Refuge Support Practitioner

REFUGE SUPPORT PRACTITIONER

12 months Maternity Cover

JOB DESCRIPTION

Hours of Work: 30 hours per week (Tuesday – Friday)

Responsible to: Service Manager

CORE REQUIREMENTS

·  To work as a committed member of the Staffordshire Women's Aid team.

·  To support the aims, values and working principles of Staffordshire Women's Aid, and to work in alignment with Staffordshire Women’s Aid’s Policies and Procedures.

·  To take all possible steps to ensure the safety and confidentiality of the service users, staff, volunteers and management of Staffordshire Women's Aid.

·  To promote equality and value diversity.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE POST

·  To work with individual service users both in refuge accommodation to agree a planned support package aimed to increase their safety and confidence, keeping clear and up to date case notes and support planning paperwork.

·  To share equal responsibility within the team for the day to day running of the refuge and general office duties.

·  To provide information, advice and advocacy, liaising with other agencies to provide support with emotional and practical issues, whilst promoting the safety of women and children using our services.

·  To respond to refuge referrals by carrying out risk assessments and information gathering in the best interest of the service user and all other residents.

·  To offer enhanced support to women and children with specific needs, eg cultural, mental health, drugs, alcohol, learning difficulties, by consulting with managers and other support workers or agencies.

·  To participate in the development and running of women’s and children’s groups, outings and activities within the refuge.

·  To promote the work of SWA through participating in training, talks, presentations and multi-agency forums.

·  To work with service users and their children to find suitable and affordable permanent accommodation.

·  To monitor and evaluate the work of SWA by accurate information recording and maintaining monitoring systems.

·  To take responsibility for supporting all aspects of the management, administrative and financial responsibilities of SWA.

·  To deal with correspondence, produce written reports and case studies when required and be self-servicing.

·  To attend internal and external meetings, as required, ensuring that decisions regarding the work of SWA are followed up.

·  To give support to other workers during busy periods of staff shortage, across SWA, as and when necessary, including working unsociable hours.

·  To ensure that all Health & Safety and security regulations are complied with.

·  To have a clear understanding of, and to implement, all policies and procedures relating to SWA and to share these with new members of staff, volunteers and placement students.

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Please note:

This job description may be subject to review and amendment. The postholder will be expected to be flexible in her development of the job and will participate fully, where possible, in all discussions about the nature of her work and the tasks involved.

REFUGE SUPPORT PRACTITIONER

PERSON SPECIFICATION

The following skills, knowledge and attitudes are essential for the post:

·  Knowledge of and agreement with the vision, mission, aims and values and working principles of Staffordshire Women's Aid

·  The ability to work independently and as part of a team.

·  An understanding of and commitment to the reduction and prevention of Violence against Women.

·  Good communication skills.

·  A non-judgemental attitude.

·  Good literacy and numeracy skills.

·  Good organisational skills.

·  An understanding of anti-discriminatory working principles and practices, and of the importance of an ethos of diversity.

·  An understanding of the need for confidentiality and security of the refuge and outreach services for users, staff and volunteers.

·  An understanding of the need for professional boundaries in support work.

·  A working knowledge of administrative tasks and record keeping.

·  The ability to work under pressure and, sometimes, in stressful situations.

·  Knowledge and understanding of issues around substance misuse and mental health and how they relate to domestic violence.

·  Knowledge of working in the community.

·  Knowledge and experience of the Housing Act and other legislation in connection with domestic violence.

·  Knowledge of the Welfare Benefits System.

·  Knowledge/understanding of civil law and criminal justice in the context of domestic violence.

·  The ability to assess needs.

·  IT and email skills.

·  Ability to work flexible hours, including evenings and weekends, when necessary.

The following skills, knowledge and attitudes are desirable for the post:

·  Experience of working with Staffordshire Women's Aid.

·  Experience of working with voluntary organisations.

·  Negotiation, training and presentation skills.

·  A sense of humour.

·  A full clean driving licence and use of a car with appropriate insurance cover.

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