The MulberryBushSchool is fully committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children as its utmost priority and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment

Job Description for Therapeutic Care Worker

Job Title:Therapeutic Care Worker (TCW)

Responsible to: Household Manager

As a member of thecare team, to join the community in providing care, treatment and education for severely emotionally troubled primary aged children. The care team provide high standards of observation, childcare and boundary setting in order that children at the School are helped through each day in a manner, which ensures the greatest possible meaning, continuity and healthy emotional containment. Within this structure, the differing individual needs of children can be respected and met, providing positive encouragement and affirmation to the growing sense of self of the child.

The emphasis on observing the children implies a distance that enables adults to think as a team about the needs of the individual child or of the group. We do not want adults to offer deep relationships with the children as these can, with such disturbed children, lead to inappropriate and complicated attachments, often repeats of past patterns. This process avoids the ‘gap filling’ relationships, and the promise of something special. The children’s needs, once identified by the team will then be met in conscious and planned ways. Through these processes the child can internalise an experience of close management, being cared for, role modelling, and a re-education in social/emotional awareness.

Many of the children in our care have developed coping mechanisms built on attracting attention through negative behaviour. We look to provide children with ways of re-defining themselves and their personalities through positive experiences, focussing on their strengths, understanding their regressive tendencies and providing nurture when needed.

At the core of this professional task is a commitment by each adult to the conscious use of themselves within the staff group to make sense of and understand the work at all levels and the feelings engendered by it. The difficulty of this task should not be underestimated and all adults are expected to be honest and open with their understanding of the processes within the groups and groupings. Adults for this reason need to be mature, as well as emotionally and physically resilient.

Given the crucial interpersonal nature of this activity with such children, and the fact that long term hurt requires long-term work, the School requires a commitment from all workers to maintain their involvement for a minimum three-year period. The children do not need and the School does not wish to appoint people seeking to spend a brief periods of employment, gaining valuable experiences for themselves but without sufficient regard to the impact on the children and the adult team of their premature departure.

The School is also clear that any workers remaining at least for that minimum commitment will themselves have experiences which will offer enormous opportunities for their own personal and professional learning and growth, not only in the field of therapeutic child care and the management of such provision, but also in a wide range of related fields. For example, further professional training in education, social work, clinical psychology or child psychotherapy.

Primary Responsibility/Duties:

To provide observation together with good quality consistent and reliable child care:

  • Providing children with the opportunities to develop trust in people and the school, and to experience change and growth through direct, positive contact with thoughtful, caring adults.
  • Using oneself in conscious ways to enable the team and individuals within it to give the children experiences of close, caring, and thoughtful management and play.
  • Being open and honest about your feelings in the work place and managing your own anxiety at times under situations that are intensely stressful and so remaining calm.
  • Providing containment for the children by maintaining high levels of pre-occupation about them in constructive and creative ways.
  • Working with your team to provide creative ways of working that are in line with the targets set within the child’s Integrated Treatment Plan.
  • As a last resort physically managing children who can be vicious and physically aggressive as well as projecting murderous feelings into you.
  • Along with colleagues setting and maintaining appropriate boundaries for children and providing a sense of emotional containment, safety, order and belonging amongst members of the household.
  • To plan and provide appropriately child-centered cultural, physical play and recreational activities adapted to match children's levels of emotional integration.
  • To help ensure that the medical and dental needs of children are identified and met appropriately in liaison with the school nurse.

To work as a member of a team engaging in all aspects of the challenge of the task.

  • This will involve speaking in small and larger groups and meetings.
  • Having the ability to use Microsoft Word for report writing, e-mail and accessing information, and Microsoft Outlook for the electronic diary.
  • Sharing thoughts and ideas, not assuming that others know
  • Reflecting on the impact of the work on yourself and using this experience to help the team develop its practice of work with the children and support of the adult group.
  • Co-ordinating delegated shifts.
  • Support colleagues and look for support when appropriate.
  • To take responsibility for delegated areas of work or tasks within the household.
  • Key working is a very important part of the role.

This will involve oversight of the care and treatment of usually one or two children within the household and developing a pre-occupation for these children.

You will need to verbally communicate with other departments in the School about the child as well as report writing, attending meetings and liasing with the child’s home-base and professional network.

  • To use creative and imaginative abilities to develop and enliven the household experiences and areas.
  • To participate fully in the range of domestic tasks necessary to maintain a safe, warm and healthy living environment. Tasks will include tidying areas, brushing floors, removing litter and graffiti, caring for children's clothing and personal possessions, cleaning soiled laundry and other related activities.
  • To take responsibility for preparing the children emotionally and physically to join in the Education Day.
  • To work alongside the Shifford Support Team in their task supporting the Education day or the evenings and weekends.
  • To attend regular supervision sessions including group supervision.
  • To undertake as required in-service training and development programmes which are intended to develop the knowledge and skills in workers necessary to carry out the primary task.
  • To contribute to and prepare clear and concise objective, but reflective reports as required and to take delegated responsibility for communications with external agencies/parents/carers.
  • To make entries in the various Log/Record Books kept to meet statutory regulations or to gather information about a child.
  • To contribute to the overall development of the School, in particular through activities related to the School Development Plan, and to comply with and actively carry out the School’s policy on Equal Opportunities.
  • To work Tuesday to Saturday or Sunday to Thursday as required.
  • To sleep in as required, this may include being a part of the Saturday sleep in rota.

PERSON SPECIFICATION
Job Role: THERAPEUTIC CARE WORKER Department: GROUP LIVING
Form / Visit / Refs / Interview Questions
Experience / Essential:
Some experience either personally or professionally of vulnerable people e.g. mental health, special needs, education, residential children’s settings, family work, probation or prison service). / 3
Desirable:
Work with children and young people. / 3
Work with challenging behaviours. / 3
Skills, Abilities and Competencies / Essential:
Emotional and physical resilience and able to engage in physically strenuous activity / 3,5
Communicate ideas, experiences and feelings in relation to self, others and relationships. / PS / 5
Demonstrates Empathy / 2,3,5
Reflective thinking-
Uses own (internal) experience and other people’s observations to understand self, work and service users.
Some awareness of impact of self on others. / PS / 1,2,3,5
Teamwork- knows how to contribute to and be effective in a team working towards a common goal / 4
Good sense of initiative / 5
Able to manage own feelings and offer calm responses and good decisions in difficult situations / 3
Playful in interactions with children- values play and allows self to play.
Ability to use ICT for word processing, e-mail and accessing information.
Able to travel to/from site including anti-social hours. / Initial Statement
Desirable:
Legible and coherent handwriting / Handwritten account
Holding consistent boundaries / 3
Good observation and report writing skills / Handwritten account / 1
Understanding of emotional distance and regulation / PS / 3,5
Recognise own support needs / 3
Able to offer support to others / 3
Willingness to learn & share learning / PS
Individual work & Group work / 2,3
Able to drive
Knowledge / Essential:
Commitment to and understanding of safeguarding principles. / 6
Some awareness of what motivates a desire to work in this field / PS / 2
Desirable:
Basic understanding of theory underpinning therapeutic work / 3,4,5
National standards and framework
Child development theories
Psychodynamic theories
Children’s rights
Group Dynamics
Qualifications and training / Essential:
Training or qualification that demonstrates a reasonable ability to write and think clearly
Commitment to undertake mandatory training including the Foundation Degree / Initial statement
Desirable:
Good standard of general education
Physical Intervention training
Level 3 Qualification
Other Factors / Essential:
Flexibility of working hours and attending essential team meetings on Wednesdays / Initial Statement
Sense of humour (used to support self, communication etc. not just as defence)
Commitment to working directly alongside children in a care setting
Ability to prioritise children's needs / 3
Excellent attendance record and punctuality
Desirable:
Individual skills/hobbies that you can share with the children (music, art, outward bound) / 7

April 2015