Senior Children

**Closing Date: 07/03/24**

**Job Title: Senior Children & Families Practitioner**

**Role: Full-time (37.5hrs/wk)**

**Salary**:£27,729 pa, plus additional payment for ‘on-call’ duties**

**Report to**:Assistant Director of Children and Families

**Responsible for**: All staff and volunteers in designated area.

**About Us**

At Safer Places our team is our most important resource and asset. Having a highly competent survivor focused, experienced and resourceful team is key to delivering a high-quality service. We are committed to supporting our staff and to providing continued professional development and offer an excellent range of training and qualification packages.

**Main Purpose**:
To lead a team of staff delivering support in safe accommodation to children and young people (CYP) focussed on their needs and safety, to take a leading role where CYP Child Protection and Child in Need arrangements and to work collaboratively with adult support and programmes staff to enhance parenting capacity, to rebuild family bonds and increase the resilience of the family as a whole. To act as the voice of the child or young person in refuge and within our planning work to respond to CYP as victims in their own right.

**Key Responsibilities**:
**Corporate**

1. To maintain and demonstrate a commitment to the Organisation’s vision, values and strategic aims and objectives.

2. To maintain high standards of professionalism and keep abreast of current legislation, standards, best practice and maintain a focus on continuous improvement.

3. To maintain knowledge of the Organisation’s operating environment.

**Main Tasks**

1. To ensure initial assessments with the CYP (where age appropriate) are undertaken within the specified timescales initiating plans to manage and address risks, needs and immediate safety. To ensure that services are delivered to the standard and quality expected by the Organisation.

2. To hold complex CYP cases and complete all work required with the CYP to meet their needs.

3. Act as a source of expertise and advice to all staff in respect of children in the families they support, offering support, guidance and signposting where necessary.

4. Ensure that all safeguarding measures are delivered in respect of the client and their children and that at all times you and your team adhere strictly to Safer Places policies and procedures in respect of safeguarding vulnerable adults and children

5. Ensure support for children is prioritised in line with assessed need and risk and work as part of a multi-agency team where there are issues of safeguarding / child protection / other additional factors.

6. Ensure that CFSW are planning, delivering and evaluating all activities for CYP in conjunction with the Safer Places service model and strategy for the delivery of services to CYP including one to one work, group/family activities and arranging for other agencies to bring activities into the service.

7. Liaising with all local children’s services, supporting and encouraging parents and CYP to access appropriate community provision (including schools and children’s centres).

8. To ensure that the highest standards of risk management are applied at the area, service and individual level.

9. To effectively assess and monitor the quality of service delivery to ensure that CYP receive safe and appropriate support using Safer Places audit tools.

10. Ensure that KPI’s and SLA’s are met.

**General**

1. The role holder will be expected to perform any other duties that may reasonably be asked of them.

2. To participate fully in the 24 / 7 onsite rota.

3. The role holder will be able to work within the Safeguarding arena following organisation policies and procedures, be able to Recognise; Respond to; Report and Record Safeguarding issues and understand and make quality Safeguarding Referrals.

4. Comply with data protection legislation, information sharing policy and procedures and all legislation connected to your work. Act in a manner which preserves the confidentiality of all stakeholders.

5. To participate as required in the delivery of contingency plans outside of the normal shift pattern.

**Experience**:

- Experience of working with victims of domestic violence - **Essential**:

- Experience of managing a caseload - **Essential**:

- Experience of working effectively within a multi-agency environment - **Essential**:

- Experience in working in a supportive role with families, children and young people (paid or voluntary) - **Essential**:

- Experienced in assessing needs and client focused support planning - **Essential**

**Skills and Knowledge**:

- Understanding of effective case management - **Essential**:

- Strong crisis management skills and the ability to deal with stressful and difficult situations - **Essential**:

- Demonstrate strong leadership, inspiring and motivating your team and local partner agencies to develop effective partnership solutions to reach hidden