Share your CSE expertise with a team who are making a real difference.
People are at the heart of every service offered by the Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea. We are constantly asking ourselves how we can better serve our local community, and we know that this begins with giving children a safe and secure home environment. We have therefore put significant resources in place to work with vulnerable children and their families, and it is within our exceptional Families Forward team that you could find a fascinating opportunity.
The Role:
This role has become available as a result of a member of our team going on a secondment. Joining our friendly and social team for a year, you will find a unique opportunity to develop your expertise in a highly supportive environment – and of course, you will have the chance to make a huge impact on the lives of children and young people. Due to the complex nature of the work, you will have a small caseload to oversee, working with approximately 6-8 young people and families who are at risk of entering the care system. Utilising a whole family approach, you will agree goals with families, and repair family relationships wherever possible.
The risks that these young people face are serious and complex – from Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE), low self-esteem, contextual safeguarding concerns, parental mental health, substance misuse and complex family situations – alongside your manager and partner services you will determine how you can best support every child, teenager and family.
As our CSE lead, you will work with young people who are at risk of CSE and forming unhealthy relationships, and you will share your expertise with other members of the team, plus colleagues in other services who require guidance. Whether engaging with adults to help them improve their parenting skills and family relationships or working with young people to determine what needs to change in their lives in order for them to be safe, happy and successful, we will expect you to adopt the most innovative approaches. This includes working some evenings and occasional weekends while supporting our bespoke therapeutic Family Activity programme, in which we help families enjoy quality time together, doing activities such as climbing, art workshops and a few overnight residentials.
Please refer to the Job Description for more information
About You:
To be equal to the complex nature of this role, you will have qualifications in a relevant field, such as social work, family therapy, counselling, motivational interviewing, working with domestic abuse or substance misuse, psychology or any other relevant qualification for working with families with complex needs. Having completed CSE training, you will have experience of working directly with young people to apply this knowledge. If you have also had some systemic training, that would be beneficial, though it is vital that you have experience of working with families and young people with complex needs, and you place safeguarding at the heart of every decision. There is plenty of autonomy in this role, and we encourage creativity and innovation in our approach to the work with our service users – and your multidisciplinary colleagues will always be on hand when you want to explore new avenues and ideas.
As you will be predominantly working in family settings and within the community, you will need to have a flexible approach to where you are working each day, though you may be able to work from home once a week. Combining empathy with a great deal of resilience, you will thrive on helping young people find the best possible path in life.
To apply please click the Apply Now link below.