In Work Support Worker (Employment Support Worker)

Salary: £15 p/h

Place of work: Various London locations

Contract Period: Various hours as needed – Zero hours contract (Bank Staff)

About the Organisation

The organisation was founded in 1979 and is one of London’s leading Disabled People’s Organisation. They believe in the Social Model of Disability, their values and principles embrace inclusive and accessible ways of working, seeking co-production and co-design from their Disabled members and encouraging and respecting diversity. They are a medium sized charity with a Board of Trustees, 24 staff, a strong pool of casual staff and volunteers, including many with lived experience of disability – all of whom are passionate about removing the barriers faced by Disabled people. The charity provides four key services: Youth, Employment, Welfare Benefits, and Independent Living.

Employment Service

The organisation's Employment Service is setting the agenda for disability employment across London with great results. They are at the forefront of setting up and delivering supported internships for Disabled young people. They provide a holistic service from management and employer engagement to hands-on, supervised support work across all sites. The Employment Service welcomes external referrals and offers support for Disabled people via an in-work support service. They are looking to recruit several support workers to expand their pool.

The Post

The purpose of the job is to provide face to face support work and guidance to Disabled people within their workplaces. The post holder will provide the necessary support and encouragement to enable them to be successful, which will lead, eventually, to independence. The post holder will also work closely with, and take guidance from, their supervisor. They will work closely with the employer of the Disabled person to ensure the employer has the skills and confidence to manage and train their intern/employee.

Main duties and responsibilities

• To work face-to-face with individual Disabled people, under the guidance of their Supervisor, in accordance with their personalised support plans
• To be fully cognitive of the workplace of the Disabled person to identify the requirements of key tasks
• To follow bespoke Support Plans which will enable the Disabled person to fulfil their role to meet the requirements of the employer
• To provide weekly feedback to their Supervisor to ensure continued progression, identifying new areas in need of support, and advising on the amendment of support plans accordingly
• Together with their Supervisor, to plan, discuss and implement a timely reduction of support as and when the Disabled individual becomes familiar and competent with their role
• To negotiate note disability-related reasonable adjustments required for individuals and feedback to their Supervisor
• To liaise with managers to discuss individual progress, respond to issues and implement next steps

Organisational responsibilities

• To work in accordance with the charity's Aims, Objectives and Values
• To comply with all organisational and departmental procedures
• To ensure safe, fair and responsible working practices, specifically the Health & Safety, Equal Opportunities, Safeguarding and Confidentiality policies
• To promote the work of the charity and the Social Model of Disability
• To keep accurate records and provide monitoring statistics and evaluation information as required for internal and external purposes
• To participate in, and actively contribute to, individual Supervision, training, team and organisational meetings
• To work flexibly, being prepared to perform other duties commensurate with the role, which may include new areas of operation
• Any other task as directed by management

Person Specification

Successful applicants must be:

• Professional
• Positive
• Motivated
• Dependable
• Flexible
• Patient
• Empathetic

Essential

Successful applicants must have:

• Experience of disability
• Experience of training, education or employment support delivery
• Maths and English to GCSE Grade C or equivalent
• Be willing and able to undertake any specific training required for the role
• An understanding of the needs of employers and ability to articulate the benefits of having a diverse workforce in businesses
• An understanding of the Social Model of Disability and its practical application
• Ability and willingness to learn and carry out a variety of employment tasks to support the Disabled person
• Evidenced experience of success in building strong and positive relationships with a variety of people and organisations
• Demonstrable problem-solving skills and experience
• Excellent interpersonal skills with a diverse population
• Good organisational skills with an ability to keep accurate records
• Good IT skills, including Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, Powerpoint and the internet
• Be willing and able to travel easily within London
• To be available for work at unsocial hours according to the demands of the work (occasionally)

Desirable

Support Work qualification or equivalent is preferred but not mandatory. An understanding of pan disability and employment.

Deadline: Ongoing. The employer is recruiting for this role on a rolling basis with regular interview days.

As a Disability Confident Employer, the charity actively encourages applications from Disabled people and people with long term health and mental conditions. They operate a Guaranteed Interview Scheme in that we will guarantee an interview to all Disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the post. Please state in a cover letter if you wish them to consider you for this guaranteed interview scheme.

The organisation is a Living Wage Foundation registered employer and all of their employees, casual workers and contractors are paid above the London Living Wage. No agencies please.