Senior Practitioner - Parent Work

The role

Are you able to support parents/carers and their families in a crisis?

Do you have experience of working in a youth criminal court setting?

If yes, we have the perfect role for you!

Our Youth Offending Service is looking to recruit a Senior Practitioner in Parent Work to join our amazing team in Wandsworth and help play a central role in achieving positive outcomes for children and young people!

About the team

Wandsworth Youth Offending Team (WYOT) places the well-being of children & young people at its centre and works hard to help them realise their potential to become accomplished adults. We use the skills of a multi-disciplinary team to support children and their families to address issues that may be causing them difficulties.

You will be joining a high performing team that obtained a rating of GOOD (with Outstanding features) in its 2018 HMIP inspection.

About the role

We are seeking an experienced, dynamic, and effective Senior Practitioner who is experienced in working with parents in providing family mediation, evidenced based one to one or group work to enhance the skills parents may need when dealing with child development difficulties.

About you

You will have experience of working with parents of children displaying offending, high risk or vulnerable behaviour. You will need to work from ‘child first, offender second’ approach that promotes diversity, whilst being able to recognise and challenge factors leading to discrimination, disproportionality, and safeguarding concerns such as child exploitation.

The Senior Practitioner post is compliant with Youth Justice statutory guidance but also incorporates early help and signposting. 

The successful candidate will be able to communicate effectively with parents/carers, children, and young people, ensuring that their views and wishes are acknowledged and responded to effectively. You will need to establish rapport and build respectful, honest, and trusted working relationships

In addition to the above, to be shortlisted for interview your CV and Personal Statement will demonstrate:

• A professional qualification in Social Work or Probation (Level 5/PQip equivalent) with at least two years post qualifying experience.
• Some knowledge of Criminal Justice Legislation desirable and be committed to meeting the aims and objectives of the Crime & Disorder Act 1998, the Criminal Justice & Immigration Act 2008 and the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012
• Recent experience of undertaking assessments & working directly with parents/carers.
• An ability to demonstrate commitment to the Council’s Equal Opportunity Policy
• Effective written and verbal communication skills; good IT skills
• The ability to work flexibly as some evenings will be required

Contact details

If you would like to have an informal chat about the role, please contact Michael Hallick by email at paulette.edwards@richmondandwandsworth.gov.uk.

Benefits

We recognise the importance of a good balance between work and home life so we do everything we can to accommodate flexible working including, working from home, compressed or part-time hours, term time only, job shares and other arrangements. Please just let us know in your application or at any stage throughout the process (and beyond) if these are options you’d like to explore. We also offer a generous holiday allowance of 39 paid days (pro rata) including bank holidays and a wide range of learning and development opportunities.

In addition, we offer a comprehensive range of staff benefits such as membership of the Local Government pension scheme, childcare vouchers, new technology scheme, interest-free loans on annual travel cards, discounts with many leisure activities, restaurants, shops and other establishments.

Indicative Recruitment Timeline

• Closing Date: 11:59pm on Sunday June 13^th 2021
• Shortlisting Date: Week commencing 14^th June 2021
• Interview Date: Week commencing 21^st June 2021

Useful Information: The closing date is given as a guide. We reserve the right to close this vacancy once a sufficient number of applications has been received. We strongly advise you to complete your application as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.

Please note that the advertised dates for interviews may change due to the current Covid-19 situation. If they do, we will let you know as soon as possible. Your health and wellbeing is our top priority. Should you become unwell due to Covid-19 during the recruitment process we would very much appreciate receiving an update from you as soon as possible.

Equality Statement

Richmond and Wandsworth Councils are committed to making our recruitment practices as inclusive as possible for everyone. We are committed to promoting equality and diversity and developing a culture that values differences, recognising that employees from a variety of backgrounds bring important and positive contributions to the Councils and can improve the way we deliver services. We are proud to be a Disability Confident employer.

Important Information

This post is exempted under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and as such appointment to this post will be conditional upon the receipt of a satisfactory response to a check of police records via Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) helps employers make safer recruitment decisions and prevent unsuitable people from working with vulnerable groups, including children. It replaces the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) and Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA).

How to apply

To be considered for interview your CV and supporting statement must highlight your knowledge, skills and experience listed in attached Job Profile located at the bottom of the advert.