Job overview

Shared Lives Lead Worker
Darlington
£37,167 pa
37.5 hours per week

We are seeking a suitably qualified and experienced practitioner to join our new Shared Lives scheme in Darlington.

Shared Lives is at the forefront of current thinking in social care. St Anne’s Shared Lives is a well‑established and high‑quality service which recruits carers who offer an “ordinary” home in the community to adults with a learning disability.

This role will be based from home, with access to office space in our North East hub in Newcastle when needed. The post‑holder will also be required to travel to our Head Office in Leeds for meetings, training, and wider organisational activity.

The post holder will manage and develop their own caseload of carers, which will include the recruitment and assessment of new carers and clients, as well as supporting existing arrangements. You will also be responsible for developing and facilitating training and liaising with external agencies.

The successful candidate will have:
·       A relevant qualification at the level of Social Work Degree, RNLD, Level 4 in Health & Social Care or equivalent
·       An understanding of and commitment to the values of Shared Lives
·       An ability to manage a diverse and complex caseload
·       Strong assessment, analytical and problem‑solving skills
·       A full driving licence and use of your own vehicle

For an informal chat, please call Jonathan Hainsworth on 07971 044614.

Main duties of the job

·     To support a caseload of shared lives carers through telephone contact, online and home visits, dealing appropriately with any problems that may arise during an arrangement.

·     Undertake full assessments of applicants wishing to become shared lives carer.

·     Document the assessment process and present this to the approval panel.

·     Manage sometimes complex problems relating to a shared lives carer and the person/people they support, including issues that would arise under the umbrella of Safeguarding Adults.

·     Support shared lives carers to meet the requirements of the scheme and the Health and Social Care Act (2008), Care Act (2014) and other key legislation and CQC guidelines with regards to services that offer personal care.

·     Support the organisation in the delivery of training events, local shared lives meetings and social events for carers and service users and consultation opportunities with shared lives carers and service users.

Working for our organisation

St. Anne's wants to reward its permanent employees for their hard work. Employee benefits include;

• Rising 20 to 25 days plus statutory bank holidays
• 24 Hour Employee Assistance Programme
• Continuous opportunities for ongoing training and career development
• Cycle To Work scheme
• Refer A Friend recruitment initiative
• Flexible working opportunities (where applicable) upon successful completion of probation period
• Group Personal Pension Scheme
• Discounted income protection scheme
• Free car parking at most services
• Free life assurance cover