Description
Harmeny Education Trust is a charitable organisation providing therapeutic care and education to children who have experienced early years trauma through abuse, neglect and family disruption, referred from all over Scotland. We currently work with children and young people aged 5-18, both on a day and all-year-round residential basis.
Our core service, Harmeny School, comprises:
· An education service, which includes an outdoor learning team.
· A care service, with five residential cottages and one day service cottage.
· Support services, made up of a therapies manager coordinating evidence-informed approaches for children and young people, finance, estates, catering and domestic services, fundraising, IT, HR, learning and development, and admin teams.
We are seeking a Residential Team Manager to join our Care Team on a full-time employed basis. With the supervision and guidance of the Service Managers (Residential), the Residential Team Manager will be responsible, alongside fellow Care Management colleagues, for providing leadership and operational management of a residential cottage and wider community to support the 24/7 year-round service.
The post holder will be expected to promote a safe and nurturing environment for the children and young people within the cottage, and to ensure that the residential child care staff are led and managed well to contribute to that environment. The post holder will also provide support to the Care Management Team to ensure the smooth running and development of the service and consistently high standards of care.
The normal hours for this post are 39 hours per week, including work during evenings and weekends, but additional hours may be required.
The salary for the post ranges from £39,946 to £45,038 per annum, depending on qualifications and experience. A generous sleepover allowance of £100 per session is paid in addition to salary.
Successful applicants will be required to join Disclosure Scotland’s Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme and register with the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) in line with the requirements for Residential Child Care Workers with Supervisory Responsibilities. A driving licence allowing the use of our vehicles is essential.
This is an excellent opportunity for an experienced practitioner to join a friendly organisation making a difference to the lives of remarkable children in Scotland. Harmeny is a values-led organisation and a good fit with our ethos is as important to us as having relevant experience.
For more information about the role, please contact Stacey Pollard, Service Manager (Residential/Referrals), on 0131 449 3938.
Key Responsibilities
Principal Responsibilities / Key Areas
1. Contribute to the creation of a culture and ethos in which the needs of the children are paramount and provide them with security, safety, care and social development to enable them to reach their potential.
2. Providing assistance to the Service Manager (Residential) and Residential Team Manager and be an additional source of support and direction for the Care team. In the absence of the Residential Team Manager and Service Manager (Residential), the Senior Residential Child Care Worker will assume the leadership role within the Care team.
3. Promote a positive ethos in the school consistent with Harmeny’s vision, purpose and core values.
4. Support the Residential Team Manager with the implementation of management decisions, consistent with the Harmeny and cottage plans, policies and procedures.
5. Be an integral part of the Care staff team.
6. Care for the children’s everyday requirements and to help create a homely, caring and safe environment for all the children at Harmeny.
7. Develop and implement care plans which address the needs of the child.
8. Be involved in the development and implementation of risk assessment planning for children.
9. Be involved in the development and implementation of cottage improvement plans that reflect recommendations from the Independent Care Review outcomes – “The Promise”.
10. Be able to understand children’s behaviour and support them to manage their behaviour themselves.
11. Where required, as a last resort, be capable of implementing physical intervention techniques.
12. Support children’s learning during and out with the formal school day.
13. Be a designated keyworker as directed by the Residential Team Manager.
14. As designated keyworker, participate in regular reviews and submit written reports on individual children.
15. Attend regular staff and children’s meetings as required.
16. Ensure that all children’s personal records including case notes, reviews and medical information are kept up to date.
17. Be able to be flexible within the timetable and working patterns at the discretion of the Service Manager (Residential).
18. Work in accordance with all Harmeny policies and procedures.
19. Attend supervision, training and other meetings, as required.
20. Provide effective supervision and annual performance review to Night Awake Workers as directed by the Care Management Team.
21. Participate in in-service training and recognised residential care training.
22. Undertake sleep-in duties as required by the staffing rota.
23. Participate in residential trips and holidays when required.
24. Carry out any other duties consistent with the nature of the post at the discretion of the Harmeny’s management team.
Additional Responsibilities:
1. Take responsibility as delegated by the Residential Team Manager / Service Manager (Residential) for managing resources of staff and finance to meet the needs of the children and the effective running of the school.
2. Ensure that the highest levels of professional practice are maintained within the overall operation of the care and learning environments.
3. Assist in the provision of professional support and direction for Care staff.
4. Provide evening, daytime and weekend leadership to the staff team on a rota basis.
5. Ensure that all recording and reporting systems are maintained and updated and to bring to the attention of the Residential Team Manager / Service Manager (Residential) any issues of concern at the earliest opportunity.
6. Lead staff meetings and record decisions in the absence of the Residential Team Manager / Service Manager (Residential).
7. Deputise for the Residential Team Manager / Service Manager (Residential), as required, at management meetings.
Qualifications, Skills, Knowledge and Experience
Essential
1. A qualification in line with the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) requirements for residential child care workers. For more information, please visit www.sssc.uk.com.
2. Full, clean driving licence.
3. Experience in residential work and / or childcare, including working with children with complex social, emotional and behavioural needs.
4. Knowledge and understanding of children who are looked after and accommodated, and children with complex additional support needs.
5. Knowledge of child development, childcare legislation, good practice guidance, policy and procedures and a commitment to Children’s Rights.
6. Knowledge of the Independent Care Review, “The Promise”.
7. Understanding of the duty of care to children and colleagues.
8. Understanding of the practice issues of physical intervention (PI), and ability to undertake PI when required.
9. Knowledge and experience of organising and delivering children’s activities.
10. Good communication skills, both written and oral.
11. Experience of mentoring and supporting new staff and students.
12. Good organisational and administrative skills and computer literacy.
13. Committed to high standards of care.
14. Able to handle competing priorities and a challenging workload within a highly pressurised working environment.
15. Accountable for the performance of their team and own performance.
16. Proactive and takes the initiative to gain the information needed for the role, with a flexible and ‘can do’ attitude.
Benefits
* A salary of £39,946 to £45,038, depending on qualifications and experience
* Sleeping-in duty allowance of £100 per session
* 35 days’ holiday per year
* Pension scheme
* Life assurance (three times salary)
* Policies and practices that promote health and wellbeing, including massage therapy, access to fitness equipment and a wellbeing space
* We are highly committed to the professional development of all our staff and the post-holder will have access to comprehensive training and development opportunities.
Harmeny Education Trust is a charity that provides care and education to remarkable children from all over Scotland who’ve had a challenging start in life. Our therapeutic services enable children to discover the wonders of childhood, and develop the skills and resilience to lead happy and fulfilling lives.