Residential Childcare Worker - High Trees

About Us

High Trees is an Ofsted-rated 'Outstanding' home, offering care in a 3 to 4 bed setting and welcoming children aged 7 to 18 at the time of referral. Our home is small and inviting, and we look after the individual needs of children with severe and complex learning disabilities and their families.

Our dedicated and skilled staff team are keen to ensure that children who stay with us, whether full time or for short breaks, feel at home and feel safe, have many opportunities for both fun and learning and reach their full potential in a range of creative ways.

We are ideally located in a lovely area, with a large, open garden with a patio area and are very much a part of the community. Watch our video here about working in Residential Childcare from our High Tree's Registered Manager!

About the Role

Salary: £29,159 - £30,584 per annum (includes weekend working allowance and Crawley Weighting Allowance) plus excellent pension, annual leave and additional benefits)
Working Pattern: Full time 37 hours per week + rota for evening and weekend work
Contract: Permanent
Location: Crawley
Shifts and Rotas: for day work, you will be required to work on a shift rota between 07:00 - 22:00, including every other weekend and approximately one sleep-in duty per week currently with enhanced pay. This can be discussed with candidates in more detail at interview.

Children's Residential Recruitment and Retention Payment scheme - £1500 during your first 18 months while you remain in the County Council's permanent employment during this time to support our new employees in this vital role! The scheme consists of two payments: £500 after successful completion of 6 months employment (including successful completion of probation where relevant) and £1,000 after 18 months.

As a Residential Childcare Worker at High Trees, you will provide a nurturing, positive and safe environment for our children and young people to support their individual needs. Each day you will support a child's individual plan such as their morning routine, school attendance, developing independence skills and facilitating mealtimes along with family time.

This deeply rewarding role, while at times challenging, lets you experience the joy of seeing young people celebrate their achievements. If you are passionate about supporting children to reach their full potential, we'd love to hear from you - apply below!

Please note applications will be reviewed on an ongoing basis, so we encourage you to apply at your earliest convenience.

Experience and Skills

Some of the key skills and experience required for the role are:

• Level 3 Diploma in Residential Childcare or equivalent. If you do not have this, the service will support you to complete this qualification; you must achieve this within two years of appointment as it is a statutory requirement of this post.
• Sound communication and interpersonal skills to a range of children and families.
• Ability to promote and encourage a multi-agency approach to support the child.
• Ability to use initiative to resolve problems within given parameters.
• Ability to work under pressure and prioritise work.
• Ability to work as part of a team around a child.
• Good standard of English and literacy e.g. ability to write reports around individuals and significant incidents.

Please be advised you are required to bring certificates for English and any Childcare qualifications you hold.

Rewards and Benefits

As an employer we recognise that it is our employees that are central to everything we do. We aim to create a supportive and dynamic working environment where you can achieve your full potential and are rewarded for the work you do.

In addition to working within a great team and a brilliant opportunity you will receive:

• an excellent local government pension scheme
• generous holiday entitlement of 27 to 28 days, depending on job title and length of service
• access to a wide selection of retail discounts and savings such as groceries, shopping, travel and more through our West Sussex Choices benefits platform.
• a range of commuting and business travel discount and initiatives
• maternity, paternity, dependency and adoption leave
• health and wellbeing benefits including access to our Employee Assistance Programme
• financial wellbeing support including access to educational tools and webinars, loans or debt consolidation options and savings scheme
• training and development opportunities, including coaching and mentoring

For a full list of the benefits offered to you as a West Sussex County Council employee you can find them on our Rewards and Benefits page.

Further Information

The reference number for this role is CAFHE05820 .

For an informal conversation or further information regarding the role, please contact Ben Arnold (Registered Manager) . For any issues with your application Charlotte Blandford (Resourcing Specialist)

To apply, upload your CV and complete our short application form, explaining the skills and experience you can bring to the role, ensuring that any gaps in employment are covered in your CV.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults.

This post is subject to an enhanced DBS check, 5 years referencing and an occupational health check. A fully employment history will be requested and covered for this role.

Equity, inclusion and accessibility is very important to West Sussex County Council. We welcome and encourage applications from everyone, as this helps us build a diverse and talented workforce, that reflects the communities we serve. We ensure our approach to recruitment is flexible and supportive to enable all applicants to be at their best and to ensure they have the best possible chance of success.

We operate a guaranteed interview scheme for applicants that have a disability, are a veteran or are a care leaver. More information can be found on our application help page.

Note for Recruitment Agencies: We prefer to hire people directly, but we do have a supplier list for when we need a helping hand. We'll be in touch directly if we need you!