Support Worker

Job title: Support Worker  

Location: Larchfield Community, Stokesley Road, Hemlington, Middlesbrough, TS8 9DY.

Purpose: To provide autonomous assistance to the people we support to fulfil their potential for independence, choice, inclusion and control.

Salary: £19,500 (NB: This is on a four-week payment cycle meaning you get paid 13 times per year at £10.00 per hour).

Hours: 37.5 hours Monday to Sunday (Rotational, including days, evenings, weekends and bank holidays, with some sleepovers and/or Waking Nights). Part time hours may be considered.

Do you want the autonomy and freedom to enhance the lives of the people we support?

We have an opening for you to join us as a Support Worker at our beautiful Larchfield Community, near Hemlington, a 15-minute drive from the centre of Middlesbrough. If the following appeals, we’d love to hear from you.

• You want to provide true person-centred support: the people we support all have differing needs and wants; you are instrumental in making it happen!
• You would love to be part of a true community.
• You want to become a real part of someone’s life and be able to support them in all their activities.
• You have a passion for helping others live a fulfilling and interesting life.
• You have a calm and patient personality.
• You like being involved in the activities of people you support. Many of the people we support have interests such as swimming, horse riding, crafts, music, gardening… the list is almost endless!
• You would enjoy working within a countryside environment. We have many animals at Larchfield so you may experience some of the fragrances of nature!

Who are we looking for?

• We like people who really care about others and treat everyone with respect and dignity. If you enjoy supporting people by following their protocols and plans to have a fulfilled and happy life, then this is the job for you.
• If you are looking for that ideal role where you can support the individual needs of the people we support, you’ll enjoy taking people out to enjoy the activities they love and help them lead a fulfilling life.
• You’ll have a supportive and encouraging natural approach.
• A sense of humour and positive attitude really helps: we don’t expect our colleagues to be stand-up comedians but we do enjoy having fun.

What are the main responsibilities of this role?

1. Working under the direction of the Team Leader, you will plan and provide support and care to foster the wellbeing and development of the people we support in accordance with their person-centred support and care plan, recording and reviewing progress as directed so that the people we support can fulfil their potential for independence, choice, inclusion and control, supporting them to:

• Encourage the people we support to maintain a clean, tidy and welcoming living environment.
• Support to use appropriate laundry equipment so they can be enabled to do their laundry and clothing.
• Plan, shop and prepare healthy and wholesome meals alongside the people we support considering their health, choices and wishes.
• Encourage the people we support to be healthy by assisting them to arrange and attend medical appointments.
• Enable the people we support to look after their finances by supporting them individually to budget, monitor their finances and access benefits.
• Support and encourage individuals to maintain an active and supportive social life considering individual choices and wishes.

1. Working under the direction of the Team Leader, provide personal care where required and appropriate as a part of their support and care plan (e.g. bathing, hair washing etc) and where the appropriate registration is in place.

• Administering and recording of medication, order / check medications (training provided)
• Meal preparation: planning a menu based on their individual preferences and diet choice, making a shopping list, preparing the food, cooking the food, safe handling and storage of the food.
• Related paperwork includes support plans, daily updates, person profiles, risk assessments, incident reporting, behaviour reports and notes/updates on health appointments.

1. Carry out any other tasks as directed by the Team Leader to develop and maintain the high quality of service required.
2. Work within the community’s policies and procedures and code of conduct, actively promoting the equality and diversity and the human rights of tenants to realise independence, choice, inclusion, and control.
3. Promote the I Statements produced by the people we support, to let us know how they would like to be supported.
4. Undertake training and continuous professional development in accordance with The Care Quality Commission, local authority requirements, the needs of the service and the people we support.
5. Work in close partnership with family members and other professionals involved in the individuals life.

Role requirements:

• You will preferably have experience of supporting adults with learning disabilities, autism and distressed behaviours/emotions. However, this is not essential as training will be given.
• You’ll ideally have a driving license (no more than three points) but again, this is not essential. The people you’ll support may wish to have a day trip: you’ll have the use of our pool cars or local public transport so you can take people out on daily activities.
• You’ll have a general education, good numeracy and literacy skills and preferably a Level 2 or 3 NVQ in Care (or equivalent). This isn’t essential as we can support you in your training and qualifications. With our training, you will be able to write daily notes, keep financial records and complete some basic reports. You will be trained to a Level 3 standard in the administration of medication via the local college.

What do we offer you?

 In addition to a competitive salary, our benefits include:

• 25 days annual leave statutory bank holidays (pro rata and accrued according to number of shifts worked)

• Once you join us, you'll be eligible to benefit from "Charity Discounts" where you can enjoy reductions from lots of differing retailers and service providers.
• An opportunity to ‘cash in’ one week leave a year.
• Employee assistance scheme that is also available to your immediate family.
• Free on-site parking.
• Access to an array of artisan shops and an onsite café.
• Sick pay entitlement after one month service.
• Pension Scheme: we contribute to a pension scheme along with your personal contributions.
• Death in Service benefits: payments made to your beneficiaries should the unthinkable happen.

All our employees require a DBS criminal record check. We will do this for you.