Participation Officer – Fostering
Casual Contract - Hours Per Week
Basic Salary: £. per hour
Office Location: Oldbury
ABOUT US
We’re a high-quality fostering organisation recognised as ‘Outstanding’ by OFSTED, and one of the UK’s only independent fostering agency specialising in cultural and faith-based fostering placements.
That’s what we set out to do in, and we’re still doing it today. Our focus is on helping children and young people with specific religious or cultural needs find foster parents who share their values and identity and can provide a safe and loving home. No other independent fostering organisation offers this specialist service, and nobody does it so well. In our most recent inspection, OFSTED rated us as ‘Outstanding’ in every area of our work
Our first office was in the West Midlands, but as our reputation and services have grown, so has our presence across the UK. We now have an office in Blackburn and also cover the East Midlands and Yorkshire with our local based team. The founding members, Mohammed Bashir, Andrew Nugent and Kasore Khan are still here with us, providing leadership and direction.
Role responsibilities
1. Promote our ‘Stronger Futures’ initiative and engage our young people in year and above to undertake the many life skill opportunities on offer to them
2. Create training materials to support and delivery of our AQA programme
3. Direct - support
4. Support with the delivery of our Duke of Edinburgh awards programme
5. Arranging activities, days out and workshops for our looked after and birth children
6. Forge close and productive working relationships with colleagues, Foster Parents, external professionals and multi-agency networks
7. Attendance at meetings with professionals from Education, Health and Social Services sectors to support our Children and Young People’s care plans
8. Assessment, review and report writing, and maintaining clear records
9. Be aware of, and take responsibility for staying up to date with professional practice standards, legislation and company policy including confidentiality, GDPR, safeguarding, equality, diversity and inclusion
10. Support ACS staff with placements/education inputting key data information.
About You
11. A passion for and experience of supporting children and young people to reach their full potential
12. An understanding of the challenges faced by the children and young people in our care
13. Ability to work and travel across the West Midlands region
14. Desire to implement and drive new ideas and initiatives that will support and compliment the services that we offer
15. Have professional childcare experience, preferably with Fostering or Fostering sector experience or the ability to demonstrate significant Fostering knowledge and interest
16. Ideally possess a relevant qualification or evidence of formal training in childcare, childhood studies, education, social work, youth work, community work and/or psychology
17. Can demonstrate previous experience of building strong rapports with adults and children with an array of different needs and expectations
18. Able to remain calm when under high levels of pressure, emotionally traumatic situations and when dealing with difficult or confrontational behaviour
19. Intermediate IT skills to include Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint) and databases
20. Have a full driving licence
We are a family of independent fostering agencies, all with our own individual areas of expertise, but with one shared vision. We want to give children across the country who have had a difficult start in life, the support they need to build themselves a stronger and happier future. For our Foster Parents, we provide a close network of support that becomes like a second family.