Family Practitioner

6 months contract with a Local Authority

Job Summary:

To work collaboratively with young people and their families to provide focused support to families to improve outcomes address challenges reduce risks to children and to enable families to make and sustain change.

To build trusting relationships with children young people and families and extended family members/friends/communities to build sustainable change within stronger family networks helping to alleviate their social isolation and increase capacity.

To work alongside families to prevent needs from escalating to the point where statutory services are needed and/or to reduce the risk of family breakdown and children/young people coming into care.

Key Duties/Accountabilities:

To effectively engage families and to work directly with them on multiple issues including parenting and family functioning employment school attendance mental ill health learning difficulties domestic abuse drug and alcohol abuse homelessness bereavement risk of going missing and child sexual exploitation and/or involvement in gangs criminal and antisocial behaviour.

Providing intensive support to vulnerable children/young people and their families through a family centred approach facilitating the change needed in families to improve parenting capacity and outcomes for children.

To maximise the involvement of children young people and families in decision that after them and to ensure that the voices of children young people and families are represented in their assessments and plans and in service design review and delivery.

Assess parenting skills and help parents/carers to build physical and emotional caring abilities by providing advice and practical support with their parenting role including use of positive activities to promote social inclusion and techniques to avoid conflict and manage challenging behaviour.

Undertaking onetoone direct work and mediation work with children/young people and their families in a crisis sometimes in challenging and volatile situations working closely alongside colleagues from across Children Social Care and other key partner agencies to deliver best practice through an integrated response.

Reviewing family agreements plans and interventions regularly with the family and professionals working alongside parents and children to achieve shared goals and develop a clear plan to sustain progress when involvement of the service ceases.

To provide fast and flexible mediation conflict resolution and rapid response support to children/young people and their families to reduce and prevent escalation to the point where statutory services and involvement is needed.

Essential Experience Required:

Experience of working with relevant legislation including the Children and Families Act 2014 Children s Act 1989 & 2004 London Safeguarding Children Procedures Working Together ; Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need and their families; Care Standards 2000 The Breaks for Carers of Disabled Children Regulations 2011 Equality Act 2010 is essential (other country equivalents may apply).

Experience of providing support to vulnerable children/young people and their families within a targeted early help setting on a range of complex issues including where there are safeguarding concerns utilizing a range of strategies to engender positive change is essential.

Experience of delivering targeted help parenting/family support being a lead professional and holding a case load is essential.

Essential Qualifications Required:

Professional qualification or relevant experience in a social work/health/or related children s services area is desirable.

Additional information to note:

Working hours: 35 hours per week.

The closing date for this position is 22^nd February 2024.