care and Care Experienced Young People.
• Experience of chairing meetings, working in partnership with other agencies and staff supervision / coaching / mentoring is essential.
• Use of IT is significant and candidates must be able to use and maintain client record systems.

Some of the Key Responsibilities include:

• Providing a ‘duty' management role to the service, offering information, advice and support with operational day-to-day running of the service.
• Ensuring consistent use of policies, procedures and processes.
• Attending appropriately to the physical and emotional needs of children and young people, including health and safety aspects of equipment, environment and activities in consultation with Children's Services Manager.
• To establish fair, respectful, trusting, supportive and constructive relationships with parents and children, communicating sensitively and effectively

The post holder must have the Qualifications relevant to meet the requirement of the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) and hold the Registration for the Care Inspectorate, or be willing to work towards this.

Vulnerable children in the UK need your help

Wherever you work in the Action for Children family, you'll be helping to change the lives of the most vulnerable children in the UK.

Last year, we helped more than 670,000 children and families across the UK. From direct work in communities to national campaigning, we are focused on making sure every child has a safe and happy childhood, and the foundations they need to thrive.

Why Action for Children?

Working here is more than a job. Everyone in the Action for Children family is passionate about protecting and supporting children. It's the sense of purpose that drives us every single day. Because we know that, when we work together, we can make a huge difference to bring lasting improvements to vulnerable children's lives.

A bit about the role

Action for Children's Fostering Service is a specialist fostering service that offers therapeutic care to children and young people who cannot be looked after at home. We offer the highest standard of care providing carers with excellent training, supervision, and support to achieve the best outcomes for the young people we look after. We have excellent fostering inspections and provide good quality of care to young people, always ensuring we listen to our young people every step of the way.

You'll promote the highest standards of care and wellbeing for our young people, and guide and deliver training to foster carers with opportunities to really get to know young people and support them on their journey. By thinking therapeutically and creatively (with and for) young people and ensuring best practice, you'll make a real and lasting difference. You'll be part of a team that values relational- based practice, as this is at the heart of all that we do!

Our Service is growing, and as a Fostering Social Worker you'll be working in Gael Og, our Fostering Scotland team covering the Highlands. Our Fostering Head Office base is in Glasgow with a local office in Inverness and we can discuss the frequency of office-based work at the interview stage.

How you'll help to create brighter futures

Some key responsibilities for the role are;

• Bringing your experience values and enthusiasm.
• Being part of a team to support fostering families to provide stable and loving experiences for young people.
• Working with others to inspire, support and keep children and young people safe.
• Creating memories and support connections with young people's families and their siblings.
• Feeling confident and skilled in your role.

Let's talk about you

• A degree in social work or equivalent and experience of safeguarding/ public protection is essential.
• Experience of family-based care or post qualifying training would be an advantage as would experience of assessing, supervising and supporting foster carers.
• Registered or willing to be registered with SSSC (Scottish Social Services Council).
• Strong commitment to work within our therapeutic framework to support the needs of children.

Benefits:

• A generous annual leave entitlement of 29 days PLUS bank holidays
• Up to 5 more days leave for continuous service plus the option to buy and sell leave.
• Gain professional qualifications with excellent training, and development opportunities.
• Flexible maternity, adoption, and paternity packages.
• A pension with a up to a 7% employer contribution rate. Plus, if you pay in to the pension you will receive life assurance cover.
• Staff discount portal with your favourite brands.
• Blue Light Card eligibility with 15,000 discounts from national retailers.

Good to know

Please note we are unable to offer visa sponsorship for this role.

Application Process: There are five sections to complete: Personal Details, CV, Supporting Statement & Information, Equality & Diversity, Submission & Declaration.

Talent Pool: We know talent when we see it. But sometimes we find the right person but not for the right job. We'd love to keep your details for when the right job comes up. Let us know if you'd rather we didn't.

Contact: If, for any reason, you need support with your application, please contact Laura McCarthy at Laura.McCarthy2@actionforchildren.org.uk. We'll be happy to give you any support you require.

Diversity, equality, and inclusion

At Action for Children, we're dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive, and authentic workplace. We actively encourage applications from Black, Asian & Minority Ethnic, and disabled candidates as they are under-represented within Action for Children. We want to take deliberate and purposeful action to ensure equal opportunity to all groups in society and for Action for Children.

Don't meet every single requirement?

If you're excited about this role but your experience doesn't align perfectly with the job description, we'd love you to apply anyway. You might just be the perfect person for this role, or another role within the Action for Children family.

Male staff are under-represented within our Children Service roles. We would like to encourage more male applicants for our Children Service roles.

Want to know more about Action for Children?

Find us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook or YouTube to get to know us better.

BACKGROUND

The Association for Fostering, Kinship and Adoption Scotland (AFKA) is an independent charity that promotes and facilitates evidence-informed best practice in fostering, kinship care and adoption, through advising, training, and influencing practitioners and policymakers, and supporting them to improve outcomes for children and families.

Our Vision is a future where every practitioner working with children, young people and their families is knowledgeable, skilled, confident, and empowered to support the safe, secure, and loving care to which every child has a right.

Our services support agencies and professionals to implement child centred, evidenced informed practice that involves children and their families in decisions about their lives, protect their rights and promotes inclusion. Through our multi-disciplinary communities of practice, we enable social workers, lawyers, and health professionals to work effectively across professional boundaries to meet the needs of children, their families, and their Carers. As a membership organisation, AFKA Scotland uses its links with professional bodies and agencies across the country to contribute to the development of policy and practice at a local and national level. We have a collaborative agreement with CoramBAAF.

AFKA Scotland’s multi-disciplinary team has a wealth of experience and up-to-date expertise in practice relating to kinship care, fostering and adoption and delivers a wide range of workshops, training and consultancy, post qualifying courses, and conferences to assist professionals to develop the knowledge and skills they require when working in this specialist area.

We work closely with our research colleagues in AFKA Scotland, and our research underpins our evidence informed approach. We are committed to #keepthepromise, have been instrumental in promise funded work and have been on a journey to adapt to the changing landscape of care in Scotland.

We are seeking to recruit a highly experienced and motivated individual to the role of Administrative Assistant. This role is key in supporting the Business Support and Finance Manager in the day-to-day operational activities of the organisation and to the smooth delivery of our Forums, training and workshop activities.

JOB SPECIFICATION

PURPOSE

To provide administrative support to the Business Support & Finance Manager on a day-to-day basis and to support the overall work of the organisation.

MAIN DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

National Practitioner Forums and Consortia - in conjunction with lead facilitator, manage the arrangements for the full range of forums and consortia meetings, including setting dates, sending out agendas, formatting and sending out final notes, collating meeting papers, and keeping distribution lists up-to-date.

Support training and development events (Commissioned Training, Conferences and workshops) – in conjunction with Trainer/Consultants, provide administrative support for management of events including: finalising training materials for training booklets, creating and sending out booking forms; logging bookings and maintaining database; preparing attendance certificates for participants at all external events; create , collate and analyse evaluation form returns.

Information Technology – Support staff in their use of IT apps and platforms when they are producing materials or delivering training.

General Administration – Undertake a range of administrative tasks to support the work of the organisation including:

• In conjunction with the Business Support & Finance Manager plan and monitor the action required to run the planned programme of events.
• Telephones - answer the phone and pass messages to staff as appropriate.
• Email - check generic emails and respond / forward messages as appropriate.
• Photocopying – where required, photocopy training materials / meeting papers for all events.
• Banking/Post Office – posting office mail and banking cheques when required.
• Library – maintain database and record when books taken out on loan.
• Take notes at staff meetings.

Scotland’s Adoption Register - provide administrative support to Register staff including support for the running of family finding events when required.

Advice Line Enquiries – record all enquiries, forward to staff, follow up as required, maintain records of completion dates and provide statistical information to Business Support & Finance Manager.

Participation in conferences and other external events – provide administrative support for the running of events as part of the AFKA Scotland team.

Experience

Essential

• A working knowledge of an office environment
• Ability to work as part of a team
• Ability to work on own initiative

Desirable

• Personal or professional experience of the care system
• Experience of working as part of small enterprise or charity

Knowledge, skills and abilities

Essential

• Computer literate in a range of computer processes which must include Microsoft Access, Word, PowerPoint and Excel and have proficient keyboard skills
• Familiarity with Microsoft 365 including MS Teams
• Working knowledge of social media platforms
• Excellent oral and written communication skills and telephone manner
• Ability to collate and analyse information and to produce accurate, well presented documents
• Self-motivating with excellent organisational skills

Attitude and beliefs

Essential

• Positive, problem solving and resourceful
• Clear understanding of the need to maintain confidentiality
• Flexible working approach

Base: Office - 3 days / Home - 2 days (if desired).

Organisational Relationships:Line Managed by the Business Support & Finance Manager / Responsible to the Executive Director.