The Family Wellbeing Support Worker will be based within an individual GP practice as part of a multi-agency approach delivering intervention to children, young people, and parents/carers within identified GP surgeries and communities in Glasgow. The Family Wellbeing Support Worker will work in partnership with children, young people, and parents/carers to increase resilience, support positive family relationships and bonding, and improve health and wellbeing by seeing them as frequently as their needs require, in a variety of settings they are most comfortable in. This will involve evening and weekend working.
The Family Wellbeing Support Worker will provide a family centred service that is
responsive to the needs of the individuals and families they work with, focusing on their strengths and assets. They will strengthen connections with and facilitate access to local resources, activities and support services for families helping them to overcome any barriers to doing so. Direct support will be delivered which nurtures, values and builds trusting relationships with families using caring and compassionate approaches. The Family Wellbeing Support Worker will be responsible for and respond to individualised needs identified in their goals to improve outcomes in line with GIRFEC principles and includem’s model of support.
The key responsibilities of the Family Wellbeing Support Worker include, but are not limited to:
Service Delivery
• To build relationships and contribute to assessment of risks, needs and priorities of
children, young people and parents/carers to improve family relationships and wellbeing, taking a person centred, strengths based and trauma informed approach.
• Use of the Solihull approach and restorative practices to enable parents/carers to build on their parenting and caring skills, taking into account culture, values and lived
experience.
• Develop, agree and review goals in partnership with the child, young person and their parent/carer, working collaboratively with other partners, if appropriate, to ensure they are supported by a ‘team around the family’ approach
• Through developing strong positive relationships plan and deliver tailored support at times that meet the needs of children, young people, parents/carers.
• Explore values and attitudes with children, young people and their parent/carers in a supportive manner, to affirm feelings and ideas, and nurture and confirm their
learning.
• Broker in additional services to address identified needs
• Work in partnership with existing community resources, organisations and supports to sustain positive change within families and identify appropriate move on strategies.
• Actively help children, young people, parents/carers recognise progress and use this assessment to inform the wider contract management of case progression.
• Ensure the safety of children, young people and parents/carers through helping them to generate solutions using professional judgement and decision making, which is risk enabled, reducing the need for statutory intervention.
• Where required, assess and respond appropriately to situations where children, young people, parents/carers may be at risk of harm, including escalation and referral to more appropriate services.
People
• Understand the impact of childhood trauma and adverse experiences on the child,
young person and parent/carer’s behaviour, coping mechanisms and functioning.
• Understand the different coping mechanisms that young people and their families use to deal with stress and high emotions, and to respond appropriately.
• Demonstrate professional resilience when providing support with sensitive or
challenging issues.
• Use a strengths-based approach to empower individuals facing adversity to find
solutions and make positive changes, ensuring resources are in place to sustain these changes.
• Establish mutually trusting, open and non-judgemental relationships with children,
young people and parents/carers.
• Participate in collaborative team work to provide a ‘team around the family’ approach.
• Develop professional working relationships with staff within the GP practice and with the wider stakeholders to support the delivery of includem services through
implementation of referral mechanisms to the Family Wellbeing Support Worker service
Influence
• Ensure children, young people, parents/carers are empowered to advocate on their own behalf with other agencies.
• Support children, young people, parents/carers to effectively communicate with
others.
• Provide advice, support, advocacy and guidance to children and young people to
assist them in expressing their views and upholding their rights.
• Articulate to children, young people, parents/carers and partner agencies the includem model, including use of the includem practitioner’s toolkit (A Better Life).
• Role model appropriate practice standards and professional boundaries to others.
• Attend regular GP practice team meetings to discuss caseloads, issues of concern and share information on local and national support services (identifying gaps within
these.)
• Demonstrate understanding of your impact on people and how they might see you.
Resources
• Take a lead role in planning to ensure time is used effectively to meet the needs of children, young people, parents/carers during the operational hours of 8am to 10pm 7 days per week.
• Record the required information on GP and includem systems that will evidence
progress against project outcomes and the ongoing evaluation process.
• Maintain and produce accurate and timely records and reports.
• Ensure support is delivered in line with includem’s Policies and Procedures, Scottish Social Services Council Codes of Practice & National Guidelines.