Centre Coordinator & DDSL in Strood

This is an exciting time to join the TCHC Group. TCHC Group was set up in August 2004. Since then, we have continued to develop and deliver programmes to support both young people and adults to learn, achieve and progress toward greater opportunities. TCHC is an organisation that believes in creating opportunities for all. It is an organisation that is ethical, friendly, and considerate and encompasses these values in all its services and operations. Most of all, we believe in working together as a team to create opportunities for the individuals we work with to grow, to help them recognise and achieve their aspirations and goals and attain a positive outcome. TCHC is a disability confident, committed employer.

We are seeking a Centre Coordinator & DDSL who can bring excellent administration and people skills to a newly appointed education and training centre, providing education to 16-19-year-olds. You will be responsible for creating an outstanding experience for our learners and working closely with the Centre Manager and internal teams to track, report, and monitor the success of all young people's learning activities.

Location: Medway

Working Hours: 8.30 am to 5.00 pm, Monday to Friday, 1-hour lunch, 37.5 hours per week

Contract Type: Permanent

Salary: £28,000 gross per annum (£25,000 per annum plus £3,000 for the DDSL role)

Qualifications & Experience:

• GCSE (or equivalent) in English and maths at grade 4/C or above
• Experience with an administration role
• Experienced in communicating with different people
• A strong, working knowledge of current safeguarding legislation and child protection procedures
• Experience in supporting individuals with diverse learning needs and/or from vulnerable backgrounds
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to build rapport and trust with young people and staff
• The ability to handle sensitive and confidential information with the utmost professionalism and integrity
• Demonstrable resilience and the ability to remain calm and professional in challenging situations
• Strong organisational skills and the ability to maintain meticulous records
• Business administration level or above
• Experience working in an administration role within education
• Formal Designated Safeguarding Lead (Level 3) training
• A professional qualification in a relevant field (e.g., Youth Work, Social Work, Counselling)
• Mental Health First Aid qualification

Main Tasks & Responsibilities:

• Support the centre manager, colleagues, and learners to ensure the smooth running of the education and training centre, maintaining high standards of communication, administration, health, safety, and safeguarding
• Oversee the centre admin processes and ensure systems are used
• Coordinate learner enrolments to the study programme, lead on managing and evidencing learner attendance, and arrange meetings when required
• Coordinate the use of petty cash and ensure all resources are available
• Coordinate to ensure deadlines for admin tasks are met
• Participate in meetings to evaluate individual learning plans, ensuring effective practice is in use
• Maintain security of confidential materials
• Diarise any off-site interventions with learners and assist in planning, including travel arrangements
• Assist with the management and storage of session plans and all appropriate resources
• Organise learner registrations and exit paperwork
• Promote inclusive learning and consistently maintain established standards of discipline within the centre
• Support learner recruitment
• Support sessions with a covering of breaks
• Ensure registers are up to date and authorise bursary payments in conjunction with the centre manager

Reception and Customer Service:

• Be the first point of contact for all visitors and maintain a professional and welcoming reception area
• Be the primary first contact for external callers and deal with queries promptly, taking messages and following up to ensure excellent customer service is delivered
• Support the centre manager and organise promotional events and promote the centre programmes as appropriate, e.g. school career events/open days/awards ceremony
• Build an effective rapport with learners and report to colleagues any issues which may impact learning progress

Administration:

• Lead on administrative requirements of head office and funders, maintaining on-site learner records including learner/parent letters, bursary applications and certificate distribution
• Ensure learner enrolments and ILPs are accurately completed
• Ensure that learner bursaries are applied for and administered efficiently, including daily travel payments
• Organise course marketing and open days
• Maintain information requirements of external bodies
• Manage all ordering of stationery and other resources required to ensure the smooth operation of the centre
• Maintain effective communication with colleagues via email, telephone, and face-to-face meetings, communicating issues promptly
• Follow TCHC general housekeeping procedures
• Maintain the centre calendar and notify staff of important events, supporting all deadlines to be met
• Undertake any ad hoc tasks as required and be flexible in covering the work of team members as and when necessary

Monitoring and Continuous Improvement:

• Undertake regular CPD and record it using company documents
• Undertake qualifications where suitable as part of your own learning and development
• Take proactive approaches to ensure Safeguarding and Prevent is embedded into the delivery and ensure issues are raised accordingly, in line with TCHC’s Safeguarding Policy, using the appropriate recording and reporting tools
• Prepare for and attend standardisation meetings as instructed by Quality Assurance
• Ongoing management and administration tasks relating to TCHC’s CRM and ePortfolio systems, including but not limited to session planning, logging results and providing feedback to learners
• Ensure any complaints are raised accordingly in line with TCHC’s Complaints Policy

DDSL (Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead):

• Report and action any safeguarding issues raised within the centre
• Be familiar with TCHC policies and procedures linked to safeguarding
• Liaise with the Safeguarding Manager to seek advice or refer a case to them for further action in accordance with the Safeguarding Policy
• Provide an induction for new Team Members so they are aware of the safeguarding requirements of the centre, using the resources provided
• Ensure that TCHC is acting in a way that recognises its safeguarding responsibilities in all its activities
• Be a point of contact for anyone within the centre who wants to report any form of abuse or suspected abuse, or who has any safeguarding concerns and needs advice
• Attend internal and external safeguarding meetings as required
• Attend internal and external training for safeguarding as required
• Ensure that, where external formal educational trips are organised, risk assessments are implemented to keep learners and staff safe
• Create external partnerships with the local safeguarding partnerships

Confidentiality:

The individual in this role is responsible for upholding the confidentiality of information pertaining to clients, staff, and other stakeholders. Certain aspects of their work involve handling confidential information, which should not be disclosed to individuals outside the scope of their official duties. It is imperative that the post holder consistently adheres to the provisions of the General Data Regulation Act.

TCHC is dedicated to promoting equal opportunities and preventing discrimination for everyone. Our commitment extends to adhering to Safer Recruitment Policies, safeguarding practices, complying with the Prevent Duty, and advocating for the well-being of children, youth, and adults. In pursuit of our dedication, we will continuously enhance and refine our robust safeguarding processes and procedures, fostering a culture of safeguarding among our team members and volunteers.

Commitment to Safeguarding:

TCHC is committed to Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults. All staff are expected to adhere to our Safeguarding & Child Protection Policy and the safeguarding responsibilities outlined in their job description. We conduct Safer Recruitment Checks on all staff prior to confirming a start date, in line with Keeping Children Safe in Education. An online search of information within the public domain is conducted on all candidates who are invited to interview. This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (ROA) 1974.

The amendments to the ROA 1974 (Exceptions Order 1975, amended 2013 and 2020) provide that when applying for certain jobs and activities, certain spent convictions and cautions are ‘protected’, so they do not need to be disclosed to employers, and if they are disclosed, employers cannot take them into account. The MOJ’s guidance on the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and the Exceptions Order 1975 provides information about which convictions must be declared during job applications and related exceptions, and further information about filtering offences can be found in the DBS filtering guide.

Please see our Recruitment with Safer Recruitment Policy for further information, or get in touch on 01923 698477 or hr@tchc.net. The company also conducts an internal online search on social media platforms in accordance with the Keeping Children Safe in Education guidance. Should any pertinent information arise from this search, it will be discussed with the applicant as part of the recruitment process. Please note that upon a successful job offer, the company performs digitalised right-to-work checks and initiates DBS applications through an external service provider. An enhanced DBS check, including the barred list, is mandatory for this role.

Rewards for your hard work:

• The full-time equivalent annual leave entitlement is 20 days per year in addition to 8 UK public holidays
• An additional day of leave will be added for each complete year of service, effective from the commencement of the next holiday year, up to a maximum of 5 additional days after 5 years of service, giving a maximum total annual leave entitlement of 25 days
• This will be pro rata for part-time hours
• We operate a Christmas and New Year shutdown period in which you will receive an additional 3 days of leave at full pay to cover this closure period after 1 year of service. This will be pro rata for part-time hours
• When your birthday falls on a working day, you will receive the day off at full pay
• Sickness pay allowance after the probationary period
• Pension scheme after 3 months you have been employed with us
• Bupa Cash Plan, level 1, paid by the company after the probationary period
• Employee Assistance Programme to access help and support 24 hours a day, every day of the year for immediate family (eligibility applies)
• Discounted membership for BUPA (subject to the qualifying conditions)
• Long Service club loyalty gift upon completion of 5 and 10 years of continuous service
• Quarterly and annual awards
• Company tools and equipment for the performance of your duties
• Reimbursement of travel to other locations outside of the Centre (this will exclude travelling to the usual workplace)