Weekend Support Worker

Closing date: May 2nd, 2025

Weekend Community Housing and Support Worker 

Location:             SHAP (Must have a full driving license and access to a car)

Salary:                  £11,567.36 per annum

Hours:                  16 hours per week – 9 – 5:30pm

Job Type:             Permanent/Fixed Term

Shortlisting:       w/c 5th May

Interviews:          w/c 12th May

 

Why this role would be great for you

 As a Community Housing Support Worker at YMCA Together you will naturally be an empathetic and caring person wanting to provide unconditional  support for those experiencing mental health issues. Your role as a Community Housing Support Worker will be to create a safe environment that empowers residents to make positive changes in their lives.

This service will provide support to vulnerable young people (age 18-25) who are experiencing or are at risk of homelessness or rough sleeping with medium to high support needs. As a support worker you will be focused around facilitating recovery, self-development and preparing for independent living. The aim of the support is to ensure that young people are supported and empowered to make positive choices about their life and to develop the tools required to live a life free from homelessness.
As a support worker you be expected to have specific skills and experience of working with young people and engage them using range of tools, language and platforms that are familiar to young people e.g. technology, social media etc. As a support worker you will recognise that the people that we support have often experienced trauma and will work in a way which understands this. You will work alongside our Assistant Psychologist for people that require it. You will manage a caseload of 5 people with the emphasis being on intense 121 support that will enable everyone to meet their goals successfully.

What your week may look like

  • Carry out new service user welcomes, inducting into their new properties and identifying immediate support needs.
  • Ensure that service users have a full understanding of their rights and responsibilities during their stay.
  • Support service users to achieve their goals and targets as defined/ agreed within their support plans and empower them to reach their aims .
  • Manage, update, and communicate service users risk assessments in line with YMCA Together policy and procedure.
  • Ensure service users shape their own support and understand the purpose of the support provided.
  • Hold planned key-work sessions as well as ad hoc support each week with service users using a person-centred reflective approach.
  • Assess support needs and plan support around individual need. Regularly review and develop mutually agreed support plans with service users and any other professional involved in the support of those individuals e.g., Social Workers, CPNs, Probation Officers
  • Up to date records must be kept on both support planning systems MainStay and DAVE.
  • Conduct monthly/quarterly risk assessments of service users keeping all relevant parties informed of updates/changes.
  • Support all service users with future tenancy planning ensuing that everyone has the skills to live independently away from a supported housing pathway.
  • Motivate and challenge service users so they realise their goals.
  • Liaise between service users and external agencies regarding the provision of specialised support when appropriate.
  • Encourage involvement and participation among service users in the running and shaping of the wider service provided by planning and attending regular service user meetings and forums.
  • Deal promptly with all complaints and protection from abuse disclosures.
  • Demonstrate creativity in overcoming obstacles and a commitment to working with and providing support to vulnerable people.

It is recognised that the association is operating in a dynamic environment and as such this job description may be varied in consultation with the post holder to reflect evolving needs of the business and changing nature of the job.

 

What can we offer you

Working with YMCA Together comes will a whole host of benefits. We hope that people will find personal fulfilment and purpose by working with alongside people in our services. Our teams are compassionate and supportive, fostering a strong sense of community. With opportunities for professional growth, YMCA together offers training to support your role and personal development.

For a full list of benefits see here: Careers Page | YMCA Together

 

The skills we are looking for

  • Qualification or working experience in homelessness, Tenancy management and supporting vulnerable people.
  • At least 1 years’ experience of working with vulnerable adults and a working knowledge of Resettlement, support planning, welfare rights, benefits advice, mental health issues, offending, drug and alcohol misuse, harm reduction, working with partner agencies and safeguarding.
  • A working knowledge of providing intensive support to vulnerable client groups.
  • A working knowledge of Health & Safety issues
  • A clear understanding of complex needs support issues such as mental health, homelessness, substance misuse and offending
  • Knowledge of safeguarding protocols
  • Understanding of how to work alongside behaviours that we may find challenging.
  • Computer literate, competent in working with Microsoft word, outlook, windows.
  • The ability to conduct comprehensive and accurate risk assessments.
  • To provide effective and consistent support planning with the people we support
  • Excellent IT, communication, interpersonal, interviewing and assessment skills.
  • Excellent administration skills and the ability to accurately and concisely record information and write reports.
  • Plan and deliver workshops and training sessions to residents, staff and partner agencies.
  • Demonstrate creativity in overcoming obstacles and a commitment to working with and providing support to vulnerable people.
  • Ability and willingness to work unsupervised.
  • Committed to improving the lives of people with complex needs.
  • Committed to own personal development and CPD planning.
  • Creative and dynamic approach with the ability to “think outside of the box” when providing solutions.
  • Energetic, highly motivated with a reputation of being held in high regard by peers.
  • Excellent interpersonal/ communication skills
  • Excellent negotiation/ mediation skills
  • Committed to own career development.
  • Ability to work within & have commitment to YMCA ethos, philosophy and SHREK values, Strength, Humility, Respect, Empathy and Kindness
  • Energetic, dynamic and self-motivated

 

What is a nice to have

  • A recognised qualification in substance misuse or mental health
  • Qualification in welfare rights
  • IT qualification such as CLAIT, ECDL, ITQ.
  • Knowledge of support planning and models of change
  • Experience of co coordinating three-way meetings
  • Experience of directly working with young people.
  • Knowledge of health interventions
  • Knowledge of welfare rights
  • Knowledge of the Cognitive Analytical Therapy (CAT) framework
  • Knowledge of health intervention and harm reduction.
  • Analytical, data collation and reporting skills

Even if you don’t feel that you have all of the relevant skills and “nice to haves” we would still like to hear from you and invite you to fill out our application form.

YMCA Together is an equal opportunities employer, values diversity and is strongly committed to providing equal employment opportunities for all employees and all applicants for employment. We welcome and encourage applications from everyone, regardless of age, disability, gender, ethnicity, religion and sexual orientation.

 

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To download a copy of our application form, please click here

If you would like to apply not directly through the website, please email your completed application form to recruitment@ymcatogether.org.uk

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