Senior Link Worker

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Senior Link Worker

Are you passionate about improving the lives of children and young people?

Can you engage with a diverse range of children and young people and enable them to improve their mental health and wellbeing?

Are you looking for a role that supports a positive work life balance, and offers flexibility in working hours?

Barnardo's, in partnership with NHS Oxford Health Trust, are seeking a suitably qualified and highly motivated full time Senior Link Worker to join a newly established service in Wiltshire. The Senior Link Worker will work as part of a team of Link workers, alongside Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) to offer non-clinical support to children and young people, including:

• Conducting wellbeing assessments and developing support plans
• 1:1 and group support for wellbeing (up to 8 sessions)
• Social prescribing and community navigation
• Community and school-based support
• Advice and guidance, including self-help

The Senior Link Worker will work closely with Barnardo's Service Manager and CAMHS colleagues to support children and young people with a high level of unmet needs, and who may not be ready to access formal clinical support.

This role offers a unique opportunity to work as a Barnardo's employee, under an honorary NHS contract, contributing to the wellbeing of the community's youth. Senior Link Workers will be adaptable and flexible to the needs of children and young people, offering support in places and spaces across Wiltshire. CAMHS offices are located in Melksham, Marlborough and Salisbury; successful candidates will be allocated a primary area of work to minimise travel.

Successful candidates will ideally have experience in line management and will provide supervision and guidance to the volunteer workforce.

Person Specification:

Essential Criteria:

Qualifications:

• Qualification in a relevant field such as Youth Work, Psychology, Education, Social Care or equivalent.
• Willingness to complete Social Prescribing - Learning for Link Workers Training.

Experience:

• Demonstrable experience working with children, young people, and families in a mental health or social care setting.
• Proven ability to conduct assessments, develop support plans, and provide advocacy for vulnerable individuals.
• Experience in establishing and maintaining effective partnerships with external agencies and professionals.
• Experience in line management or willingness to undertake line management training.

Knowledge:

• Understanding of child and adolescent mental health issues, including common disorders, symptoms, and the role of the CAMHS Link Worker.
• Familiarity with safeguarding protocols and procedures, ensuring the welfare of children and young people.
• Knowledge of local community resources, mental health support services, and referral pathways.
• Understanding of the positive impact of the volunteer workforce.

Skills:

• Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written, with the ability to engage diverse audiences.
• Strong interpersonal skills, enabling effective collaboration with multidisciplinary teams and external stakeholders.
• Organisational skills to manage caseloads, documentation, and reporting requirements efficiently.
• IT proficiency, including experience with relevant software for recording and reporting purposes.

Personal Attributes:

• Compassionate and empathetic approach to supporting the mental health needs of children, young people, and families.
• Ability to work autonomously and make sound decisions within established guidelines.
• Flexible and adaptable, capable of responding to changing priorities and demands effectively.
• Commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion, promoting a culture of respect and understanding.

Desirable Criteria:

• Experience working within the CAMHS or similar mental health services.
• Experience of supporting a team of volunteers, offering support, guidance and supervision, and maintaining up to date volunteer records.

Barnardo's Basis and Values, and Equality & Diversity Code of Conduct:

Actively demonstrate Barnardo's Basis and Values and Equality & Diversity Code

of Conduct in all areas of work:

• Respecting the unique worth of every person
• Encouraging people to fulfil their potential
• Working with hope
• Exercising responsible stewardship

Barnardo's and the NHS are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. All applicants will undergo relevant checks, including an enhanced DBS disclosure.

When completing your application please refer to your skills knowledge and experience in relation to the Person Specification in the Additional Information document. This should be done with an understanding of the context of the service described.

Barnardo's believe in creating equality of opportunity in the workplace and supporting people to manage their work-life balance; we are therefore open to offering flexible working arrangements.

Pre-employment checks will be required for the role

If you have any questions, please call Polly Atkins on 07753 318964 or email polly.atkins@barnardos.org.uk

Note: This job description and person specification outline the general nature and level of work expected of the role. It is not an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, and requirements. Flexibility is essential to meet the evolving needs of the service and organisation.

Please note due to the high volume of applications for some posts, this advert might close before the displayed closing date. We recommend that you apply for this role as soon as possible.

Pay & Reward Framework

We know that our colleagues go above and beyond in delivering our vital work, driven by their passion and commitment to Barnardo's values . We also know that we can only realise our ambitions and achieve better outcomes for more children, thanks to the talent, hard work and creativity of our people.

For all these reasons, we are committed to a new approach to pay and reward, to ensure it is fair, attractive and progressive, which was rolled out 1st April 2023. This is a positive change for the charity, and a key pillar of our People & Culture Strategy. It will assist us in supporting colleagues to grow and develop in their career at Barnardo's as it will offer clear routes of progression for colleagues to progress through the pay band of their role.

Whilst the full pay band and salary range is advertised, our approach to starting salaries is to appoint between the minimum to mid-point of the pay band - this ensures that pay progression steps are available to reward our colleagues annually based on their contribution to excellence and alignment to our values and behaviours. More details on Barnardo's pay framework can be found upon application.

Benefits

Workplace Offer: What it means for you

The world of work has changed. We are understanding of what works best for our colleagues both current and future as we look to embrace this new way of working. Our hybrid working initiative is based on trust, flexibility and empowerment. We understand our workplace offer means different things to different people, and we encourage those conversations. This may mean working at one of our stores, services, working at home, at one of our Collaboration Hubs or any combination of these.

• Barnardo's believe in creating equality of opportunity in the workplace and supporting people to manage their work-life balance; we are therefore open to offering flexible working arrangements.
• 26 days annual leave plus bank holidays, increasing after 5 years service
• The ability to buy up to another 5 days annual leave via our HolidayPlus scheme
• A host of family friendly leave options including company Maternity Paternity and Adoption pay; together with all family additional leave options
• Service related sick pay from day 1
• Access to a Group Personal Pension with a matched 4% or 6% contribution from Barnardo's. Ability to pay via salary sacrifice to garner both tax and NI savings on your own contribution
• Death in service cover of 4x annual earnings for all staff contributing to our Group Personal Pension
• Cycle2work scheme
• Interest free season ticket loans
• Discounts and cashback from at high street shops including major supermarkets, cinemas, gyms, leisure/theme parks, holidays and much more via our Benefit Portal
• 20% discount at Barnardo's stores
• Opportunity to purchase a health cash plan to claim towards dental, glasses, therapy etc
• Free access to round the clock employee assistance program for advice and support
• Access to Barnardo's Learning and Development offer

*T&C's apply based on contract

About Barnardo's

At Barnardo's we believe in children - no matter who they are, what they have done or what they have been through. Please read about following the link below. You will be asked questions relating to them as part of the recruitment process for this role.

Our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) is reflected in our values and our practice, and we have invested in this area of our work to ensure that we can deliver on our commitments to be an inclusive employer. EDI is a key enabler of our purpose as a charity and we want to ensure that the diversity of our teams is reflective of the communities we serve and that we continue to learn and develop our work with a focus on inclusion. We particularly encourage applications from candidates from Black, Asian and Minoritised Ethnic Communities, candidates who are LGBT+ and Disabled candidates.