Outreach Worker - Working for Essex

About the role

Outreach Worker

Fixed Term, Part Time

£23,456 to £29,933 per annum pro rata

Location: Basildon

Closing Date: 6th June 2023

Please note that this position is being offered as a 2-year Fixed Term Contract / Secondment and is a part time role, offering 22.2 hours per week / 0.6 Full Time Equivalent.

The working pattern of days for this role is preferably Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays with option to be flexible to swap days to attend meetings if needed but we open to considering different combination of days (Monday to Friday) and this can be discussed at interview.

Here in Essex, we continue to raise the bar about practice and our investment in our workforce is second to none. It’s an exciting time to join us. Not only have we been named Outstanding by Ofsted, we are delighted and at the same time humbled to have been crowned Social Work Employer of the Year for the second time in the last three years!

The Opportunity

Children and Families is recognized as a service in which workers can develop and prosper, with a culture of collaboration, integrity and compassion; promoting development and wellbeing of children, young people and their families or carers and protecting them from neglect and abuse.Working together with partners delivering a range of early help, family support and effective interventions which build resilience, remove barriers, and enable children and young people to look forward to a brighter future.

The Outreach worker (fostering) will support the stability of children’s care arrangements, to prevent children moving foster homes in an unplanned way and maximise the potential for children to thrive and meet their potential in care.

The postholder will work directly with children in care, foster carers and supported lodgings carers to provide practical support and guidance and organise support groups and activities for carers. The postholder will work with collaboratively with others to promote better outcomes for children, and support the retention of foster carers.

The role requires an awareness of the impact of trauma on children’s behaviour. The role also requires excellent interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to build strong working relationships with both children and adults.

This role will require working flexible hours to support planned work outside of usual office hours and may require occasional unplanned emergency work.

Accountabilities

Direct work with children:

Undertake direct work with children and young people as planned by supervising social workers, mental health workers or others in the child’s network
Undertake direct work with the sons and daughter’s of foster carers.
Attend other meetings relevant to the child as directed by the fostering manager
Participate when appropriate in the observation and assessment of young people
Ensure accurate records of all conversations with children and carers are kept and appropriately uploaded to the system and that relevant information is shared with the right people and recorded appropriately
Work collaboratively with statutory and voluntary partners to ensure the safety and best outcomes for children and their families
Build relationships with the child through group and / or one to one work where targeted work has been assessed as appropriate

Direct work with carers:

Participate in the training and support of carers, which may include providing parenting advice, organising carer support groups and organising local activities for children, carers and their birth children
Provide practical support to carers in their tasks of caring for children and young people, as agreed by the carer’s supervising social worker the outreach worker’s supervisor or the fostering team manager.

Supporting the team and wider fostering service:

Attend and contribute to staff meetings
Support the work of the fostering team manager through monitoring (and or undertaking if requested by the manager) fostering household’s Health and Safety form, DBS checks and Medicals to ensure these remain in timescales.
Contribute to the organisation of team events.
Support the work of the wider Fostering Service, including contributing to the organisation of countywide fostering events
Participate, with the line manager in the development of specific individual and shared targets and objectives annually within the performance management framework.

The Experience You Will Bring:

Educated to RQF Level 2 (GCSE) or equivalent by experience, which may include specific practical qualifications.
Experience of working with children and families.
Experience of working with the public and the ability to maintain clear boundaries and open communication with clients and colleagues.
An awareness of the impact of trauma on children’s behaviour.
Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, both verbal and written, with the ability to act assertively and resolve conflict.
Ability to manage own workload and time effectively
An ability to work in partnership with social work colleagues and other professionals
Familiarity with children’s safeguarding protocols, the Children Act 1989 and the 2011 Fostering Service Regulations and National Minimum Standards for Fostering

The role requires you to be mobile throughout a wider operational area including travelling around the county of Essex and beyond, transporting service users and their belongings and to be able to do so in an emergency. Driving licence and car or the ability to meet the mobility requirements of the role through other means is essential.

Please note that the job role requires you to be mobile throughout an operational area. Therefore, the post holder will need to have a driving licence and access to a vehicle, or the ability to meet the mobility requirements of the role through other means.

To read more about us please visit: Children & Families

Please take a look at our ‘No Magic’ Children & Families video here

Why Essex?

Essex County Council has a location to be proud of. Our 1,300 square miles stretch from Constable Country to the Thames Estuary, from the dynamic M11 corridor to the traditional seaside resorts of Clacton and Walton. England’s oldest town, Colchester, and two of its newest – Basildon and Harlow – are right here. Along with the City of Chelmsford, the county town, they form our major population centres. It means real choice and makes Essex the ideal place for your career. Read more about us here.

Essex County Council is proud to be a Disability Confident Leader. We’re committed to interview all disabled applicants who choose to apply under our Job Interview Scheme if they meet the minimum requirements of the job. Please speak to our Recruiters if you require any reasonable adjustments during the process.

We’re also committed to interview all veterans and care leavers, who meet the minimum requirements of the role for which they are applying.

As part of employment with Essex County Council (ECC) should your role require a DBS check you will be required to register with the DBS update service. The DBS update service ensures all registered DBS certificates are kept up to date and allows authorised parties to view the status of your certificate. This is an annual subscription, and you will be responsible for ensuring this is maintained. For further information on the DBS update service please go to https://www.gov.uk/dbs-update-service

Essex County Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults, and expects all employees and volunteers to share this commitment.

If you would like to be kept up to date on other relevant opportunities, blogs, news, events and industry related news at Essex County Council, register here to be part of our new Essex Talent Community.

If you have queries on this role or require anything further, please email zainub.khan@essex.gov.uk

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