Senior Support Worker in Guildford

HTR Care and Recruitment is hiring on behalf of their client. The Senior Support Worker plays a vital role in ensuring high-quality care and support for young people aged 16-21 living in supported accommodation. The role involves providing direct support to young people in line with Ofsted regulations, safeguarding standards, and individual care and support plans. The Senior Support Worker also provides leadership, guidance, and supervision to Support Workers, ensuring consistency of practice, compliance with policies, and positive outcomes for young people.

Key Responsibilities

• Young Peoples Support
  • Build positive, trusting, and professional relationships with young people, promoting independence and resilience.
  • Create, develop and review individual support plans and risk assessments with live-in support staff, following organisational procedures.
  • Provide keywork sessions, supporting young people with life skills such as budgeting, cooking, education, employment, training, managing health and wellbeing, and diary management.
  • Support young people to attend appointments and accompany them where required outside of the home.
  • Support young people to apply for identity documents, benefits, bank accounts, education, and complete job applications online.
  • Signpost young people to local resources and activities, to meet their cultural and leisure needs.
  • Ensure support is delivered in line with individual risk assessments, support plans, and placement objectives.
  • Attend and write a summary report and action plan on each professional meeting attended.
  • Encourage participation in decision-making and actively involve young people in shaping their support.
  • Safeguard young people, responding appropriately to concerns, disclosures, and incidents in line with safeguarding procedures.
  • Promote equality, diversity, and inclusion in all aspects of support.
• Team Leadership & Supervision
  • Provide day-to-day guidance and support to live-in Support Workers.
  • Check in with staff in each house daily to ensure any concerns are picked up and addressed.
  • Undertake formal supervision and reflective practice sessions with designated team members at least monthly.
  • Chair a monthly team meeting with other senior support workers and support workers.
  • Provide support with staff induction, mentoring, and ongoing development.
  • Model best practice in working with young people.
  • Assist the management team in monitoring staff performance and contribute to appraisals.
  • Delegate tasks to support staff and support them to complete them.
• Quality & Compliance
  • Ensure all records are accurate, up to date, and completed in line with company and Ofsted requirements.
  • Carry out the required weekly health and safety checks and associated documentation.
  • Contribute to service audits, inspections, and quality assurance processes.
  • Support the Registered Manager and the Service Coordinator in implementing policies and procedures.
  • Promote a culture of continuous improvement and reflective practice within the team.
  • Write monthly reports on the work carried out with each young person.
  • Keep a record of young people who are NEET and create a plan to support their engagement with education, training, and employment.
  • Attend all management, maintenance, and staff meetings as required.
  • Actively seek feedback from service users and log all feedback and suggestions.
• Accommodation Responsibilities
  • Spend at least one day each week in each house in their area of responsibility.
  • Support other staff with general health & safety checks and household maintenance.
  • Carry out spot checks to ensure that the house is a good living environment.
  • Distribute the monthly shopping for the houses.
  • Keep track of house meetings ensuring they happen according to schedule.
• Other Responsibilities
  • Complete all training and professional development as required.
  • Ensure that they are up to date with the organisational policies and procedures.
  • Attend regular supervision and appraisals with a member of the management team.
  • Take responsibility for their own safety and alert managers immediately to any safety concerns.
  • Any other tasks as allocated by the manager or director.

Person Specification

• Essential
  • Experience of working with vulnerable young people aged 16-21 in supported accommodation.
  • Strong understanding of safeguarding procedures and legislation affecting young people in care.
  • Experience of leading or mentoring staff.
  • Ability to build positive relationships with young people.
  • Excellent communication, organisational, and record-keeping skills.
  • Resilience and ability to remain calm under pressure.
  • Commitment to professional development and reflective practice.
• Desirable
  • Level 3 Diploma in Children & Young Peoples Workforce (or equivalent).
  • Previous experience of supervising staff in a residential setting.
  • Understanding of trauma-informed practice and therapeutic approaches.
  • Driving licence and access to a vehicle.

Key Competencies

• Leadership and supervision
• Safeguarding and risk management
• Young person-centred practice
• Teamwork and collaboration
• Communication (written and verbal)
• Problem-solving and decision-making
• Professional boundaries and resilience