Member Job Opportunity: St Christopher's - Placements Officer – Fostering Lead

Location: Head Office
Contract Type: Permanent
Closing Date: 17 June 2022
Salary: £27,081 - £36,442 (depending on experience)
Specific Hours: 37.5 hours per week

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Putney Office & Hybrid working with some travel to Stevenage & West Midlands

We have an exciting opportunity for you to join our referral and placements team providing children and young people the opportunity to live in one of our residential or foster homes.

About Us
Our vision is for every child and young person to be safe, loved and happy, to achieve their potential and have a bright future.

St Christopher's is a leading charity for children and young people and we are proud of our history for providing fostering, children's homes and a range of innovative leaving care services across the UK & Isle of Man.  We have a passionate commitment to our young people, placing them at the centre of everything we do.  We provide positive life experiences for young people who are unable to sustain a placement in their parental or foster home.

We are an equal opportunity employer and keen to develop an inclusive workforce were people feel they belong.  We hope to attract application from under- represented groups including people from different cultures, nationalities, socio economic backgrounds, ages, disabilities, religion, faith, sex, orientation, child care responsibilities and with gender diverse identities.

About the Role
The post will play a key role in the successful placement of children and young people in St Christopher’s services.  Operating as the central point of contact for referrals to all St Christopher’s spot purchasing teams, the post will ensure a prompt and consistent response to local authorities and other agencies, and will involve close liaison with fostering, residential and 16+ accommodation teams to deliver high quality recommendations for placements within required timescales.  The post holder will also be responsible for collating, analysing and interpreting a range of data relating to referrals and placements

St Christopher’s Academy
When you join St Christopher’s, we will set you up in your career with a tailored development plan. Whether you want to move across to a different service, become a Manager or just explore further your current role, we will support you to map out your career trajectory and help you achieve your professional ambitions. If you want to learn more about St Christopher’s Academy, please click here

Applicants should have

• Education to A level standard, or equivalent, including GCSE English and Maths at grade ‘C’ or above.
• Minimum 2 years’ experience working in either a children’s residential or fostering Placements.
• Experience of building strong and effective working relationships with individuals and teams remotely and face to face.
• Knowledge of the social care and leaving care sectors.
• A good understanding of data protection, GDPR and confidentiality, relevant to the post.
• A good understanding of Children’s Safeguarding relevant to the post.
• Outstanding customer service skills and the ability to communicate professionally and courteously with a diverse range of people.
• A high standard of literacy and IT literacy with excellent report writing and presentation skills.
• The ability to analyse statistical data and produce high quality and accurate reports.
• Good organisational skills with flexibility to respond quickly to changing circumstances.
• The ability to prioritise work to achieve required deadlines.
• The ability to work autonomously, without direct supervision, and to use initiative within appropriate boundaries.
• Awareness of discrimination and of good equal opportunity and diversity practice.
• A commitment to teamwork.
• Excellent IT skills and knowledge of developing and maintaining electronic record keeping systems.
• The ability to travel to services across the UK and Isle of Man.

What you should expect from us

• £27,081 - £36,442 (depending on experience)
• Annual salary review based on performance.
• A friendly working environment, a fun, open and honest culture.
• 25 days holiday rising to 27 days after 3 years’ service, plus Bank Holidays, pro-rata.
• Industry Leading training programme including access to level 3 qualifications, children’s right and participation, CSE, empowerment, mental health and Social Pedagogy,
• Contributory pension scheme, Enhanced Maternity and Company Sick Scheme.
• BUPA Employee Assistance Programme, offering counselling, financial advice and legal support.
• Interest-free season ticket loan, cycle to work scheme.
• Discount shopping scheme at hundreds of retailers across the UK.
• Discretionary Funded Training Programs.
• Employee Awards based on performance and length of service.
• Fantastic opportunities to develop your career within our range of services.

Recruitment Process
At St Christopher’s we are committed to the safeguarding of all children and young people in our care. During the recruitment process you will be expected to complete an online application form to ensure we capture essential information to meet legislation, best practice and vetting requirements.

Your online application must include a supporting statement addressing the criteria stated in the Person Specification. For the full Job Description and Person Specification click here

For more information or assistance during the application process, please contact [email protected]

Closing date: 17th June 2022
Interview date: 29th June 2022

We advise to apply as soon as possible as applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.

St Christopher’s Fellowship has a minimum age requirement of 21 for roles working directly with children and young people in our residential and semi-independent Homes.

Full details and application documents here