Job Title: Link worker – Homeless Services
Responsible to: Team Leader and Service Manager
Responsible for: N/A
Hours of Work: 8am-8pm, 3 days in and 3 days off on a rolling rota, Average 38.6 Hrs Per Week
Location: YMCA Together – Lister and Bentley Road
Salary and benefits:
£24,086 Per Annum
- 33 Days Annual leave including bank holidays per annum
- Paid Medicash support
- Birthday Day
- Charity Day
- Spiritual Day
- Well-being Hours
- Cycle To Work Scheme
- Refer a Friend Scheme
- Company Pension Scheme 4%
- Funded Training Opportunities
Shortlisting and Interview Dates:
- Shortlisting – 16th October 2024
- Interview – 23rd October 2024
YMCA is a registered charity and company Limited by Guarantee. We were founded in 1846 and so we build on a long history of providing a place for people experiencing challenging times in their lives. YMCA Together is a truly value driven organisation. Our vision is that everyone should feel safe, understood, empowered and positive for their future. We meet our vision by working within our values of Strength, Humility, Respect, Empathy and Kindness. These SHREK values run through all that we do from recruitment to how we work alongside people in our services to our partnership approach with other providers. Our clear vision and values come together to help us in our mission to inspire and support people to change their lives by instilling hope, valuing the person and maximising potential.
Job Purpose
Link workers will assist the Practitioners in the day-to-day management of the service, focusing on conducting the intensive housing management element of the role. All staff will be expected to undergo Cognitive Analytic Therapy Skills Training (CAT) this will provide a framework for understanding and working with individuals and colleagues in managing psychological and relational aspects of mental health, personality disorder and high-risk behaviours. Training will also be provided around Trauma Informed Care. These approaches will be used for planning and assessing effectiveness of a variety of interventions and risk management.
Hours of Work
The hostel will be staffed 24/7 and the post holder will be working a rota of 3 days in – 8 am to 8 pm – and 3 days off. This is to ensure that we have a link worker on site 7 days a week .
Duties and responsibilities
- To ensure that Intensive Housing Management tasks are completed in a timely way and to a high standard
- To build supportive and therapeutic relationships with Service Users through dialogue
- To deliver activity-based interventions
- To support in preparing Service Users to resettle into their community of choice
- To ensure that Housing Benefit applications are completed in a timely manner.
- To work alongside the support worker team in ensuring that all daily tasks are completed and that residents needs are met .
Intensive Housing Management and Risk Assessing
- Assist the Support workers with the induction and management of their case load taking direction as required
- Update and communicate service user risk assessments in line with YMCA policy and procedure
- Assist in the planning of workshops to individuals and groups that inform/ teach service users around how to manage a tenancy, manage a home and live independently.
- Creatively engage service users that have a wide range of complex and challenging support needs
- Encourage service users to take part in activities
- Offer a creative but assertive approach in order to seek to re engagement
- Assist Support workers in the management of personalised behaviour / support agreements
- Provide clear, comprehensive and accurate information on handovers to the team making recommendations where appropriate
- Assisting service users in the cleaning of their room
- Complete void checks and get rooms ready for letting
- Maintain accurate up to date electronic and written records
- Post holders must be willing to support clients whose behaviours we may find challenging using our CAT /psychologically informed approach .
Service User Involvement and Engagement
- Encourage involvement, participation and co-production from service users in the running and development of the service
- Provide a safe, welcoming environment with excellent standards and an ethos of service delivery that encourages service users to engage
Multi Agency Working
- Working closely with Practitioners to promote and encourage pathways to independent living, help prevent mental health deterioration, hospital admissions, offending behaviors and substance misuse
- Encourage service users to engage with services
- Assist with the provision of resettlement support
- Promote and encourage the pathway to independence working to a CAT approach.
Reporting/ Monitoring
- Monitor positive feedback from service users and external agencies
- Ensure referrals to the service are processed thoroughly and within the correct time frames.
- Ensure that all interactions are logged onto appropriate systems
Health and Safety
- Liaise with all emergency services
- Ensure at all times the safety of yourself and others on the premises in which you work
- Conduct Health and Safety checks as required
- Report, log and communicate all incidents to the appropriate people
- Conduct welfare checks as specified during your shift
- Adhere to all resident checks, handover and Incident process
- Ensure adherence to YMCA Together visitor’s policy and procedure
- Attend to the fire panel in the event of the fire alarms being activated and the recording and following up of information.
Relationships
The post holder will be required to have contact with a variety of people during the course of their work. The context of this contact will vary from formal ‘Key working’ to informal networking and relationship building with the Local Authority and other relevant agencies.
Annual appraisal and regular work review with line managers is an operational requirement, as is attendance at weekly support team meetings.
It is recognised that the association is operating in a dynamic environment and as such this job description may be varied in consultation with the post holder to reflect evolving needs of the business and changing nature of the job
Person Specification – Link Worker (Homeless Services)
Qualifications
Essential
- Qualification or working experience in homelessness, mental health or offending
Desirable
- Qualification in housing
- Qualification in IT
Experience
Essential
- Experience of working in accommodation-based support services
- Experience of partnership working
- Experience of formulating risk assessments
- Working experience of maintaining up to date electronic records and calendars
- Experience of delivering group interventions
- Experience of delivering co-produced activities
Desirable
- Experience of working within a psychologically informed environment (PIE)
- Experience of resettling individuals into independent accommodation
- Experience of CAT – Cognitive Analytical Therapy and of working in a therapeutic environment
Knowledge
Essential
- A working knowledge of providing support
- A working knowledge of Health & Safety issues
- A clear understanding of complex needs in relation to someone beginning their recovery journey including past trauma, homelessness and mental ill health.
- Knowledge of safeguarding protocols
- Knowledge and understanding of how to deal with challenging and chaotic individuals
Desirable
- Knowledge of health interventions Knowledge of welfare rights
Skills
Essential
- Computer literate, competent in working with Microsoft word, outlook , windows
- Excellent communication, engagement and interpersonal skills
- Excellent administration skills
Desirable
- Analytical, data collation and reporting skills
Behaviour/Attributes
Essential
- Committed to improving the lives of people with complex needs
- Committed to own personal development and CPD planning
- Creative and dynamic approach with the ability to “think outside of the box” when providing solutions
- Energetic, highly motivated with a reputation of being held in high regard by their peers
- Excellent interpersonal/ communication skills
- Excellent negotiation/ mediation skills
- Committed to own career development
- Reliable
- Ability to work within and have commitment to YMCA Togethers’ ethos, philosophy and SHREK values, Strength, Humility, Respect, Empathy and Kindness.
- Energetic, dynamic and self motivated
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If you would like to apply not directly through the website, please email your completed application form to recruitment@ymcatogether.org.uk
