Job Title: Family Service Coordinator Assistant
Location: Manchester (Home based)
Salary: £22,000 pro rata (£13,200 actual)
Job type: 12-month fixed term contract, 21 hour per week.
About us:
Together for Short Lives is the UK charity to make sure the 99,000 seriously ill children and their families can make the most of every moment they have together – whether that’s for years, months or only hours.
We work with families and the brilliant people and services that support them – in hospitals, in children’s hospices and in the community – to ensure that children and families get the support they need.
About the role:
The role of the Kentown Family Service Coordinator Assistant is to provide families referred to the Kentown Programme information about children’s palliative care and other services in the region, as well as with the national services provided through the Together for Short Lives Family Support Hub and Rainbow Trust Children’s Charity. An important part of the role will be to ensure those referred to the programme are signposted to services to enable them to make choices about care and support for their child.
The role will require the post holder to support the full-time family service coordinator in developing strong links with professionals and services working in the region; and to support families to access the services they need for their child and wider family. Grant applications will be completed and work generated through the Family Support Hub will be supported. This support will not be provided in person and so the post holder will need to be able to work easily from home delivering support via telephone and email.
Whilst the role is home-based, there will be a requirement for the post holder to travel in the region to support with events, some attended by children and their families, and attend meetings. The post holder must therefore hold a full clean driver’s license.
Key duties and responsibilities:
- Becoming familiar with the range of health and social care services provided locally and the detail of their offer
- Contribute to a directory of services to which families can be signposted
- Understanding services in the local children’s palliative care network
- Liaising with agencies and services that support the needs of children and families
- Raising awareness of Together for Short Lives and the Kentown Programme with a range of local professionals
- Providing the family service coordinator with support
- Ensuring families referred to the programme have support in place
- Supporting families to navigate the health and social care systems and to access the services
- Signposting families to services, for example children’s hospices and statutory sector teams or national organisations such as Rainbow Trust Children’s Charity
- Completing grant applications as necessary
- To have an awareness and understanding of safeguarding procedures
Qualifications:
- 5 GCSEs (or equivalent) including Maths and English
- Health/social care qualification (Desirable)
- Safeguarding training (Desirable)
Experience:
- Experience working with children/families
- Understanding of safeguarding policies and protocols
- Providing information to a range of service users
- Building and maintaining strong working relations
- Understanding of working with diverse communities
- Record keeping and knowledge of GDPR
- Collecting/monitoring data
Skills & Abilities
- Confident, clear and professional communicator through a variety of mediums
- Ability to respond to a family’s needs empathetically
- Ability to signpost to a range of services and support in line with a family’s needs
- Good level of IT ability – will need to be self-sufficient
- A full clean driving licence
- Cultural sensitivity and awareness
About you:
- Empathetic and non-judgemental approach to working with families
- Ability to demonstrate an understanding of and empathy with issues surrounding children with life limiting conditions including death of a child
- Ability to work effectively in a team with Kentown Programme colleagues and independently
- Emotionally resilient and proactive in seeking personal support
Benefits:
- 5 weeks holiday – plus bank holidays
- Employee Assistance Programme
- Pension Contribution Scheme
- Group life Assurance
- Option to buy additional leave
- Cycle to work scheme
- Lifestyle Benefits – Cinema, Dining, Online shopping, Discounts etc.
- Flexible working
- Volunteering days
Please click on the APPLY button to submit your CV. If shortlisted, you will receive an application form to complete.
We are always looking for talented people and welcome people regardless of age, disability, gender identity, marital status, race, faith or belief and sexual orientation.
Candidates with the relevant experience or job titles of: Social worker, Case manager, Child and youth worker, Family advocate, Family coordinator, Counsellor, Domestic violence, Care adviser, Care Assistant, Support worker, Helpline advisor, Hospice work and Bereavement may also be considered for this role.
