Do you have relevant experience of working with children and young people with a disability/and or autism or relevant experience in a similar sector or work environment?

About Aberlour Options Fife - Respite and Outreach

Options Fife Respite and Outreach provides a range of flexible support through outreach and overnight short breaks at weekends, evenings and school holidays to children and young people with complex learning disabilities and autism. We offer a high-quality child centred service providing positive and enabling experiences for the young people, supporting them through the challenges and complexities that enable them to work towards their individual outcomes and personal goals. We work closely with families and other professionals in providing support tailored around the child’s plan.

What we are looking for....

We are looking to recruit two Young People’s Worker Nights, working four nights on (10 hours per night) every second week. You will play a fundamental role in ensuring that the young people you work with have the best possible experience in working towards their objectives in line with their care plan, supporting children to progress within their individual outcomes. Whilst not without its challenges and demands, this is a highly rewarding role, where the work we do has a demonstrable impact on each young person's progress. Using a person-centred approach, you will provide enabling support ensuring the highest level of physical, personal, and emotional care. We support young people who have epilepsy, need personal care and need gastrostomy feeding. Aberlour, in conjunction with NHS, provides all staff with training.

We are looking for candidates who have a passion for working with young people with disabilities. It is desired but not essential that candidates hold a relevant qualification at an SCQF level 7 or above. Due to SSSC requirements you may be required to gain qualifications after starting with Aberlour.

At Aberlour we want to make sure every child and young person has the love, support and opportunity they need to reach their potential. If you share the same vision, we want you to join our team.

What we offer...

As well as a supportive team and excellent training opportunities, we want all our employees to feel valued and rewarded for the vital work they do. When you work with us, we'll recognise your efforts with generous annual leave, an excellent employer pension scheme and a range of deals and discounts across various retailers. Find out more about our Employee Benefits and our commitment to Equality and Diversity on our website.

About Sycamore Fort William

Aberlour Sycamore Services- Fort William, is a residential care home for children and young people up to the age of 18 years old, helping them to live and grow in a community setting. We work using a Dyadic Developmental Practice model which means that we ensure that the child and their behaviour is understood and the child feels as safe as possible at home, in school and in social activities.

What we are looking for....

We are looking for a Residential Worker to work part time 26.25 hours per week (105 hours per 4 weeks), usual hours would be 10pm to 8am, 3 nights on 5 nights off. There may also be the opportunity to pick up extra hours covering holidays and staff sickness. You will have a knowledge and understanding of the importance of attachment, trauma and how this can impact on an individual’s development. At times our children express their distress through their behaviour and the role can be emotionally and physically challenging; we are therefore looking for someone who is resilient, understands that behaviour is a means of communication and is trauma responsive.

Sometimes children become unsettled or upset during the night and you will play an essential role, nurturing them and supporting them through this so that they can settle to a point when they can be soothed back to sleep. Being a wakened night worker is very much more than being a ‘babysitter’ for the children – the very precious relationships you develop with the children in the house are absolutely key to the children’s feeling of safety, wellbeing and happiness living with us.

You must have the ability to quickly build your relationships with the adults within the house. The nature of the role is such that you could be working to cover a shift or longer periods as required, including days and wakened nightshifts and you may also be supporting young people to attend school or participate in other learning programmes. You must therefore be able to quickly adapt to the working environment within each house.

Undertaking the role of Residential Worker will afford you the opportunity to develop and build on a range of transferrable skills which are valued in a range of employment: you will be able to demonstrate excellent flexibility and adaptability with exceptional interpersonal skills, ability to work with different teams and different children, young people and young adults living within our Houses.

For an informal discussion please phone Zuzana Mandakova, House Manager on 07803495521

What we offer...

As well as a supportive team and excellent training opportunities, we want all our employees to feel valued and rewarded for the vital work they do. When you work with us, we'll recognise your efforts with generous annual leave, an excellent employer pension scheme and a range of deals and discounts across various retailers.

If you have any queries please e-mail: jobs@aberlour.org.uk

Aberlour is committed to the safeguarding and welfare of all our service users and uses a thorough and rigorous recruitment and selection process including PVG Scheme checks to ensure this commitment is not compromised.

“I lost my kids a few times they went to foster care and I would have gone to a place like this if I had the chance. This is badly needed. I hid my drug use and people only found out about it when I had my baby and she was in withdrawal. I loved my daughter and would have welcomed something like this.” A mother who has been supported by Aberlour.

About Aberlour’s Mother and Child Recovery House

Aberlour is proud to be working in partnership with the Scottish Government to establish a new dedicated Mother and Child Residential Recovery House in central Falkirk. Building on the success of our house in Dundee, also funded by the Scottish Government, which opened just over a year ago, our service is designed to enable children of women with problem alcohol and other drug use to stay with their mothers during recovery. Aberlour’s approach to rehabilitation aims to deliver positive outcomes for women and their children. The house will accommodate up to 4 women and their children under 5 years old.

We will be using the Parents Under Pressure (PuP) program which combines psychological principles relating to parenting, child behaviour and parental emotion regulation within a case management model. The program is highly individualised to suit each family. Mothers are given their own Workbook and for many of them this becomes a personal journal of their treatment experience. The overarching aim of the PuP program is to help parents facing adversity to develop positive and secure relationships with their children. Within this strength-based approach, the family environment becomes more nurturing and less conflictual. Full training on the PuP programme will be provided to the whole team.

“Too many women with problem drug and alcohol issues are having their young children taken into care and many other women won’t engage with support agencies for fear of their children being removed. The new houses will improve outcomes for these women and children; reduce deaths of mothers with problem drug use; avoid family breakdown and increase the likelihood of children being cared for by their parents.”

Aberlour Chief Executive SallyAnn Kelly

What we are looking for....

Our relief workers play an essential role in supporting our team. This work is offered on a casual, hourly paid basis to provide cover during staff absence and/or during particularly busy periods. Availability should be specified on your application form.

Ideally you will have experience of direct work with vulnerable families to support improved capacity for women and children and of working collaboratively with other professional agencies and a working knowledge of drug/alcohol use and its effects on women and children.

Applicants should hold a relevant professional qualification at least SCQF level 7 or

equivalent knowledge acquired by other means with a willingness to obtain the required qualifications for SSSC Registration.

We strongly encourage people to apply who have lived experience of alcohol or drug use, with a minimum of 2 years living in recovery, free from all drug use and problematic drinking. People with lived experience will provide crucial insight into the issues being faced by the women and children.

At Aberlour we want to make sure every child and young person has the love, support and opportunity they need to reach their potential. If you share the same vision, we want you to join our team.

What we offer...

As well as a supportive team and excellent training opportunities, we want all our employees to feel valued and rewarded for the vital work they do. When you work with us, we'll recognise your efforts with generous annual leave, an excellent employer pension scheme and a range of deals and discounts across various retailers.

Who Cares? Scotland is Scotland’s only national independent membership organisation for Care Experienced people. Our mission is to secure a lifetime of equality, respect, and love for Care Experienced people in Scotland and we currently have over 3500 Care Experienced members.

At the heart of Who Cares? Scotland’s work are the rights of Care Experienced people, and the power of their voices to bring about positive change. We provide individual lifelong relationship-based independent advocacy and a broad range of imaginative participatory and engagement opportunities for Care Experienced people across Scotland. We work alongside Corporate Parents and communities to broaden understanding and create change. We work with policy makers, leaders, and elected representatives locally and nationally to shape law, policy, and practice, working together to build on the aspirations of The Promise and secure positive change.

This unique role offers the opportunity to listen to and work directly with children and young people with experience of care, in an individual relationship-based advocacy role, and within participation and group activity across our North region.

The post-holder will be a key member of the Advocacy and Participation team, supporting young people from across the Western Isles to ensure their rights are upheld and their voices are heard. In this role you will have the opportunity to provide independent advocacy, children’s rights, and participation opportunities for children and young people who are looked after, Care Experienced, or subject to formal processes and structures. The role will see you actively participating in child’s plan meetings, children’s hearings, and other formal processes, as well as assisting children and young people to prepare for them. In partnership with professionals, carers, and organisations, you will help to achieve the best outcomes for children and young people by keeping detailed records of the work you undertake, writing liaison reports, and monitoring statistics.

As a vital part of the work of Who Cares? Scotland, your role will include facilitating group opportunities for and with children and young people across the Western Isles. This includes providing engagement and participation opportunities throughout the Who Cares? Scotland local and national network, as well as meeting with care experienced children and young people to introduce the service in agreement with the local authority. Raising awareness of Who Cares? Scotland and its services with children, young people, professionals, and carers you will also be responsible for facilitating training amongst care corporate parents.

The right candidate for this post will be able to form positive relationships with children and young people and have good interpersonal skills. You will feel confident communicating with individuals and groups, both in writing and verbally, and be able to adapt to a wide range of contexts. Secure in making effective plans, as well as evidencing your work, you can prioritise and meet deadlines. You take enjoyment from working collaboratively with partners, believing in equal opportunities and inclusive working. Committed to children’s rights, you are someone who knows that all young people can make transformative change happen in their lives if given the opportunity. You can demonstrate knowledge of the current structure, developments, policy, and practice in relation to children and young people experiencing care in Scotland. You are also flexible, given the remit of the role, as some evening and weekend work will be necessary, along with a full driving licence and access to transport.

While we would welcome the knowledge gathered through relevant qualifications, we are just as interested in relevant work experience. We welcome and encourage applications from those with experience of care.

The successful candidate will be joining Who Cares? Scotland and working within the North team at an exciting time, when the voices of those who are in or have experienced care are growing in power, individually and collectively - bringing with them insight, challenge, hope and change.

If this sounds like the role for you, we would love to hear from you.