Victim Care Caseworker in Guildford

Division / Department - Criminal Justice

Grade - Grade E

Status - Full Time

Contract Type - Permanent

Salary Grade Range - £29,151 - £32,224

Working Hours - 36.0 Hours per Week

Shift Allowance - No

Politically Restricted - No

Location - Guildford

The starting salary for this role will usually be at the bottom of the salary range and will be pro-rata if the working hours are less than full time.

The Role & Key Responsibilities

From your first day with us you will be part of a policing family making a real difference. It is our mission to identify and protect vulnerable people, prevent and respond to harm and keep people safe. Please see attached for a full list of roles and responsibilities.

In this role you will act as a single point of contact for victims. Provide practical advice to victims to support and assist victims in the cope and recovery phases of their experience. The nature of service required will vary depending on the needs and circumstances of each individual victim. This will range from shorter term interventions to deal with specific issues, to longer term, on‑going support addressing a range of needs and/or supporting individuals through the criminal justice process.

Manage and maintain contact throughout the victim journey, where victims have identified support needs. This includes face to face visits, incoming and outgoing phone calls, text messages and emails in order to ensure the victim is supported, informed and updated, via agreed timescales and their preferred method of contact.

Caseworker will ensure compliance with the minimum requirements of The Victims Code of Practice. Undertake a detailed needs assessment with all victims upon referral to establish their needs and identify appropriate support mechanisms, and deliver a tailored needs‑led support package. This may include making subsequent referrals to specialist support agencies, signposting or working with peers in other agencies who are engaged in supporting service users.

The Caseworkers will work with a range of external partners, including statutory agencies and other third‑sector organisations developing strong links in the community to meet the needs of service users. Ensure that appropriate and dynamic risk assessments are conducted throughout the lifespan of all support cases, and escalated any issues of concern or risk matters to the Victim Liaison Team Leader, to ensure that necessary or proportionate steps are made to manage and deal with the risk.

Ensure safeguarding issues are appropriately dealt with and local safeguarding procedures followed. Carry a caseload and provide direct support to victims who have been affected by crime against an agreed support plan, recording progress and monitoring outcomes achieved. Undertake ‘distance travelled’ assessments at the closure of support to ensure the identified needs have been met, where able to do so.

Maintain an awareness of victim progress and respond appropriately, by amending support plan and/or liaising with other service providers/statutory agencies. Input case notes and client information on the case‑management system according to agreed timescales. Undertake initial victim needs assessments as part of a support triage process to identify any needs to support victims through the cope and recovery stages following a crime.

Establish and maintain effective working relationships with key stakeholders, both statutory and third‑sector in both formal and informal interactions in order to achieve the highest standard of service and support for victims, share data and open lines of communication. Liaise with and respond to queries from other support agencies and parties involved in supporting victims of crime (i.e. Housing/Social Services).

Support victims through the criminal justice system, where support needs have been identified. This will include support in attending court, explaining the benefits of attendance at court, as well as the statutory consequences of not doing so. Listen to victims and witnesses to recognise issues which prevent court attendance at short notice and work with victims to overcome these. This may include attending court as an advocate on the day.

Skills & Experience

• GCSE Grade 4 or higher including Maths and English or functional equivalent to these qualifications with a high standard of written and spoken English and excellent spelling.
• IT proficiency; IT qualification or equivalent experience.
• Demonstrable experience in dealing with people in a customer‑focussed environment or supportive network for at least a period of approximately 12 months.
• Demonstrable experience of supporting and encouraging customers to take personal action, along with the ability to adapt communication accordingly is critical. Ideally, including experience of dealing with vulnerable victims / witnesses.
• Excellent case management and administrative skills and ability to assimilate a thorough knowledge of practices and procedures that relate to the work involved.
• Demonstrable well‑developed interpersonal and verbal communication skills to liaise courteously with internal colleagues and partner agencies whilst maintaining confidentiality.
• Experience of being self‑responsible for decision making.
• Demonstrable experience of having an awareness of risks and the ability to know when to escape them.
• Attention to detail combined with the ability to work to strict timescales as stipulated by the Victims Code.
• Ability to cope with pressure, work unsupervised and manage time effectively with the skill to deal with several issues at once.
• Demonstrable experience of working within a team of people and sharing knowledge.
• Good working knowledge of computers and the ability to produce clear, concise and accurate records.
• Ability to maintain professional knowledge and expertise to remain current as procedures and technology advance with a willingness to embrace and make suggestions for improvements in relation to criminal justice legislation, policy and initiatives.
• Experience in assisting with on‑the‑job training and coaching.
• Awareness of the impact of crime on a victim and the needs of victims.

Benefits

We are invested in supporting people to balance their life with work and we encourage flexible working. We are open to conversations about job shares and part‑time working. We encourage agile working, giving you the opportunity to manage your own diary and work wherever you give the best service to the public. This may include flexi‑time and home working. However, for the first six months during probation the successful candidate will be expected to work from the office.

We take pride in looking after our people and offer a variety of benefits:

• career progression
• contributory pension scheme (LGPS)
• generous annual leave allowance
• discounts for everyday spend
• on‑site gyms and a range of sports clubs
• generous and supportive parental leave
• financial and mental wellbeing guidance and support
• discounted contributory healthcare scheme

Please note this is a Pool position and during the 6 months probation period the successful candidate will be required to work fully from the office.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

We are only as good as our people. It's important that our officers and staff can be themselves in the workplace and we know that as an organisation we'll grow from the variety of thinking, approach, and the skills that diversity brings; all of which help us to deliver a better policing service. We strive to ensure how we deliver our services, provide information and how we recruit is open and accessible to all. We have multiple staff support groups who help to improve our understanding of minority issues and ensure they are reflected in our work.

We are proud members of Disability Confident, hold Race Equality Matters Trailblazer status, are a signatory of the Race at Work Charter and are aligned with the Armed Forces Covenant and the HeForShe movement. We are committed to being an anti‑racist police service. We promise to challenge injustice, ensure fairness and to uphold anti‑racist principles in both our organisation and our communities. We value the differences that people bring from all backgrounds and communities. Regardless of age, sex, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, disability, social status, or religious belief, we would love to hear from you.

Eligibility

Surrey Police and Sussex Police Special Constables, Volunteers and Agency Staff (excluding self‑employed workers) covered under the Agency Worker Regulations (AWR) are eligible to apply for internal advertised posts.