ZARACH JOB DESCRIPTION
NORTH WEST FAMILY ENGAGEMENT OFFICER
SEPTEMBER 2026
KEY INFORMATION
- Salary Starting at £26,000 with progression up to £30,000 p/a
- Hours Full-Time - 35 hours per week
- Reporting to North West Regional Development Manager
- Holidays 28 days, plus Bank Holidays
- Location Hybrid between home and Leeds warehouse, with travelthroughout Merseyside.
MAIN AIMS OF THE ROLE
- Champion and demonstrate a commitment to the pursuit of Zarach’s social mission and values.
- To provide high quality service to all stakeholders that includes Zarach staff and trustee team, volunteers, third party suppliers and donors and beneficiaries.
- In collaboration with Regional Managers and the wider Family Engagement team, provide comprehensive support to referred families, including needs assessment (both bed requirements and wider support needs), signposting, and facilitating improved school engagement.
- Support the continued recruitment and onboarding of family engagement volunteers.
- Provide a high-quality and equitable service for all families within your area, within a framework that keeps all staff, volunteers, families, and other stakeholders safe.
- Daily monitoring of incoming referrals and allocating workload appropriately to staff and volunteers
- Be the main point of contact for volunteers in your area and the Designated Safeguarding Officer.
- Making relevant referrals to partners and developing new regional partnerships.
KEY DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
REFERRAL MANAGEMENT
- Receive and process incoming family referrals, ensuring all necessary information is recorded and the referral is allocated appropriately.
- Conduct, or delegate to volunteers, home visits to meet with referred families. Assess bed requirements, support needs and school engagement.
- Respond to the diverse range of families we support with cultural sensitivity, respect and understanding for the vulnerable circumstances they may face.
- Identify and make onward referrals to other relevant support services based on the assessed needs of the family.
- Relay information regarding these referrals and their outcomes back to the referring school, who maintain the ongoing relationship with the family.
BUILD RELATIONSHIPS WITH SCHOOLS AND OTHER AGENCIES
- Proactively build and maintain relationships with schools and a range of local services within their area of responsibility (e.g., food banks, housing support, mental health services).
- Use information gathered, by yourself or by volunteers to identify relevant signposting options or develop individualised engagement plans based on the family's specific needs. Where there are barriers to school engagement, assess what additional support is required.
FAMILY ENGAGEMENT VOLUNTEER SUPPORT
- In collaboration with the Volunteer Team & Regional Development Manager, recruit, onboard, allocate home visits, and provide ongoing support, advice, and guidance to a team of local volunteers.
- As Designated Safeguarding Officer, serve as the primary point of contact for volunteers regarding any safeguarding concerns, providing a listening ear and ensuring they receive group supervision. Report all safeguarding concerns to the Regional Development Manager in line with organisational policies.
- Effectively communicate information about local services and referral pathways to relevant volunteers to support their home visits and signposting activities.
GENERAL
- To be a champion and ambassador of the mission and values of Zarach in all aspects of work and in all interactions with Zarach stakeholders.
- Attend a quarterly (or other agreed frequency) 1-1 meeting and annual appraisal with your line manager to support you in fulfilling your duties and responsibilities and in reviewing your progress against set objectives.
- Attend required meetings (internally and externally) that support the development of Zarach, its team, ways of working and relationships with stakeholders.
- Identify and attend training that will support you in fulfilling your duties and responsibilities and professional development and in ensuring that Zarach meets legal and best practice standards.
- Follow all Zarach policies and procedures and terms of your contract.
- Undertake any other reasonable duties that supports the fulfilment of the main aims of this post and the ongoing development of Zarach.
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