Domestic Abuse Advocate

Involve Northwest is an innovative, community-based organisation with an approach that is grounded in our core belief that the services we offer are free, confidential, and are motivated for public benefit rather than profit.

**Job Title**:Domestic Abuse Advocate

**Service/Project**:The Lighthouse Centre

**Location**:The Community Village, Rock Ferry, and the Wirral community.

**Reporting To**: Lighthouse Centre Manager

**Direct Staff**: No direct staffing responsibilities

**Contract Length**:Fixed term until 31st March 2026

**Job Purpose**:To work as part of the Lighthouse team in the Lighthouse Domestic Abuse Centre to provide direct support to women and children affected by domestic abuse through a drop-in service.

**Core Duties and Responsibilities**:

- To provide a high-quality drop-in service to women and children requiring support in domestic abuse.
- Support and enable service users to increase their safety and make positive choices for the future.
- Undertaking risk assessments and implementing robust safety management plans.
- Give practical and emotional support to women who are experiencing domestic abuse in the community.
- Work within a multi-agency co-ordinated response to domestic abuse

**Drop In Service Duties: (all on a Drop-In basis within the Lighthouse Centre)**
- Complete an initial assessment of women’s needs so that you can identify and plan the support needed to address issues and prevent any problems from escalating.
- Assess, manage, and review risks to service users, colleagues, and self, including the use of the Safe Lives DASH Risk Assessment.
- Assess the needs of the service users and devise appropriate support and safety plans for people in the community with due regard to the dynamic nature of risk.
- Implement, review, support and risk manage plans to ensure desired outcomes are achieved.
- Work alongside colleagues, health/social care professionals and multi-agency networks to support the woman’s needs and risks.
- Provide coaching, mentoring and motivate women to understand the benefits of relevant activities and plans.
- Improve parents' understanding of the impact of Domestic Abuse on their children and work with the parent to provide continued support to their children.
- Respond to emergencies and crises including access to places of safety.
- Plan and implement activities to promote self-awareness, confidence, and participation for service users both women and children.
- Enable service users to participate in the design, delivery, and evaluation of services.
- Utilise evaluation/monitoring systems to ensure the high standards of the service are always met.
- Support women to reduce social isolation by connecting them to local community-based facilities, activities, and groups.
- Assist with recruiting clients to be involved in groups or activities, providing them with on-going support from within the drop in.
- To work within the practice standards of the Lighthouse Centre.
- To perform any other task that is reasonably asked of them.

**Company Duties and Responsibilities**:

- To work in line with set company policies and procedures, including ISO9001:2015 and GDPR 2018.
- To work to Involve Northwest’s Safeguarding procedures.
- To always represent the charity in the best manner.
- To demonstrate a commitment to the vision, values, and strategic aims of Involve Northwest.
- To maintain high standards of professionalism and keep abreast of current legislation, standards, best practice and maintain a focus of continuous improvement.

**Person Specification - Essential**

**Experience**
- Working directly with people/families in crisis.
- Managing a caseload.
- Developing and supporting client plans with people/families in crisis.
- Working with intersecting challenges faced by people/families in crisis.
- Experience of dealing with conflict and challenge.
- Working with relevant statutory bodies and community sector organisations that support the intersecting needs of clients in crisis.

**Knowledge and Skills**
- Have a good understanding of domestic abuse including the impact on victims and their children.
- Have an understanding of Adult/Child Safeguarding and legal responsibilities surrounding these issues.
- Understand the principles of risk assessment, safety planning and risk management for victims of domestic abuse and their children.
- Understand the remits and resources of relevant statutory bodies and community sector.
- Understand and be committed to equal opportunities and diversity issues in policy and practice.
- Have computer literacy skills and have some experience of working with databases.
- Have excellent communication, negotiation, and advisory skills, both written and verbal when interacting with a range of agencies and individuals.
- Have strong crisis management skills and the ability to deal with stressful and difficult situations.
- The ability to build and maintain rapport with adults and children.
- Good communication and list