Barnardo's is seeking an empathetic and child led individual who can work within a dynamic and fast-paced environment using their strong organisational, communication and time management skills, to support children in the secure estate.
This part-time position (Children's Rights and Advocacy Worker - Project Worker 2) is based within HMP Parc Young Person's Unit, which accommodates children aged between 15-18 years, who are in custody, either sentenced or on remand. Barnardo's refers to Young Offender Institutions (YOI's) and Secure Training Centres (STC's) as the Secure Estate (please note, the location of some secure establishments may mean they are not easily accessed by public transport).
Barnardo's is commissioned by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) to provide an Independent Children's Rights and Advocacy (ICRAS) Service to children accommodated in a secure setting. The service is known to children as Barnardo's: Your Rights, Your Voice, and currently works within four Young Offender Institutes, one Secure Training Centre and one Secure Children's home. The ICRAS service is child led and independent of the secure estate; our service is delivered within Parc YOI to ensure children can freely access support for a range of issues linked to their needs, rights & experiences of custody, resettlement, and safeguarding. As such this is a child-facing service, and at times involves lone working in the establishments, so we are seeking someone who can see the child, not the offence.
We hold 'voice' at the heart of all we do, therefore we feel the role is best described by someone who is currently working in this sector: "The role is a Children's Rights and Advocacy role, which means it is our job to empower the children we work with and help them to understand that what they think, what they feel and what they want, really matters. We can speak on behalf of children to ensure their voice is heard and we also have the opportunity to help them to find the tools and confidence to raise their voices for themselves. Advocacy and Children's Rights support is particularly crucial in the secure estate because children are away from home, family and champions, and also because children in secure estate are some of the most vulnerable children in society; they have often faced considerable adversity, disadvantage and discrimination prior to arriving into custody and they might not, therefore, be equipped with the skills needed to articulate their concerns. Through the work you do with a child such as simply helping them make contact with friends or family on the outside, to helping them with concerns they may have in relation to discrimination, resettlement or safeguarding issues, you may be the one person telling them that they matter for the very first time."
The position (Children's Rights and Advocacy Worker - Project Worker 2) is line managed by a Team Manager, reporting to an off-site manager. The post holder will need to be able to work autonomously, working to the requirements of the contract and the regime of the YOI. The secure estate is a highly structured environment; as a Barnardo's service we deliver independent advocacy and support for a range of issues, whilst still having to follow and adhere to this structure.
This role includes lone working in this challenging prison environment. It is, therefore, critical that the successful candidate can follow guidance and policy and is able to take proactive and individual responsibility to understand and access the service support mechanisms. This role requires the worker to be onsite for their contracted hours, working remotely only for occasional training or meetings. The advocacy team work on a rota system with set hours each week, which includes weekends and bank holidays. Applicants should also be aware, that due to the nature of working within secure estate, the vetting and induction process can take several months to complete.
When completing your application please refer to your skills, knowledge and experience in relation to the Additional Information, Person Specification and Job Description document. This should be done with an understanding of the context of the service described, including advocacy and safeguarding.
This is a part-time vacancy with 18.5 hours available per week.
Please note due to the high volume of applications for some posts, this advert might close before the displayed closing date. We recommend that you apply for this role as soon as possible.
The first-stage interview for shortlisted candidates will be held on Wednesday, 27 June 2025 via Teams. Successful candidates will then be invited to a final in-person interview on Monday, 30 June 2025.
Pay & Reward Framework
We know that our colleagues go above and beyond in delivering our vital work, driven by their passion and commitment to Barnardo's values. We also know that we can only realise our ambitions and achieve better outcomes for more children, thanks to the talent, hard work and creativity of our people.
For all these reasons, we are committed to a new approach to pay and reward, to ensure it is fair, attractive and progressive, which was rolled out in April 2023. This is a positive change for the charity, and a part of our People & Culture Strategy. It will assist us in supporting colleagues to belong, thrive and grow in their colleague journey at Barnardo's and in time will offer clear routes of progression for colleagues in both their career and their pay.
Whilst the full pay band and salary range is advertised, our approach to starting salaries is to appoint between the minimum to mid-point of the pay band - this ensures that pay steps are available to reward our colleagues annually based on their contribution to excellence and alignment to our values and behaviours. More details on Barnardo's pay framework can be found upon application.
Benefits
Workplace Offer: What it means for you
The world of work has changed. We are understanding of what works best for our colleagues both current and future as we look to embrace this new way of working. Our hybrid working initiative is based on trust, flexibility and empowerment. We understand our workplace offer means different things to different people, and we encourage those conversations. This may mean working at one of our stores, services, working at home, at one of our Collaboration Hubs or any combination of these.
* Barnardo's believe in creating equality of opportunity in the workplace and supporting people to manage their work-life balance; we are therefore open to offering flexible working arrangements.
* 26 days annual leave plus bank holidays, increasing after 5 years service
* The ability to buy up to another 5 days annual leave via our HolidayPlus scheme
* A host of family friendly leave options including company Maternity Paternity and Adoption pay; together with all family additional leave options
* Service related sick pay from day 1
* Access to a Group Personal Pension with a matched 4% or 6% contribution from Barnardo's. Ability to pay via salary sacrifice to garner both tax and NI savings on your own contribution
* Death in service cover of 4x annual earnings for all staff contributing to our Group Personal Pension
* Cycle2work scheme
* Interest free season ticket loans
* Discounts and cashback from at high street shops including major supermarkets, cinemas, gyms, leisure/theme parks, holidays and much more via our Benefit Portal
* 20% discount at Barnardo's stores
* Opportunity to purchase a health cash plan to claim towards dental, glasses, therapy etc
* Free access to round the clock employee assistance program for advice and support
* Access to Barnardo's Learning and Development offer
T&C's apply based on contract
About Barnardo's
At Barnardo's we believe in children - no matter who they are, what they have done or what they have been through. Please read about our basis and values following the link below. You will be asked questions relating to them as part of the recruitment process for this role.
Our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) is reflected in our values and our practice, and we have invested in this area of our work to ensure that we can deliver on our commitments to be an inclusive employer. EDI is a key enabler of our purpose as a charity and we want to ensure that the diversity of our teams is reflective of the communities we serve and that we continue to learn and develop our work with a focus on inclusion. We particularly encourage applications from candidates from Black, Asian and Minoritised Ethnic Communities, candidates who are LGBT+ and Disabled candidates.
Our basis and values