Key responsibilities:

One-to-one support

You will provide intensive one-to-one support bespoke to kinship carers and their families over a six-month intervention, working within the Kinship Connected delivery model. This may include, but is not limited to:

• Practical and emotional support to kinship carers virtually or in-person in their home or community.

• Signposting or referring to relevant national and local services.

• Liaising with other professionals and organisations.

Peer group facilitation and management

You will be responsible for planning, organising, facilitating peer support groups for kinship carers in your area, working in line with the Kinship Connected delivery model.  This will involve:

• Developing existing groups and setting up new groups as required.

• Working closely with Kinship’s peer-to-peer service where appropriate.

• Collaborating with kinship carers, the local authority, and community partners to set up virtual and in-person support groups in your commissioned area.

  Participation

• According to Kinship’s Volunteering policy and other related policies, support kinship carers to engage with opportunities such as volunteering in virtual and in-person support groups.

• Work proactively to enable kinship carers to influence the design and delivery of the peer support groups delivered in their area (such as topics, time / date, location).

• Support Kinship’s communications and engagement strategy by providing case studies and sourcing images for newsletters and local media to promote the programme.

  Safeguarding and risk management

  Kinship has a robust safeguarding structure. You will be supported by a Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) and Designated Deputy Safeguarding Leads (DDSL).

Recognise and respond appropriately to signs of abuse or neglect, following national legislation and procedures and Kinship’s own safeguarding procedures.

• Liaise with your line manager and safeguarding lead regarding safeguarding concerns, following Kinship’s policies and processes.

• Provide updates and information for managers about cases of concern.

• Complete risk assessments for events or groups with families in line with Kinship’s policies and processes to be signed off by a DSL or DDSL.

  Monitoring and Evaluation

Ensure casework, attendance, feedback, and other data related to service delivery are regularly and accurately recorded on our Salesforce database in line with Kinship’s policy and best practice.

• Ensure completion of carer registration forms, review forms, and closure forms, taking details that will be used to evidence impact.

• Collect case studies from your kinship carers to help demonstrate impact.

• Contribute to any reports for local authority partners as required with data and case studies.

  Relationship and stakeholder management  

• In partnership with the Senior Project Worker, enable local authorities to understand the programme and pathways for how to make referrals.

• Support practitioners' meetings with local authorities to encourage referrals, discuss cases, and ensure local authority confidence in the programme.

• Where applicable, work with local authorities to raise awareness of kinship care and to reach and support kinship carers through the programme.

• Where possible and relevant, represent Kinship at external events and meetings to raise awareness of the programme and to influence other organisations.

Knowledge, abilities, skills and experience

Essential

Experience

·       Experience of family work and undertaking needs assessments both in person and remotely

·       Experience of setting up and facilitating peer support groups on an in-person and remote basis.

·       Experience of working with statutory, voluntary and community networks and the ability to represent the organisation to external stakeholders.

Knowledge, skills and understanding

• Knowledge and understanding of kinship care and the ability to learn quickly about the regulations and guidance relating to special guardians.

• Excellent communication skills.

• Proven track record of high-level administrative work and experience of working with a case management systems to record interventions.

• Ability to work on your own initiative and manage a complex and varied workload to successfully meet project deadlines and targets.

• Right to work in the UK and

• Full, clean driver’s licence.