16+ Care Leavers Personal Advisor

**16+ Care Leavers Personal Advisor**:
**Employer**: Medway Council

**Salary**: £31283 per annum

**Location**: To be confirmed

**Contract**: Permanent

**Working Pattern**: Flexible Hours

**Hours**: 37.

**DBS Check**: No

**Closing Date**: 25/05/2025 at 23:55

**Reference**: CSC/25/418/CD

This is an exciting opportunity to join our 16+ Care Leaver Service as a Personal Advisor. You will work with young people from the age of 16 to 25 and will support, advise, and befriend young people from the age of 16 who are in care as well as young people who have left care.

**Duties include**:

- Assessing, planning, and coordinating services for care experienced young people identifying their specific needs and those at risk of harm.
- Managing a caseload of varying complexity in compliance with departmental policies and procedures with statutory timescales, whilst maintaining accurate records and case files.
- Working in partnership with relevant agencies and other stakeholders
- Jointly working with social workers within the service supporting children in care aged 16-18 in preparation for adulthood and independence.

**A day in the life of a PA**:

- “I have tried to think of everything we do in a day but it is so random at times and no two days are ever the same._
- As a PA you really are a “corporate parent”._
- Care leavers often have a very small support network and little contact with parents or family, if any._
- As a PA you are the taxi driver, the bank of social care, the nurse, the removal person, the handyperson and the counsellor._
- The person they call when they have run out of food, electricity, they need to hang curtains, they are homeless, a referral has been made to social care relating to their child, or they have achieved a first at university._
- You move care leavers to university, or you attend court when they have done something wrong._
- You help shop for their first home or you visit them in prison._
- You take them for their first baby scan, or you support them through a still birth._
- You chase them all over the UK because they are involved with county lines, or you visit them at home._
- You need to have a thick skin and even more patience._
- If at first you don’t succeed you just keep trying._
- Some of our very challenging cases generally emerge from their teenage years successfully. This is down to the relationship between the young person and their PA because we are often the only reliable, consistent, adult in their lives and despite the problems and issues that come our way, we keep on coming back for more._
- No matter how many times they push us away, we are always still there.”_

For an informal discussion about the position please contact Debbie Taylor, Service Manager on 07773210505.

To apply, please complete a supporting statement confirming your job history and how you will be able to meet the key responsibilities identified in the job profile.

An enhanced DBS will be required for this position. We also require you to have a full UK driving license with access to a vehicle for business purposes.

**In return we offer you**:

- Generous annual leave entitlement
- Generous local government pension scheme package
- Access to wider training and development qualifications
- Flexible working scheme
- Travel plan discounts
- Access to CAREFIRST advice & counselling service
- Employee discount scheme for national and local retailers

**Career Progression Framework**:
Career Progression Frameworks (CPF) have been introduced for all roles at Medway Council. These frameworks provide a mechanism for employees to take ownership of their development within their post and be rewarded accordingly. This means that the salary you will be offered will be at level A unless, based on an assessment against the CPF criteria, you demonstrate that you are meeting the criteria of level B or C. There will be further opportunity once in post to progress from level A to B, and B to C.

The person specification of a job profile is split into three levels:
Level B details the developed competencies that an individual who is practised in this role would be able to demonstrate and will be a progression of knowledge, experience and skills from level A.

Level C requires the highest level of competence and applicants would need to fully meet and demonstrate all aspects of the job profile, including qualifications, knowledge, skills and experience.

The 16+ Care Leavers team are seeking a Personal Advisor to join the team at level A. This is the entry point of the role, so you will need to be able to demonstrate the relevant knowledge, experience and skills to get you started, but you will be supported to develop in your role through induction, probation and a supportive Performance Appraisal and Career Conversation. All elements of level A listed within the person specification are essential. Through your induction you will be introduced to the Career Progression Framework (CPF), which will help yo