Job Description - Full-time Staying in Touch Project Worker 1
* Are you looking for a new challenge within the changing field of adoption? * Would you like the opportunity to support adoptive parents, birth relatives and young people and positively impact on their lives? We have an exciting opportunity for a Project Worker to join our small, friendly and dedicated team at CAFIS on a full-time permanent basis. We welcome applications from those with diverse backgrounds to reflect the service users that we support. About the service: CAFIS is a service which has been commissioned by Adoption Partnership South East (covering Kent, Medway and Bexley) to provide the Staying in Touch Services for adopted young people. We support adoptive and birth families to stay in touch and meet the ever-changing identity needs of their children. Location & Working pattern: This post is an office-based role for 37 hours a week, Monday - Friday 9.00am - 5.00pm. Some hybrid working considered following completion of the probation period for the right applicant. Our office is in Faversham, Kent but you will need to be able to travel throughout Kent, Medway and Bexley. Therefore the successful candidate must be able to drive and have access to their own car as this is essential for service delivery. Project Worker responsibilities include but are not limited to: * Supporting with and setting up new referrals from local authority * Supporting birth parents whose child is to be adopted in understanding the changes to their role and how their support is important to their child. * Facilitating direct staying in touch arrangements between adopters and birth family. * Reading, checking and processing updates sent between birth families and adoptive families. * Helping to facilitate birth relative support groups with CAFIS social workers and to develop resources to support birth relatives and adoptive parents. * Reviewing and renegotiating current staying in touch arrangements * Responding to duty calls and emails * Supporting with training for adoptive parents, birth relatives and local authority. * Closing cases when children reach adulthood. Essential Requirements to evidence in your written application: * An ability to work collaboratively as part of the team as well as being able to competently work on your own. * Excellent communication skills with colleagues, other professionals and service users. * To be able to remain independent, regulate your own emotions in challenging situations and seek appropriate support within CAFIS when needed. * To be able to work in a professional and non-judgemental way with all service users. * Awareness of factors impacting our families e.g. separation and loss, attachment and identity. * Significant experience of working with vulnerable adults or children in a formal setting. * An ability to multitask and cope with a challenging and unpredictable case load. * Excellent IT skills with confidence in using Word, Excel and other data entry programs. * To competently maintain accurate and non-judgemental paper and electronic records. * Awareness of safeguarding and child protection procedures. * Understand the importance of the need for safe and confidential exchange of information in line with GDPR regulations. * To be able to contribute to whole service development e.g. delivering training, running supports groups. * Have GSCE English and Maths, or equivalent qualifications. Additional information Although this contract has a permanent status, please be aware that this post is subject to funding currently up to 30th September 2027. Therefore should this funding not be extended further, you may be subject to a redundancy consultation or a TUPE arrangement. When completing your application please refer to your skills, knowledge and experience. This should be done with an understanding of the context of the service described. 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. 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. Flexibility 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. 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 our basis and values following the link below. You will be asked questions relating to them as part of the recruitment process for this role. Barnardo?s is committed to having a diverse and inclusive workforce for staff and volunteers. We actively encourage applications from disabled, Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic candidates as they are under-represented within Barnardo?s.
