Senior Support Worker in Hawick

We’re looking for people to join our team who share our beliefs. We want team members who'll never give up on our young people, who are compassionate and who believe that our young people deserve the best we can give them. We specialise in solo placements for young people in care up to the age of 21 and adopt a therapeutic, trauma-informed approach to care. In our work, we uphold Greenleaf’s values of Integrity, Compassion, Excellence, Collaboration, and Respect. If it’s your ambition to create a future filled with hope and optimism for our young people, we would love to hear from you.

Role Overview

You will be part of a unique team who will work together to facilitate excellent practice and shape the development of our Service. As a Senior practitioner, you will lead your team to excellence. Note: This role involves completing 14-hour shifts followed by a 10-hour sleepover. Our vision is for every young person who lives with us to experience a safe, happy and nurturing present and a future that is filled with hope and optimism. You will contribute to this by ensuring high standards of care and support. We look after children and young people from a variety of backgrounds, who have experienced trauma or adverse life experiences and need specialist therapeutic support in a small residential setting.

To succeed in this role, you will be compassionate, patient, nurturing, and therapeutic in your approach to care. You will believe in and strive for continuous improvement and professional development both for yourself and for your team. The young people in our homes are with us 24/7 and deserve a safe and caring environment where they can grow and achieve positive outcomes. You will demonstrate a drive for supporting, motivating, supervising and mentoring high performing teams to ensure that they achieve good outcomes for young people. You will demonstrate excellent prioritisation and allocation of high-level needs, including involvement in child protection and outcome focused interventions. You will believe in the benefits of a mindful, team approach placing the child at the centre of the care plan whilst being committed to partnership working by practicing this methodology with all stakeholders.

Our progression pathways allow Senior practitioners to benefit from further training and opportunities for progressing onto managerial positions within the company. Through this initiative, progression within Greenleaf can occur quickly, creating a stepping stone to management roles.

Greenleaf Benefits

• 29 days holiday entitlement, increasing with every two years of service
• Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) with a 24/7 wellbeing line and free counselling
• Company-funded qualifications and support from an internal assessor – we can deliver SVQ 3 and 4 and HNC in social services
• Health Cash Plan, which includes dental and optical cover, physio therapies, and a 24/7 GP helpline.
• Greenleaf For You platform which offers a range of savings including discounts, offers, and money back on vouchers
• Progression pathways and opportunities to develop and progress in your career
• Pension scheme with Nest Pensions
• Complementary meals while on shift
• Casual dress code

The ideal candidate will:

• Possess previous experience of working in a residential children’s home and in a supervisory capacity.
• Possess an SVQ 3 and HNC in social care or equivalent.
• Demonstrate excellent communication, teamwork, and leadership skills.
• Understand safeguarding and child protection.
• Have the ability to work shifts, including weekends, sleepovers, and long hours.
• Possess a full UK manual driving licence and be a confident driver.
• Understand the behaviours displayed by children and young people and be skilled in a range of intervention strategies.
• Be aware of relevant legislation.
• Be trained in crisis and physical intervention.

Specific Duties and Responsibilities

• Provide care and support to our children and young people in accordance with policies and procedures and participate in a mindful, teamwork approach to therapeutic childcare practice.
• Provide a supervisory and mentoring role to care practitioners supporting the young people.
• Ensuring that the care team have the skills, knowledge and ability to care for children and young people effectively.
• Supporting on-call arrangements as a senior member of the team.
• Assisting with management tasks including finance, staffing, recruitment, training and environment.
• Contributing to the maintenance and improvement of care standards.
• Contributing to and completing professional reports within agreed timescales.
• Contributing to the assessment process for young people and the delivery of support programmes, working together with your team.
• Ensuring quality recording of information in accordance with policies and regulations.
• Working within a shift system including night or sleepover duty.
• Undertaking health and safety checks and other safety/security checks as necessary.
• Participating in on-going training and development to maintain and build your professional skills.
• Implementing de-escalation and physical intervention strategies as necessary and appropriate in line with mandatory training.
• Promoting young people’s participation, to ensure they are actively involved in the environment and day to day activities of the home.
• Being fully aware of child protection issues and understanding the principles of safeguarding young people, staff and self.
• Fully understanding the emergency call out procedures of the house.
• Promoting structure, boundaries and domestic routines within the house.
• Participating in and completing records for statutory reviews and meetings concerning the young people.
• Contributing to the maintenance of a safe, hygienic and clean environment.

The nature of residential work is varied and, in many instances, unpredictable. All staff are therefore expected to work in a flexible way and tasks that have not been covered in the job description have to be undertaken. Senior practitioners are expected to conduct themselves professionally and adhere to Greenleaf Policies and Procedures. They must successfully complete induction and ongoing training. The Company reserves the right to vary duties and responsibilities at any time.

Minimum Requirements

To be considered for this position, you must:

• Have significant experience of working in a residential children’s home.
• Possess an SVQ 3 and HNC in social care or other relevant subject.
• Be eligible for SSSC registration and PVG membership for work with children and adults.
• Possess a full manual UK driving licence and be eligible for car insurance for company vehicles.
• Be able to work shifts including evenings, sleepovers, and weekends.
• Possess excellent communication and teamwork skills.
• Understand safeguarding and child protection.

Greenleaf offers a comprehensive wellbeing package, including EAP with a 24/7 wellbeing line and free counselling sessions, a health cash plan, with dental and optical cover, physio therapies, and a 24/7 GP helpline, and a Greenleaf For You platform, which gives you access to a wide range of discounts and savings. You will also have access to a wide range of development opportunities and company-funded qualifications. At Greenleaf we believe in progression, we look after our staff so that they can focus on caring for our young people.