Support Worker

Job title: Support Worker

Location: London

Salary: £9.61 per hour (BANK) – £10.81 per hour (F/T)

Job type: Full-time / Part-time / Bank. Working as part of a team to cover a 24/7 rota, including unsocial hours, weekends, holiday periods and sleep-in/night shifts.

We have Support Worker vacancies in Wembley, Sutton and West Drayton (day service).

Providing high quality support and care to individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder, complex need and challenging behaviour.

Empowering them by assisting them to live as independently as possible through a Person Centred approach, by constantly promoting: respect and dignity, choice in all aspects of life, community presence and participation, the right to social relationships and building competencies.

Main Duties:

Support

• Supporting service users in maintaining their physical, social and emotional well-being.
• Providing service users with the highest standards of personal care whilst maintaining their dignity at all times.
• Maintaining and developing service user’s skills and enhancing their self-esteem.
• Involving service users in all aspects in their own home, ensuring they are in control by enhancing communication through various strategies and ensuring choice.
• Continually striving to identify and satisfy individual needs and preferences.
• Supporting individual to maintain their home environment to the highest standards, including supporting them to complete all household requirements as much as they are able and enabling them to develop their skills further in each area.
• Supporting individuals in a wide range of activities, in the house, community and on holidays.
• Implementing and contributing to personal development plans and supporting them to take calculated risks.
• Safely and responsibly administering medication where required.
• Taking the responsibility of being an advocate and keyworker.
• Support service users with personal care and daily life skills in order to make them more independent.
• Accepting key areas of responsibilities within the house.
• Understanding and using specific techniques to support and develop the abilities and management of behaviours of service user’s with Autistic Spectrum Disorder.
• Assisting in all aspects of new service user induction, including transitions, settling into new services.
• Prepare and participate in meetings with external professionals, members of staff and members of the family/significant others.
• Understand Mental Capacity Act and deprivation of liberty.
• Understand and follow person centred approach and positive behaviour support.
• Shift leading according to company policies.

Communications and Relationships

• Communicating effectively with colleagues, professionals, relatives and outside agencies as required.
• Communicating effectively with the service users (using a variety of communication methods including Makaton, BLS and PECS).
• Using various communication strategies to communicate with service users and enable them to communicate.
• Attending and contributing to team meetings.
• Building good rapport with service users whilst maintaining professional boundaries.
• Building relationships with professionals, family member and external agencies.
• Keep good records of communication with staff (via communication book) and other professionals (via professionals contact sheet).
• Keep good records of daily logs, incident reports, BOC forms, etc.

Person Specification:

Qualifications & Academic Skills

• Strong reading and numeracy skills (Essential)
• GCSE’s (Essential)
• College or University degree (Desirable)
• Ability to communicate effectively and clearly (Essential)
• NVQ level 2 or above or willing to work towards (Desirable)
• Ability to speak a second language (Desirable)
• Basic knowledge of good care practices and legislation (Essential)

Experience

• Minimum 6 months experience of supporting individuals with Autism (Essential)

OR

• Ability to demonstrate an understanding of the basic challenges for individuals with Autism and willingness to learn further (Essential)
• Previous experience of working with challenging behaviour (Desirable)
• Understanding the reasons individuals present challenging behaviour (Essential)
• Knowledge of how to support individuals displaying challenging behaviour (Essential)

Aptitude

• Ability to listen and observe (Essential)
• Willingness to undertake further training (Essential)
• Commitment to self – reflection and development (Essential)
• Ability to plan and organise (Essential)

Attitude

• Calm under pressure (Essential)
• Flexible (Essential)
• Reliable and punctual (Essential)
• Ability to work alone (Essential)
• Ability to work well as a team (Essential)
• Ability to follow directions (Essential)

Physical

• Smart appearance (Essential)

Other

• DBS check
• Three satisfactory references
• Ability to work shifts on a 24/7 rota

Please click on the APPLY button to send your CV.

Candidates with the experience or relevant job titles of: Care Assistant, Enabler, Carer, Care Worker, Care Assist, Care Coordinator, Care Assistant, Social Worker, Vulnerable Adult, Support Assistant, Adult Support Worker, Special Needs Support, Adult Care Assistant, Mental Health Support will be considered for this role.