Bereavement Support Worker

Job description

Job responsibilities

TITLE OF POST: Bereavement Support Worker

ACCOUNTABLE TO: Counselling Coordinator

JOB PURPOSE: To work with the Counselling Coordinator and Head of Family Support to develop and maintain excellent bereavement care support services within the Hospice and community, providing practical and wellbeing support to bereaved families and those preparing for end of life. To act in an advisory capacity to other hospice staff, providing ongoing support and training.

MAIN DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES:

· To work with children, young people and families in the hospice and in the community who are preparing for end of life and provide them with appropriate support throughout the end stages of life and post bereavement, for as long as they require it.

· To be the initial and primary contact for all issues relating to bereavement support, assessing all referrals and working with the Counselling Coordinator to decide on appropriate allocation.

· To develop, plan and deliver the service to further enhance provision in accordance with NICE Guidance and National Bereavement Care Standards.

· Evaluate the effectiveness of the services through audits, reports and relevant analysis of these, as requested by the Head of Family Support.

· To support in identifying gaps in the service and making recommendations regarding service delivery and development.

· To be involved with the recruitment, training and support of volunteers within the service

· To act as an advocate for children/young people and their families, maintaining professional boundaries.

· To provide emotional and psychological support to the child/young person and their family adjusting to illness, disability, end of life issues and bereavement.

· To support families to arrange opportunities for children and young people to build special memories.

· To keep clear and accurate records, reporting where needed any concerns or incidents.

· Understand the importance of, and maintain, the need for confidentiality in all individual and hospice matters.

· To facilitate arrangements for the provision of memory work for families who wish to engage in this, working closely with members of the Care Team.

· To participate in the support, preparation and delivery of the annual Remembering Day event for bereaved families.

· To participate in and facilitate group work for bereaved families, promoting peer support and therapeutic interventions, as directed by the Counselling Coordinator.

· To coordinate the ordering and distribution of memory pebbles to bereaved families.

· To support and educate other members of the team in the delivery of bereavement care and support to families.

GENERAL

All Bluebell Wood employees are required to:

· Abide by the Health & Safety at Work Act

· Adhere to policy and procedures around safeguarding children and young adults

· Respect confidentiality applying to all Hospice areas

· Work within Hospice policies and procedures

· Demonstratable understanding and application of the provisions of GDPR

· Comply with the Hospice no smoking policy

· Participate in and contribute to team meetings

· Co-operate and liaise with colleagues

· Behave in a professional manner at all times

· Act as an ambassador for Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice, reflecting the objectives and values, and to always work in the best interests of the charity.

SUPERVISORS OF VOLUNTEERS AT BLUEBELL WOOD ARE EXPECTED TO:

· Recruit a team of volunteers to assist with the running of the department

· Manage, coordinate, supervise and train the volunteers

· Ensure a sufficient number of volunteers are engaged in order to maintain the expected level of service

· Complete working spreadsheets on a weekly/monthly basis, including planned absentee and holiday cover

· Allocate appropriate work schedules to volunteers, to meet the needs of the business

· Carry out effective inductions for new volunteers in your team

· Lead and guide volunteers, providing the support needed to maintain morale and enable them to work effectively

· Supervise your volunteers appropriately in their day-to-day work and actively work to recognise the work that they do

· Ensure your volunteers have access to some personal time with you on a regular basis

· Ensure that your volunteers have an annual opportunity to reflect on their volunteering role with you

· Support appropriate volunteer learning and development within your team

· Communicate effectively with your volunteer team

All Bluebell Wood employees are expected to:

· Demonstrate a commitment to their own development, to take advantage of education and training opportunities and develop their own competence

· Support and encourage harmonious internal and external working relationships

· Make a positive contribution to fundraising and raising the profile of the Hospice

This job description is not exhaustive. It will be subject to periodic review and may be amended following discussion between the post-holder and employer.

Date of issue: 20 July 2021

Review date: 20 July 2022

Person Specification

Experience

Essential

• Experience of working with children, young people (aged 0-25 years old) and families receiving palliative care and with complex health needs and/or disabilities
• Experience of working with wider multi-disciplinary teams/others

Desirable

• Experience of working with bereaved people
• Experience of volunteering and/or managing a team of volunteers
• Experience of group facilitation

Qualifications

Essential

• Good levels of literacy, numeracy and general education to GCSE level 4 or better
• Level 3 qualification in a relevant subject (eg social care, health etc)

Desirable

• Level 2 qualification in counselling skills

Other

Essential

• Legally entitled to work in this country
• Ability to work flexibly over a 7 day week including unsociable hours, bank holidays, night hours and weekends at the hospice and in the community
• Full driving licence with access to a reliable vehicle and business insurance cover

Personal Qualities

Essential

• Cheerful and positive outlook and attitude

Skills/Knowledge

Essential

• Ability to work on own initiative
• Ability to communicate effectively with staff, children, young people and families
• Demonstrate an understanding of the complexities of grief in parents and siblings who have lost a child/sibling
• Ability to manage priorities and time effectively
• Knowledge of and ability to use Microsoft Office suite including Outlook, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint (to basic level) and database systems
• Emotionally resilient and capable of handling frequent contact with distressed people who require a high level of support

Desirable

• Knowledge of reflective practice and clinical supervision

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Employer details

Employer name

Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice

Address

Cramfit Road

North Anston

Sheffield

S25 4AJ

Employer's website

https://www.bluebellwood.org/ (Opens in a new tab)