Domestic Abuse Practitioner - Connected Families

Job description

Job responsibilities

Purpose of the Role:Connected Families is an innovative new service in East Sussex, aiming to provide families with targeted and meaningful intervention, when they need it most. The aim of this service is to reduce the number of children subject to child in need and child protection plans in East Sussex, as well as reducing the number of children subject to recurrent child protection plans.

The team will be responsible for supporting and contributing to social work practice and assessment through consultation and direct work with families. A unique part of the service will be the monthly, in built group supervision offered to social workers and family intervention practitioners, which the successful candidate will facilitate.

Domestic Abuse Practitioners will provide safety planning and intervention directly to parents experiencing or causing harm by Domestic Abuse. It is important that they are able to quickly build meaningful, collaborative working relationships with the people that they are working with. As important is their ability to work in partnership with Locality Social Work teams ensuring that this multidisciplinary service provided is effective, value based and delivers positive outcomes for children families. Practitioners will need to be familiar with the MARAC referral pathway and at times work with the local IDVA service.

Working with children and families and this context can be challenging, this is often a very stressful time in their lives. With this challenge though comes the reward of supporting families through some of the most difficult times and enabling them to make and maintain change. Practitioners will be supported in their practice through clinical and case supervision, group supervision and training opportunities within East Sussex County Council.

1. Undertake assessment of parental need to inform safety planning and intervention plans for parents/carers experiencing and causing harm through domestic abuse.

2. Contribute to Social Work assessment.

3. Manage a caseload of parents/carers experiencing/causing harm through Domestic Abuse

4. Liaise with other agencies in providing an effective child in need/child protection service to individuals and families allocated to them where domestic abuse is a primary factor.

5. Provide advice, resources and consultation regarding domestic abuse to other agency practitioners working with families affected by this.

6. Deliver evidence based programmes of intervention for working with parents/carers experiencing/causing harm through Domestic Abuse.

7. Provide appropriate information and support for family members.

8. Participate in reviews and planning meetings for children and young people as appropriate.

9. Maintain records, reports and correspondence in accordance with agency policy and practice.

10. Ensure that the line manager is kept informed of major developments and the problems arising from the workload and seek advice as necessary.

In order to progress through the bar at the top of Single Status Grade 11 onto Single Status Grade 12 you must have demonstrated evidence the ability to do the following via the appraisal process and have obtained your managers agreement the above has been evidence and their approval to progress:

1. Take a lead in a specific and relevant specialist area acting as a subject matter expert

2. Undertake a lead role in the team to implement local and national service and professional developments;

3. Contribution to the assessment, mentoring and support of new staff and/or unqualified workers, for example group supervision and mentoring.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• Essential key skills, abilities, knowledge, experience, values and behaviours
• Interpersonal skills with the quickly build effective working relationships.
• Ability to undertake detailed and complex assessment of need.
• Written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to write clearly and concisely.
• A comprehansive knowledge of domestic abuse and experience of supporting behaviour change with adults.
• Offer intensive support and provide a range of interventions for those experiencing and/or causing harm through Domestic Abuse.
• Ability to identify work priorities and manage own workload to meet deadlines whilst ensuring lower priority work is kept up to date.
• Ability to balance using own initiative against need to seek management guidance.
• The skills to promote and support effective teamwork and ability to work in a discreet and sensitive manner.
• Ability to demonstrate a commitment to equal opportunities through non-discriminatory and anti-oppressive practice.
• Understanding of the legislative framework relating to child protection: Childrens Act 1989, Assessment Framework, Every Child Matters 2004.
• Understanding ofrelevant, up to date national legislation and local guidance in respect of working with Domestic Abuse:
• oCare Act 2014 (legislation.gov.uk)
• oMental Capacity Act 2005 (legislation.gov.uk)
• oMental Health Act 1983 (legislation.gov.uk)
• oDomestic Abuse Act 2021
• Experience working with vulnerable adults.
• Experience of interevening and safety planning with those experiencing and/or those causing harm through Domestic Abuse.
• Experience of applying a wide range of approaches to engage and work with hard to reach adults.
• Applying sensitive approaches when dealing with issues pertaining to confidentiality, information sharing, consent to treatment, the rights of young people and the responsibilities of parents/carers and professionals.
• Demonstrate a flexible approach and willingness to adapt to change.
• A committed team member.
• Working knowledge of using email and word processing software such as Microsoft Office.
• A current driving licence and have access to a car or be able to demonstrate how you will meet the travelling requirements of the post.
• Progression to Single Status 12:
• Ability to share knowledge and good evidence based practice based on current research relevant to casework
• Evidence of continued professional development and on-going professional training relevant to the role.

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.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Employer details

Employer name

East Sussex County Council

Address

East Sussex County Council

52 St. Leonards Road

Eastbourne

East Sussex

BN21 3UU

Employer's website

https://www.eastsussex.gov.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)