Immigration Caseworker

Company Overview

You would be joining Palladium, a global impact organisation, with 3,000 employees in over 90 countries. We are a mission-driven business, for whom the impact of our work is as important as the commercial return; the common feature of all our work, regardless of contract size, is the requirement that it contributes to positive social and economic impact. We simply call this ‘Positive Impact’. For the past 50 years, we have been helping our clients to see the world as interconnected in over 90 countries- by formulating strategies, building partnerships, and implementing programs that deliver lasting positive impact. We are experienced in implementing large, complex programmes supporting skills and employment and are currently delivering 30 programmes for the UK Government.

Programme Overview

The Refugee Employability Programme is a new initiative that offers enhanced support to defined cohorts of legally recognised refugees in the UK. Starting in September 2023, the programme will provide tailored support for each participant focussed on gaining sustainable employment. Palladium will work with employers, local government, and other community partners to ensure that individuals are fully supported with their journey back to employment and integration into UK society. The programme includes delivery of employability- focussed English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) tuition for some of the defined cohorts.

Palladium is responsible for delivering the programme in the South East of England

Primary Duties and responsibilities:

As Case Manager, you will be responsible for delivering the front-line support to customers on the Home Office Refugee Employability Programme, ensuring that they receive excellent service which is compliant with all Home Office requirements.

Your responsibilities will include:

·             Take responsibility for engaging with potential customers, explaining eligibility and bringing in referrals to the programme as part of a coordinated team approach.

·             Be accountable for your caseload of assigned customers and working with them to address their learning, integration and employment needs in line with both contractual requirements and the individual’s needs. This will include:   

o   Building rapport and a positive working relationship with each customer.

o   Assessing the customer’s starting position to decide how to best meet their needs. 

o   Creating and following through with individual Personal Development Plans, ensuring appropriate and effective activity is undertaken by each customer.

o   Providing challenge, advice, and guidance where appropriate, to develop customers’ capability in the recruitment process ensuring they have the necessary skills and confidence to secure employment.

·             Develop an understanding of specialist signposting services in the local area/region, so that you are able to source and refer customers to additional support when needed;

·             Cultivate a welcoming environment and ensure a high level of engagement / re-engagement with customers;

·             Work collaboratively as part of a small team to ensure excellent support for all customers;

·             Deliver programme in accordance with contractual Service Level Agreements and company standards;

·             Maintain customers’ records in accordance with data protection requirements so that personal information is safeguarded, and the customer journey is accurately recorded;

·             Meet personal performance targets, Key Performance Indicators and Quality and Compliance measures by delivering high quality employability provision to customers, both remotely and face to face;

·             Develop relationships and networks with key local stakeholders including employers to provide the best possible support for customers.

Skills and experience:

Required

·             A passion for working with people

·             Experience of working in a customer engagement and support-focused role

·             Experience of providing one-to-one support and coaching to individuals with the ability to constructively challenge where needed   

·             Experience in the management of a caseload of individual customers according to a set of contractual standards and requirements

·              A level of independence and professionalism to work independently

·             Detail-oriented with strong organisational and communication skills

·             The ability to be based in, and travel around designated catchment areas, candidates already based in  Hampsire, Surrey and Sussex and Thames Valley are encouraged to apply.

Desirable

·             Exposure to the challenges experienced by refugees or asylum seekers, or personal lived experience

·             Experience delivering one-to-one employability support or ESOL assessments and training

·             Trained in trauma-informed approaches and safeguarding

·             Access to a reliable vehicle and a full, clean drivers licence

·             Knowledge of languages including Amharic, Arabic, Albanian, Bengali, Dari, Farsi, Hindi, Pashto, Spanish, Tigrinya, Urdu or Yoruba

Key Competencies:

·             Ability to engage, motivate, challenge and inspire; 

·             Proactive and solution focused, bringing both creativity and practicality to bear;

·             Excellent communication skills; 

·             Performance and target focused; 

·             Excellent organisation and prioritisation skills; 

·             The determination and drive to want to make a positive difference.

Location and compensation

You will primarily working on an outreach basis within the community and you will be given a base location. Any travel to meet customers outside the base location will be reimbursed in line with the travel policy.

Compensation: You will receive a salary in the range 26,000-29,000 GBP per annum, complemented by a comprehensive benefits package including private health insurance and up to 10% employer pension contributions.