Participation Officer – Fostering

Casual Contract - 20 Hours Per Week

Basic Salary: £11.44 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 2012, 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

• Promote our ‘Stronger Futures’ initiative and engage our young people in year 10 and above to undertake the many life skill opportunities on offer to them
• Create training materials to support and delivery of our AQA programme
• Direct 1-1 support
• Support with the delivery of our Duke of Edinburgh awards programme

• Arranging activities, days out and workshops for our looked after and birth children
• Forge close and productive working relationships with colleagues, Foster Parents, external professionals and multi-agency networks
• Attendance at meetings with professionals from Education, Health and Social Services sectors to support our Children and Young People’s care plans
• Assessment, review and report writing, and maintaining clear records
• 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
• Support ACS staff with placements/education inputting key data information.

About You

• A passion for and experience of supporting children and young people to reach their full potential
• An understanding of the challenges faced by the children and young people in our care
• Ability to work and travel across the West Midlands region
• Desire to implement and drive new ideas and initiatives that will support and compliment the services that we offer

• Have professional childcare experience, preferably with Fostering or Fostering sector experience or the ability to demonstrate significant Fostering knowledge and interest
• Ideally possess a relevant qualification or evidence of formal training in childcare, childhood studies, education, social work, youth work, community work and/or psychology
• Can demonstrate previous experience of building strong rapports with adults and children with an array of different needs and expectations
• Able to remain calm when under high levels of pressure, emotionally traumatic situations and when dealing with difficult or confrontational behaviour
• Intermediate IT skills to include Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint) and databases
• 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.

For more information about this post please contact Kasore Khan – Operations Manager on 0121 6671391.

To be considered, please apply and we will be in touch.

No agencies please.

Active Care Solutions is an equal opportunities employer and has been awarded the disability confident employer by the jobcentre plus. The successful applicant will be subject to a DBS check at enhanced level if successful for the position.