Housing First Worker

Monday Friday 09:00 17:00

Including some early morning shift times and bi monthly street count part overnight

Wokingham Young People Services provides 24/7 support for up to seven young people aged 1621 care leavers and looked after children.

Our aim is to support to young people with their individual needs to enable them to gain life skills to move on to lower or independent supported living.

This is a fast paced energetic service. If you are looking for an exciting role where youll be making a difference in the lives of those you support then this is the role for you!

This role is supporting young adults who have multiple complex risks and needs to sustain their accommodation. The successful candidate must have experience in working with vulnerable people who have experienced homelessness or experience with working with children in care / care leavers.

The ideal candidate will have experience with supporting people to get PIP and maximising income through benefits. And will have a passion for helping people into education apprenticeships or work.

You will have a proven track record of keeping client records in line with policies and be able to complete risk assessments and support plans alongside a client.

JOB PURPOSE

To be part of a team that supports our clients by providing intensive wrap around support keeping them safe and helping them to achieve their goals.

To provide people with homes and specialist support so they feel more valued and secure and ready to take the next steps.

MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES

• To assess the needs of each client helping to develop their personalised support plan and safety plan to achieve their goals. These are kept under regular review
• To manage a personal caseload of clients who require intensive support on a onetoone basis
• Providing assertive outreach for those that are rough sleeping to build a trusting relationship which will require a flexible approach to engagement techniques.
• To provide practical support when a client moves into a property such as setting up utilities sourcing furniture developing their domestic skills and accessing services in the community
• To mediate and negotiate with housing providers to secure accommodation and prevent homelessness when applicable
• To engage with local authorities health providers and other agencies creating and maintaining working relationships to maximise the opportunities available to clients
• To liaise with colleges training agencies employers to help clients gain access to education find work or maintain their benefit entitlement
• To lead on client activities to help them gain practical life skills
• To support clients by providing advice on housing welfare benefits rent deposits and household goods via a variety of schemes
• To support clients to understand harm reduction approaches to keep them safe and well
• To carry out housing management duties such as collecting service charges at various locations
• To support clients in trauma informed and psychologically informed ways
• To adhere to safeguarding responsibilities following our safeguarding policy and procedure
• To help maintain health and safety ensuring clients visitors and buildings are safe in accordance with Health and Safety regulations policy and procedures
• To provide basic first aid assistance until help arrives (full training is provided)
• To work confidently and efficiently when lone working
• To maintain accurate records on our client management system and ensure these are stored in line with GDPR
• To maintain confidentiality
• To represent the organisation in a professional manner
• Any other reasonable duties required in the interest of the organisation

ROLE REQUIRMENTS

• This role will require an Enhanced with Barred List(s) disclosure and barring service check is a requirement for this role. This would be completed on appointment of the role.
• This role will require a full drivers licence and access to a vehicle
• This role will require you to work flexibly across several sitesand in the community
• This role will require you to work with clients on a onetoone basis
• This role will require you to work nights and/or weekends
• This role will require you to lone work
• This role will require you to support people sleeping rough

ESSENTIAL CRITERIA

• Strong communication skills both verbal and written
• Clear verbal and written English
• Good keyboard skills for data inputting
• Good working knowledge of Microsoft Outlook Excel and Word
• Confident and assertive manner
• Ability to selfmotivate as you will have some instances of lone working
• Effective team working
• Ability to respond calmly to crisis
• Deal promptly with and effectively react to challenging situations
• Have an interest and genuine concern for homelessness and related issues

DESIRABLE CRITERIA

• Experience of managing a caseload of clients
• Understanding of the complex support needs of people experiencing homelessness or those with complex needs
• Knowledge of Safeguarding practices
• Knowledge of voluntary and statutory agencies housing regulations and the benefits system
• Understanding of risk assessment and personcentred outcomesbased delivery

We reserve the right to close our adverts early if a successful candidate is found so please submit your application as soon as possible.

We offer support to people who are homeless vulnerable or at risk of becoming homeless and need help rebuilding their lives for a brighter future. Our services include safe flexible and reliable client led housing and support with a focus on reducing homelessness improving health and wellbeing and building on individuals skills and resilience to break the cycle of homelessness poverty and exclusion.

We work in partnership with multiple agencies and authorities to deliver support and accommodation needs across Berkshire Hampshire Isle of Wight and Dorset.

We are dedicated to safeguarding all young people and adults with our services. We follow safer recruitment practices for all our vacancies to assure that all successful candidates are suitable to work with our clients.

Were committed to creating an inclusive and diverse workforce that embodies our values and promotes a tolerant and respectful environment where everyone can feel empowered to succeed.

We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and will support with any reasonable adjustments needed during the recruitment process.