Caseworker - Assertive Outreach

Wakefield with occasional travel across West Yorkshire

Ref: ARW-242

Are you a collaborative, compassionate and organised individual with a proven record of working and engaging positively with people who have a history of substance use or offending or other vulnerable groups? Have you worked on an offender-led support project, had personal experience of the criminal justice system, served a prison sentence, or still be serving a prison sentence in a prison within reach of Wakefield?

If so, St Giles Trust has an exciting opportunity for a highly motivated candidate to join us as Liaison and Diversion – Assertive Outreach Caseworker, where you will work on our assertive outreach work, a vital ex-offender led project that works across Wakefield.

About St Giles Trust

An ambitious, well-established charity that helps people facing adversity to find jobs, homes and the right support they need. Central to our ethos is our belief that people with first-hand experience of successfully overcoming issues such as an offending background, homelessness, addictions and gang involvement, hold the key to positive change in others.

About this key role

Our successful candidate will assess referred clients, with reference to St Giles Trust assessment practices, and produce support plans and risk management plans based on these assessments, promoting inter-agency collaboration in the assessment and planning process. We will count on you to develop and maintain relationships with referral agencies, including police, treatment provider and Liaison and Diversion, and to deliver a holistic support service working, providing a practical service that will include social and housing support, education, training and employment options, benefits work, and debt advice.

Closing cases efficiently and positively, identifying a success plan for the client that will identify agencies that can be used for on-going support and agencies that can be used if serious problems develop in the future is also a key aspect of the role.

What we are looking for

• If still serving a sentence: to be currently eligible for Release on Temporary License (ROTL); on release, likely to be living within commuting distance of Wakefield; to be willing to provide a DBS check and other disclosure as required, including references from the Prison Service
• Experience of providing support, advice and advocacy and the ability to assess client’s needs
• Experience in negotiation with partner agencies to establish links to further aims of the project
• Proven record of engaging successfully with challenging people
• Knowledge of services for offenders and patterns of offending in Wakefield
• Excellent interpersonal, relationship-building and communication skills, both verbal and written

In return, you can expect a competitive salary, generous leave allowance, staff pension, flexible working, a mentoring programme, an advice and counselling service, clinical therapist sessions, life insurance (4 x annual salary), duvet days, season ticket loan, employee perks programme, eye care voucher and much more.

We are an equity and inclusion confident employer. We welcome all applications and we particularly encourage applications from people of the global majority (black, brown, multi- heritage) and those who identify as disabled, neuroexpansive, neurodiverse, with any protected characteristics and/or social barriers or challenges. We value the empowering and informative impact that all lived experiences and diversity of thought can offer the organisation.

St Giles will guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria set out in the Job Description for the vacancy.

To apply, click the apply button.

Closing date: 16 December 2024.