Adult Care Hawthorn House Home Support Worker - Grade 5 1 x 36 hour Permanent post We are excited to be expanding our team of Home Support Workers within Hawthorn House, a dual scheme comprising of respite / short break care, and in two specialist flats, delivering a ‘step up / step down’ approach of care to young people and adults with complex learning disabilities and/or autism spectrum diagnosis and present with behaviours that challenge. This is a great opportunity for an individual who is enthusiastic and passionate about delivering exceptional care and support to service users and making a real difference to a person’s quality of life. WHAT IS INVOLVED? The post requires the successful applicant to be able to arrive at Hawthorn House by 7 am for some shifts and be able to work in a flexible manner on a rota of shifts over a 7 day period. There will be a variety of shifts covering days, evenings, nights, and weekends. Enhancements will be paid for evenings, nights and weekends. Please note the rota is designed to meet the needs of the service users, and hours worked will vary depending on the number of weeks on the rota but equates to contractual hours per week over the rota period. The successful applicant will be working in a Care Quality Commission (CQC) Outstanding service as a member of a dedicated and caring team who strive to provide the very highest of standards of care and support to people with complex learning disabilities and/or autism spectrum diagnosis and present with behaviours that challenge. You will provide specialist care interventions using Positive Behaviour Support and other therapeutic ways of working to stabilise and address the person’s complex behaviours. All staff are supported with a comprehensive induction and training package that includes Positive Behaviour Support, administering medication, and moving and handling and you will receive regular supervisions. Sounds interesting? Why don’t you give us a call to chat a little more about this exciting opportunity – Kelly Davidson, County Durham Care & Support Development Officer 07818510424 or email - kelly.davidson@durham.gov.uk or Susan Smith, Registered Manager, Hawthorn House susan.smith3@durham.gov.uk WHAT WILL I NEED? You will have experience of working in a care environment / working with people with a learning disability / complex needs or behaviours that may challenge, and have the key attributes required such as being naturally caring and sensitive to people’s needs and the ability to build positive relationships with service users and colleagues. Required Qualifications: 4 GCSEs (9-4/A-C grades) or equivalent relevant qualification and /or a relevant Care qualification. Applicants who do not hold a relevant care qualification will be supported to achieve the ‘Care Certificate’ within a set timescale. Please refer to the attached Person Specification for the full criteria. The successful applicants for these posts will be required to apply for a Disclosure and Barring Service Enhanced Disclosure. INTERVIEWS Interviews will be held week commencing 9th February 2026. We operate a guaranteed interview scheme for applicants that can show they meet all the essential criteria and have indicated they have a disability, are a looked after young person, care leaver or a veteran. OUR OFFER TO YOU We offer a competitive rewards package that includes attractive salaries, a generous annual leave entitlement of 27 days (rising to 32 after five years’ continuous local government service), membership of the excellent contributory career average Local Government Pension Scheme, and a range of flexible working arrangements including hybrid working (home and office) where applicable. Explore the full range of rewards and benefits on our website Rewards and benefits are subject to individual terms and conditions. EQUALITY, DIVERSITY, AND INCLUSION We are a proud equal opportunities employer and believe a diverse workforce brings fresh ideas and drives service improvement. We welcome applications from everyone and make employment decisions based on skills and ability. As a Disability Confident Leader, we actively encourage applications from disabled people and offer support throughout the recruitment process. HOW TO APPLY We welcome applications from disabled people and those who are or consider themselves to be neurodivergent. Please note, we do not accept CVs. All applications must be submitted online via the Northeast Jobs portal. Use the ‘Person Specification’ section of the form to clearly demonstrate how you meet the essential (and where possible, desirable) criteria. Applications that do not evidence the essential requirements will not be shortlisted. For guidance on completing your application, visit our website If you require assistance when applying for this role, please contact our Recruitment Helpdesk on 03000 26 27 27, or via email RecruitmentAHS@durham.gov.uk All correspondence relating to your application will be sent from donotreply@northeastjobs.org.uk. Kindly check your spam/junk folder regularly to ensure you don’t miss any updates. CONNECT WITH US Follow us on Instagram Like us on Facebook Visit our website VPRS/161