Support Practitioner

**About Us**:
Aberdeen Cyrenians have provided front-line services and care in the North East for over 50+ years, empowering vulnerable and socially excluded people, to overcome their personal challenges, make informed choices, and move towards positive outcomes, promoting dignity, inclusiveness, and equality throughout communities.

Our organisation exists to support anyone and everyone who is facing difficulty and we provide a wide range of life-changing services including support to people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, have experienced abuse, are at risk of violence, are at high financial risk, struggling with mental health issues, struggling with substance addiction, social exclusion or involved in the justice system.

**Position**:
**Job title**:Support Practitioner (part-time) | Direct Access Service***

**Responsible to**: Service Manager - Direct Access Service***

**Hours of work**: 20 hours per week.

**Number of vacancies**: 1

**Salary**:£20,556- £ 25,092** **pro-rata

**Spinal point**:21 - 28

**SSSC registration level**: Practitioner

**Required qualifications**: A qualification of N/SVQ3 in Care, or equivalent or the willingness and ability to attain this within five years

**Main responsibilities**:
To support the Team Leader in delivering a responsive and empowering Direct Access Service through person centred and trauma informed practice; providing practical and emotional support to people in crisis and enabling longer term outcomes including social inclusion, increased independence, and resilience.

**Job activities**
- Support service users to reduce and overcome any barriers and exclusion they may be facing through crisis intervention and preventative 1:1 case work
- Support service users to address and meet their basic humanistic needs (food, clothing, warmth, shelter, etc)
- Form and develop professional relationships with service users, to gather accurate information and identify individual needs, goals and risk assessment
- Utilise effective communication skills and risk management to pre-empt and de-escalate accidents and incidents
- Ensure accurate service user records and case management are maintained in accordance with organisational and national standards and applicable legislation
- Practice homelessness prevention through human rights and personalised support planning
- Ensure that service users’ views remain paramount and that potential obstacles and barriers such as communication, finance, literacy, numeracy and digital access are assessed and addressed
- Liaise with a range of agencies on behalf of service users, including but not limited to social work, housing, health, police, courts, legal services, utility companies, debt agencies, Department for Work & Pensions, other voluntary sector organisations and professionals to ensure a seamless service is delivered
- Support and mentor our volunteers to develop their roles and responsibilities reflecting organisational values and opportunities
- Work with service users to manage debts, budget and maximise their income
- Encourage and empower service users to engage in appropriate education, training and employment opportunities
- Support service users with / lived experience of/ substance misuse and or mental health issues including appropriate referrals to other services/agencies where required
- Assist in the protection of service users from risk of harm and work with other agencies to ensure appropriate Safeguarding
- Carry out other relevant work commensurate with the post as required

**Requirements**:
**Essential Role Requirements and Quality Standards**
- A qualification of N/SVQ3 in Care, or equivalent or the willingness and ability to attain this within five years
- Experience in a social care, trauma informed environment in a voluntary or paid capacity
- Have an understanding of current social justice issues i.e., homelessness, mental health, substance misuse, social isolation and exclusion
- Literacy, numeracy and IT skills at a level to maintain all appropriate records, professional communication and provide budgeting guidance
- Maintain professional confidentiality and boundaries at all times
- Be willing to develop skills used when supporting people through reflective practice, personal and professional development and supervision
- Register with the Scottish Social Services Council and work to all appropriate legislation and standards, service delivery and impact reporting frameworks and regulatory requirements including Health and Social Care, Food Safety, Environmental Health and Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator

**Key Capabilities**
- Interpersonal understanding - listens and understands expressed feelings; demonstrates concern for others; encourages others to express themselves
- Emotional awareness - manages strong emotions and responds constructively; keeps own feelings in check; deals with stress
- Flexibility - adapts easily to changes at work; modifies behaviour in response