YJS Family Support Practitioner

Overview

Job Advert: YJS Family Support Practitioners

Salary -£30,024 - £33,699 (Grade 5 PP 12-16)

Hours -37 hours per week

Contract type -full time, permanent.

Location -Field

About the Role:

Wolverhampton Youth Justice Service (YJS) is recognised as a Quadrant 1 YJS, reflecting its proven track record of delivering outstanding, innovative services to children and families at risk or involved in the Criminal Justice System. As a forward-thinking and ambitious organisation, we are committed to improving outcomes for children, supporting victims, and building a safer community. Our multi-disciplinary team works collaboratively with key partners to address the increasing complexity of needs and risks faced by our young people.

The YJS Family Support Practitioner works directly with parents, carers, and family networks of children and young people involved with the Youth Justice Service. The role focuses on empowering families, supporting positive outcomes, and strengthening their capacity to help their children. Practitioners contribute to assessments, plans, and multi-agency interventions, adopting a preventative approach and delivering both individual and group-based support. They collaborate with professionals to ensure families are engaged throughout the youth justice process.

Responsibilities

• Provide practical and emotional support to parents, carers, and family networks of children and young people involved with the YJS.
• Facilitate family meetings, group work, and workshops to strengthen family relationships and networks.
• Signpost families to relevant services and support networks.
• Collaborate with YJS practitioners, social workers, and other professionals to ensure families are engaged and supported.
• Maintain accurate records of family support interventions in line with policies and procedures.
• Deliver group-based interventions, such as the Thrive Parenting Support and Awareness Programme.

Person Specification

• Experience supporting children and families, especially those involved in youth justice or social care systems.
• Knowledge of child development, parenting, and factors contributing to vulnerabilities.
• Ability to engage parents/carers and young people positively and communicate effectively (written and oral).
• NVQ Level 2 or equivalent in Education, Health, Social Care, or Community Development.
• Motivated, enthusiastic, flexible, and able to work both independently and as part of a team.
• Commitment to professional development and adherence to safeguarding, equality, and health and safety policies.

Benefits

• A career development pathway and substantial training offer. Over 85% of our workforce are happy with the learning and development offer and 90% say there is a positive learning culture.
• Reimbursement of Blue Light card membership costs and Social Work England renewal fees
• Four vibrant and active employee networks including four staff equality forums (Race Religion and Belief; Disability and Age; Gender Maternity and Paternity and LGBT+)
• Well embedded strengths-based practice framework which supports us to build strong relationships and connections to help people find long lasting solutions using the Three Conversations approach.
• A commitment to eliminating discrimination and supporting employee wellbeing to ensure a good work/life balance, which includes a strong employee assistance scheme and access to numerous wellbeing resources.
• Supportive and flexible working arrangements, which includes some home working.
• Retail, leisure, legal and ethical savings and loans through our competitive rewards portal

Additional information

For more information: Working for us WV Jobs City of Wolverhampton Council

This post is subject to a satisfactory Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.

As part of the interview process, candidates will be required to undertake:

• a written exercise
• a panel interview, including an element involving children and young people

For further information on this post please contact: Stephanie Howell (Operations Manager) on

Interviews TBC at YJS Office, Retreat Street.

Closing Date: TBC

For full details of the responsibilities and requirements of this role please see the attached Job Description and Person Specification.

Our working arrangements

All council roles are allocated to either a fixed, field or flexible work style. Some roles are agile which enable and empower employees to maximise their performance and productivity, whilst maintaining a healthy work life balance. Roles with a fixed workstyle work in a fixed permanent council location. Roles with a field workstyle are usually allocated where employees are required to be out working in the community with a minimum requirement for a touch down space at any council location. Roles with a flexible workstyle have a flexible base location to meet the needs of the business and employees can work from a mixture of home or any council office, partner/client, or external location, as required to meet service requirements.

Please refer to the Job Description for further information on the workstyle assigned to the role you are applying for.

For more information about working for our organisation including the culture of the Council, the Council plan and vision, staff equality forums, core HR policies and much more please click here .

Diversity

We are committed to building a workforce that is reflective of the diverse community we serve. We want to attract the best applications from people of all backgrounds and underrepresented groups because we strongly believe in adding value through diversity, inclusion, and equality. Our employees enable us to deliver services that are accessible, inclusive, and reflective of Wolverhampton residents.

Our status as a Disability Confident Employer showcases our commitment to people with disabilities or health conditions, advocating for their opportunities and potential.

We've received the Stonewall Gold Award, emphasising our dedication to the LGBT+ community by nurturing an inspiring, inclusive, and equal workplace.

As of March 2023, the RACE Code Quality Mark signifies our active engagement with racial equality. These recognitions validate our continuous efforts towards fostering an inclusive work environment that respects and values our diverse employees.

As part of our commitment as a Disability Confident employer, a Gold Award Armed Forces employer and our commitment to supporting care leavers - we offer a guaranteed interview as long as your application meets the essential criteria for the post.

We encourage, inspire and value an inclusive culture here at the council where employees can flourish, thrive and be themselves. We have four staff equality forums for employees to join. These help to ensure our employees have a voice, they feel empowered to speak up and where everyone is treated with respect - Learn more about the staff equality forums here

Recruitment of Ex-Offenders

We are committed to the fair treatment of all our employees, potential employees, or users of our service regardless of offending background. The Council uses the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) for any vacancies that require a DBS check to obtain information about applicants to assess their suitability for employment in positions of trust. We do not discriminate unfairly against any individual on the basis of a conviction or any other information revealed as a result of a DBS disclosure - Learn more here

Employment Information & Support

If you are considering applying for an apprenticeship or a role where the salary is (Grade 2-5), and would like to visit us to learn about the application, interview process and what it is like to work for the council, please click on this link to find out more - Learn more here

Attached documents
FH worker JD and PS_YJS (Final).doc