Senior Support Worker - STEP in Oxford

About you:

Your friends know you as empathetic, compassionate, and non-judgemental. Employers view you as professional, personable, and a good communicator who is able to prioritise and deal with challenging situations. You are able to inspire and motivate people to take action and improve themselves. You see yourself as self-aware with a strong degree of emotional intelligence and you want to make a difference in the lives of others. Perhaps you are already aware of the challenges faced by people experiencing homelessness and understand how to support them. You may have gained this knowledge as a volunteer, through a previous job, or from your personal lived experience. If all this sounds like you then you could make a great addition to our fantastic support team here at Homeless Oxfordshire.

About The Role:

We are recruiting for two vacancies within this service. As an advocate for our clients who may experience homelessness as a result of a hospital visit, we will expect you to lead on the case management of these clients. You will work in partnership with other agencies to create holistic, caring and personalised support plans for them. Our clients usually have a range of support needs that might impact their experience of homelessness. This includes mental health problems, social isolation, challenging behaviour, finance and debt, alcohol and drug abuse and you will be working with them to achieve outcomes that include move on. You will ensure their voices are heard and make them aware of available support to them including maximising this support. It is important to let you know that at times this role is tough, but most of the time it is very rewarding when you see the difference you make in the lives of others.

Main Responsibilities Of The Job:

• To be part of a team running a new and dynamic service assessing and managing risk for individuals and in the service.
• Ensure the effective delivery of high quality care, support and housing management according to Homeless Oxfordshire policies and procedures.
• To work in partnership with other agencies to ensure the delivery of holistic wrap around support.
• To work in partnership with Connection Support Step provision and Out of Hospital Team.
• To work with other agencies to provide client centered support & risk management plans for clients with complex needs to identify work towards a suitable move on option within 6 weeks.
• To be a supportive and effective part of the team working as part of a rota including evenings and weekends.
• Report any safeguarding concerns without delay in line with procedures.
• To make and maintain Housing Benefit claims.
• Manage challenging situations in line with procedures and to ensure the safety of yourself and others.
• Ensure that IT systems are updated as required and concise record keeping is completed promptly.
• Maintain positive relationships with clients, relatives, carers, professionals, commissioners, contractors and the local community.
• To undertake any other duties that can be reasonably required to meet the operational needs of Homeless Oxfordshire.
• Comply with Homeless Oxfordshire’s policies and procedures.
• Contribute to a positive working environment in which equality and diversity are valued and staff are enabled to do their best.
• Contribute to the work of the broader team.

About Us:

We are an open door for people experiencing homelessness whose lives have been shaped by trauma and disadvantage; providing safety, stability and support when it is needed most. We deliver this support across Oxfordshire by providing a range of accommodation with access to high quality support, offering a safe and welcoming space for people to take control of their own lives. We are an accredited Oxford Living Wage employer, and benefits to the role include: annual leave starting at 26 days (excluding bank holidays), flexible working, enhanced benefits with qualifying service, retail discounts with our Homeless Oxfordshire Benefits Hub, and life assurance up to four times your salary and a £250 bonus if you successfully refer someone as a new colleague through our Employee Referral Scheme as a thanks from us!

Open To: People wanting to work weekends. This role is a shift and rota'd role that includes weekends, bank holidays, early and late days.

What’s Next: Have a look at the job description to find out more about the role and apply on our website. Please be aware that this role is subject to an enhanced DBS disclosure check and will be undertaken for the successful candidate. We reserve the right to close this advert early if we identify a suitable candidate before the advertised closing date.