About us
Brighter Horizon Homes is a newly registered residential childrens home based in Thornton Heath which provides care and accommodation for up to three children with learning disabilities (LD) from the ages of 5 years up to 17 years of age at the time of moving into the home.
The home was founded to enable children to flourish and develop in a warm and nurturing environment. This is central to the homes ethos.
Please join us on our mission to nurture and develop all children in our care, and you will be rewarded with working in a great environment with a fantastic team and real growth opportunities.
Job Purpose
· Lead a team of support workers by being an appropriate role model to children in the home and help meet children's practical needs by providing support, advice, and assistance.
· Help children address their problems, concerns, and previous trauma and work with them to achieve health, well-being, and education outcomes, enabling them to reach their full potential.
· Support the Manager and Deputy Manager by organising and leading the day-to-day shifts in the home appropriate to the statement of purpose, children's guide, placement plans and workforce plan under the Children's Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and Children's Homes Quality Standards.
· Take responsibility for managing activities, coordinating safeguarding concerns, supporting children in health and education and ensuring the smooth running of the shift.
· Ensure children's views are considered in their care management and support.
General Duties
· Adhere to the Children's Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and Quality Standards, organisational policies, and the good practice requirements of the home.
· Organise and lead shifts in the home to ensure children are supported with their individual needs as outlined in their placement plan.
· Ensure staff support children to participate in the routines of the home and encourage them to take part in the activities and support on offer.
· Promote education and ensure children are supported to attend education and are helped with their homework, and attend education meetings where necessary. Where children are out of education to ensure they are supported with education activities and in working toward education outcomes.
· Promote well-being in the home by ensuring that the environment is free from bullying, prejudice and a fair place to live.
· Support staff in helping children deal with conflict and trauma by supporting and implementing any therapeutic plans that are in place for them.
· Work co-operatively and pro-actively as part of a team supporting colleagues and the Manager.
· Ensure that children are suitably safeguarded and that risk assessments are routinely updated after any incident.
Specific Duties
· Ensure children are provided with advice and support in line with their placement plans, organisational policies, and the good practice requirements of the home.
· Act as and support keyworkers to children offering support to their individual needs and advocating for them at reviews and care planning meetings.
· Be a point of contact for children with their social workers, education and health staff, and family.
· Ensure children in the home are safe and protected from harm, and the shift is organised to maximise safeguarding.
· Ensure local authority and organisational child protection and safeguarding reporting procedures are followed during significant events.
· Ensure teamwork to establish a nurturing relationship with children to help them deal with their past and present difficulties.
· Support the staff team to help children build positive relationships by ensuring the home environment is free from bullying and prejudice and a safe and fair place to live.
· Support the staff to help children resolve conflicts, manage their behaviour safely and acceptably, and ensure that unacceptable behaviour is challenged and addressed.
· Ensure children are supported to participate in their local community, participate in activities and are helped to make and achieve plans for their future.
· Ensure children are supported to provide feedback to the home and ensure their voice is heard in their care and support.
· Ensure the team puts any therapeutic or other plans to support children alongside their placement plan.
· Ensure the teamwork to support the children to reduce any behaviours which put them at risk of harm, such as missing from care or criminal exploitation.
· Oversee and ensure the home's records are completed to a high standard before the end of each shift, and that written reports for care managers looked after reviews and care planning meetings are completed on time.
· Ensure the routines of the home are completed daily, including cooking, cleaning, maintaining the environment and supporting children to do the same.
· Attend shifts as required by the staff rota and taking part in the on-call rota and the sleep-in rota, and be willing to work on occasion at short notice.
· Undertake training as the organisation requires and take responsibility for continuing professional development.
· Attending and contributing to regular supervision meetings and completing actions from the annual appraisal.
· Supervising staff and ensuring training and annual appraisals are up to date and actions are being addressed.
· Working and contributing pro-actively to the team and reporting any concerns about unacceptable staff conduct or standards to your line manager.
· Completing monthly audits of the home, including quality monitoring, care planning, health and safety and fire audits as required.
· Ensuring company vehicle mileage is logged, and vehicles are checked and scheduled for routine maintenance.
· Ensure finances are available and accounted for at the end of each shift.
· Adherence to health and safety and workplace policies.
· Support the home's Manager and senior managers with any other duties as required.
Person Specification
Qualifications and Education
· Diploma Level 3 in Residential Childcare or be willing to work towards it.
Experience
· Experience of working with troubled children
· At least two years in the role of residential support worker
· Ability to work as part of a multi-disciplinary team
· Record-keeping skills and maintaining the confidentiality
· Managing and organising a team
Knowledge and Understanding
· Children Act 1989, Care Standards Act 2000, Working Together to Safeguard Children 2018, Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, The Children's Homes (England) Regulations 2015, and Children's Homes Quality Standards.
Skill and Abilities
· Understanding of the requirements of the Children's Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and Children's Homes Quality Standards
· Understanding of child protection and safeguarding and the reporting process
· Understanding of the requirements of care planning and support
· Understanding of confidentiality and data protection
· Ability to motivate and lead the team in challenging circumstances
· Ability to manage organisational deadlines and reporting requirements
· Ability to be assertive and confident in managing staff and children
· Ability to organise in a highly pressurised environment
· Ability to deal with external agencies and external reporting structures
· Resilience to address workplace issues and maintain continuity of care
· Experience in managing children with challenging behaviour
· Experience in care planning for children with complex needs
· Effective oral and written communication skills
· Able to drive company vehicles (desirable)
Job Type: Full-time
Pay: £13.00-£15.00 per hour
Benefits:
* Company pension
Ability to commute/relocate:
* Thornton Heath CR7 8JU: reliably commute or plan to relocate before starting work (required)
Application question(s):
* Are you able to work full time?
Experience:
* Support Worker/ Senior Support Worker: 3 years (required)
Work authorisation:
* United Kingdom (required)
Work Location: In person