Family Worker

Cambridgeshire County Council’s Targeted Support Service provides support to children, young people and their families. Each district team consists of Family Workers, Young People’s Workers and managers. The team delivers targeted intervention support to reduce the risk of harm, prevent needs from escalating, strengthen family relationships, and support families to remain together and achieve positive, sustainable outcomes.

The role of a Family Worker is an exciting, dynamic and ever-evolving role, offering Cambridgeshire families a high quality, bespoke package of support alongside the Family Hubs provision. Cambridgeshire County Council fully supports the principles of the Families First programme and is currently working on implementing the model in a considered and planned way to ensure the changes we make best meet the needs of our local communities and workforce. The Family Worker role is expected to evolve into a Family Help Lead Professional position in the future as the programme progresses.

Cambridgeshire County Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults. We are proud to serve the diverse communities of Cambridgeshire and want our workforce to be reflective of this diversity, which we believe benefits our employees, the organisation and our communities.

What will you be doing?

• You will use a whole family approach for supporting families, working with them on an individual basis in their homes, and within the community.
• You will complete Assessments and be the Lead Professional for the family.
• As Lead Professional you will work in partnership with a multi-agency team around the family to provide tailored targeted intervention that enables families to achieve positive outcomes.
• You will organise, plan and deliver evidence-based group work programmes to support parents/carers with topics such as parenting, childhood development, domestic abuse and healthy relationships.

Qualities:

• You will be motivated and dedicated to supporting families to achieve positive outcomes.
• You will be organised, able to work autonomously and as part of a team.
• You will be willing, approachable, personable and able to build a positive rapport with children, young people and their families.
• You will be willing to continue your professional development through informal and formal training.

Skills and experience:

• A good knowledge and understanding of child development, signs of abuse and neglect, and of child protection legislation, policies and procedures.
• A good knowledge and understanding of the importance of school attendance and access to education.
• A good knowledge and understanding of how to conduct assessments and create plans for support that promote positive outcomes.
• A good knowledge and understanding of providing direct support to vulnerable families and of evidence-based programmes.
• Strong communication skills, using a variety of formats, and the ability to work efficiently within a multi-agency environment.
• The ability to produce, keep and maintain good case recording, reports and assessments.
• Willingness to travel locally and across the county.

About you:

Applicants must be eligible to work in the UK. Successful applicants will be subject to an enhanced DBS check. Interviews will include a young people’s panel in addition to a Targeted Support management panel.

About us:

Cambridgeshire is a great place to work and live with a diverse population, an urban centre in Cambridge, historic Isle of Ely, Huntingdon and St Ives as well as more rural landscapes. Our four values are central to our culture, driving everything we do. We are proud to serve the diverse communities of Cambridgeshire and want our workforce to be reflective of this diversity, which we firmly believe benefits our colleagues, the organisation and our communities.

If you don’t meet every single requirement in the job role but think this could be you, please don’t be put off. We are committed to building a workplace that is compassionate and inclusive as well as diverse, so if you think you could be a good candidate for this role please consider applying and speak to the recruiting manager if you have any questions.

Our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy, along with our employee network 'IDEAL' and self-organised peer support groups help us to foster an inclusive, supportive and safe working environment where people feel valued, respected, and empowered.

We are proud to be a Disability Confident Leader. We fully support providing reasonable adjustments throughout our recruitment process, as well as when you join us, and we encourage candidates to contact the Hiring Manager to discuss any adjustment needs.