Medway council are recruiting a Youth Offending Team officer. It is an exciting time to join Medway Youth Offending Team. The team is recognised to be at the forefront of developing child first practice in the Youth Justice sector. We are looking for applicants who have extensive experience working with children at risk of offending and supporting them to move forward positively to the future. The main purpose of the Youth Offending Team is to prevent children from entering the Criminal Justice System, and to prevent those involved in the Criminal Justice System from re-offending. Medway Youth Offending team is an exciting and innovative team that has sought to develop a child first approach to Youth Justice practice that treats children involved in the Youth Justice system primarily as being children first, understanding their individual experiences, and working with them to live positive and fulfilling lives. The Youth Offending Officer will undertake often complex assessments of the risk of offending, risk of harm and safeguarding concerns of children involved in the Criminal Justice System. They supervise a caseload of children referred by the Youth Court and by the police as out of court disposals. They will prepare reports and assessments for both the Youth Court and the Police. They will be required to assess the risks, safeguarding issues and diversity needs of children and design and deliver interventions responsive to these needs. The Youth Offending Officer will hold a caseload of children who have been assessed as being at risk of re-offending / or causing harm to the community, and of being themselves vulnerable and at risk. They will deliver individual and sometimes group-interventions to these children. They will deliver interventions in accordance with the National Standards for the Youth Justice System and locally agreed practice requirements. About you Educated to degree in relevant subject e.g., Youth Justice, Youth Service or Probation studies, teaching, criminology, psychology, and the creative arts. An understanding of Youth Justice / Criminal Justice legislation. Experience of working with children in the Youth Justice Systems Experience of working with young people and adolescents and bringing about positive change in their lives. A full driving licence and access to own transport for work purposes. Able to engage with children in child first manner. Our organisation: Medway is a unitary authority in the South East of England, made up of the towns of Strood, Rochester, Chatham, Gillingham and Rainham and more rural areas, including the Hoo Peninsula. Situated in Kent in the South-East of England, the area has plenty of green spaces, excellent facilities and easy access to the national motorway and rail networks, facilitating superb transport links to London. We provide all local Government services for a quarter of a million people, looking after education, environment, social care, housing, planning, business and much more - everything from frontline services such as rubbish collection and events like the Dickens Festival to work that goes on behind the scenes to ensure services in Medway run smoothly and cost effectively. Working at Medway Council means that you get to be part of this journey working alongside talented, professional colleagues to drive forward change to transform the lives of our residents and the communities they live in. Important Information- Applicants must be able to demonstrate all essential requirements as listed in the job profile Equal Opportunities Commitment Statement Medway Council is committed to creating an inclusive work environment with a diverse workforce. All appropriately qualified candidates will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, disability or age For further information please refer to the Medway information pack available as a download or to view online Please be advised that if you are not contacted within 3 weeks of the advert closing date then you have not been shortlisted. All recruitment correspondence, including interview letters and contracts of employment will usually be sent out via email. Please visit http://www.mindfulemployer.net/ for information on how Medway Council put good practices in place to ensure employees and job applicants who declare mental health issues receive the right level of support. We reserve the right to close this vacancy at any time prior to the closing date.