Referrals Officer in Tonyrefail

Foster Care Associates (The FCA) is seeking a highly motivated and enthusiastic Full Time Referrals Officer to join our inspirational and friendly team to develop and promote the fostering services in Cymru South. Our office is based in Bridgend and we support the hybrid model of working with lots of flexibility to work from home.

We are committed to the wellbeing of our staff. The aim of our Staff Wellbeing Strategy is to increase all our employees' well-being, self-esteem, and sense of belonging to a team and create new environments for them to spend productive time together. This includes walk and talks at the beach or in parks, weekly wellbeing hour, park runs, mindfulness sessions, sea dipping, yoga sessions, raft racing and charity events to name a few. Our office environment is friendly and inviting with tea, coffee, breakfast and lunch items always available for our staff to contribute towards their wellbeing. All this combined with an exceptionally generous annual leave scheme ensures that there are sufficient opportunities for that essential down time.

As part of the FCA Cymru team, we welcome all members of our staff's families to be involved in all our activities that we provide to our fostering families. These have included Alton Towers, West Midlands Safari Park, horse riding, skating trips and lots more to choose from. Within FCA, we also take the opportunity for team-building days away when all staff have the opportunity to come together from across Cymru and strengthen our staff collaborations. Staff appreciation day is also celebrated yearly across FCA.

Robust induction, supportive management team, monthly reflective supervision with line manager and regular learning and reflective opportunities with a highly welcoming and close-knit team will ensure that you feel fully supported at all times.

Additional Benefits:

• Refer a friend scheme with a monetary incentive
• Opportunity to undertake additional recruitment events for additional payments
• An exceptional platform available for online and face-to-face training opportunities
• Inclusion to a comprehensive rewards package including access to discounts to hundreds of major retailers
• Opportunity to join, at a highly reduced rate, our foster talk scheme with all the legal and financial advice this provides as well as additional discounts to various schemes and retailers
• Competitive mileage allowance

Set up by a former foster parent and former social worker in 1994, Foster Care Associates (FCA) is an established fostering agency which forms part of the Polaris Community - one of the UK's largest leading communities of children's service providers. The business was born out of an enthusiasm for delivering fostering services to make a positive difference to the lives of looked after children. Our first office was in the Worcestershire countryside, and that is still where our head office is today.

We have come a long way since those early days. Over the years, FCA has built a strong reputation for excellence, and now offers a wide range of services to children and families. But our purpose remains the same; 'to make a positive and lasting difference for children, families and communities', and it is underpinned by a series of values designed to help us assist children and young people to reach their full potential.

FCA Cymru is a well-established agency, rated as excellent in our most recent CIW inspection, with a highly motivated and experienced staff team dedicated to supporting each child and foster parent in our care. Our staff are well supported with a range of benefits including a generous holiday allowance and we pride ourselves on being a community where people feel involved and have the opportunity to make a difference to children and families' lives.

What We Are Looking For:

As a Referrals Officer, you will manage referrals received from local authorities and use key information and matching criteria to ensure that placements are carefully matched according to children's needs. You will be required to use your initiative and be able to work independently when required to find creative solutions to foster placement requests.

The Referrals Officer role is the first point of contact between local authorities, foster families and social workers. You will need to possess good communication skills and be able to develop positive relationships with colleagues within and outside of the agency, both via written and face-to-face communication. Previous experience of working in a children's services sector may be an advantage though not essential. Excellent organisational and administrative skills are key, together with a passion and motivation to make a difference to the lives of children and their families. We provide an excellent induction into the role and full training and support will be provided.

This is an exciting opportunity for someone who is friendly, has a big personality, good communication and administrative skills and is seeking a role within a team to make a difference to the lives of children and families. We pride ourselves on the supportive team ethos we have within Cymru as a whole and you would be dealing with families across the whole of the country with the opportunity to visit our office in Abergele to meet with colleagues on occasion should you wish.

For more information about this post please contact Fiona Hatton, Referrals Manager. We would really welcome the opportunity to discuss further with you the role and potential of welcoming you to a fantastic team providing great outcomes for children and young people. To be considered, please apply and we will be in touch. No agencies please.

Foster Care Associates is an equal opportunities employer and has been awarded the Disability Confident Employer by the Jobcentre Plus. The successful applicant will be subject to an enhanced DBS check if successful for the position.