Senior Key Worker - Early Help in Croydon

This role will provide signposting and support for families across the continuum of need. The Senior Early Help Key Worker will support the Team Manager, who will lead the day-to-day operations of the Early Help Locality. The role will take a lead in developing relationships with Voluntary, Community and Faith group partners to positively meet the demands of Croydon's families. This will be achieved through regular attendance at community networking events, universal meeting spaces and via established hub forums.

The Senior Early Help Key Worker will work alongside partners to promote a 'Team Around the Family' approach where universal support has been identified. The role will liaise with all partners to ensure that families receive the right level of support, from the right service at the right time thereby reducing reliance on more targeted or statutory interventions. The Senior Early Help Key Worker will provide advice and signposting to partners and families, ensuring that relevant information to enable access to community, universal and/or targeted services is shared. The Senior Early Help Key Worker will undertake whole family assessments, where children are identified as vulnerable and develop appropriate family plans in partnership with parents, children, and young people.

About You

You will be a skilled, experienced and child-focussed practitioner, with a background of relationship-based work with children, young people and their families. You will be a confident practitioner, with broad understanding of child development. You will be able to tailor your knowledge to work with families across a wide age range, including expectant parents, early years, secondary transitions, adolescents and preparation for adulthood. You will be proficient in the undertaking of assessments and able to apply 'whole family approach' to the identification and understanding of need. We are looking for individuals who are skilled in the building and sustaining of relationships and able to engage families who may be hesitant or reluctant to work with the service. The work carries aspects of risk management due to the complex and often challenging nature of familial circumstances.

Essential Requirements

• Professional qualification in a related field (i.e., Health Services, Early Years, Educational Psychology, Children's Social Care) at level 4 or above.
• Experience of undertaking effective decision making that leads to improved outcomes and reduces the risk of safeguarding issues.
• Knowledge and understanding of systemic and strengths-based approaches.
• Extensive knowledge about the wide range of Early Help support available across the continuum of need ranging from universal through to targeted services.
• Thorough knowledge and understanding of the research and evidence in relation to child development including issues affecting babies, children and young people's vulnerability and resilience or sound knowledge in relation to the research.
• Knowledge of statutory services and relevant children’s legislation including a high awareness of child protection and safeguarding thresholds, indicators of need and procedures.

Croydon Council is an inclusive employer and welcomes applications from all sections of the community. Subject to business needs, we will be pleased to consider applications from candidates seeking flexible working arrangements and support hybrid working, whereby staff attend the workplace for part of their working week and work from home, or elsewhere, remotely for the rest of the time. As users of the disability confident scheme, we guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the advertised role. Croydon council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults and expects all staff to share this commitment. The successful candidate will be subject to a DBS check, if the role requires one.