Children's Rights Advocate

BARNARDO'S; Baldock; On-site; GBP 29,000 - 33,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Annual leave 26 days + 1

Buy additional leave

Service related sick pay

Cycle2work scheme

Season ticket loans

Store discount

Health cash plan

Employee assistance program

Learning and Development opportunities

Job summary

Barnardo's in the UK is seeking a Children’s Rights Advocate to provide independent advocacy for children in the secure estate at Oakhill STC. The role is child-facing, with lone working and on-site duties aligned to a strict regime.

You will support access to services, family contact and safeguarding concerns while navigating a structured environment. The position is part of a permanent, 33-hour per week contract, with a salary in a defined band.

Responsibilities

• Child-facing advocacy within the secure estate, empowering children to express needs and rights.
• On-site role with occasional remote work for training or meetings; rota system that may include weekends and bank holidays.

Job description

This position (Children's Rights and Advocacy Worker – Project Worker 2) is based within Oakhill Secure Training Centre, which accommodates children aged between 12-18 years, who are in custody, either sentenced or on remand. Barnardo's refers to Young Offender Institutions (YOI) and Secure Training Centres (STC) as the ‘Secure Estate'.

Barnardo's is seeking an empathetic and child led individual who can work within a dynamic and fast-paced environment using their strong organisational, communication and time management skills to support children in the secure estate.

Barnardo's is commissioned by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) to provide an Independent Children's Rights and Advocacy (ICRAS) Service to children accommodated in a secure setting. The service is known to children as Barnardo's: Your Rights, Your Voice, and currently works within four Young Offender Institutes, one Secure Training Centre and one Secure Children's home. The ICRAS service is child led and independent of the secure estate; our service is delivered within Oakhill STC to ensure children can freely access support for a range of issues linked to their needs, rights & experiences of custody, resettlement, and safeguarding. As such this is a child-facing service, and at times involves lone working in the establishments, so we are seeking someone who can see the child, not the offence.

We hold ‘voice' at the heart of all we do, therefore we feel the role is best described by someone who is currently working in this sector: “The role is a Children's Rights and Advocacy role, which means it is our job to empower the children we work with and help them to understand that what they think, what they feel and what they want, really matters. We can speak on behalf of children to ensure their voice is heard and we also have the opportunity to help them to find the tools and confidence to raise their voices for themselves. Advocacy and Children's Rights support is particularly crucial in the secure estate because children are away from home, family and champions, and also because children in secure estate are some of the most vulnerable children in society; they have often faced considerable adversity, disadvantage and discrimination prior to arriving into custody and they might not, therefore, be equipped with the skills needed to articulate their concerns. Through the work you do with a child such as simply helping them make contact with friends or family on the outside, to helping them with concerns they may have in relation to discrimination, resettlement or safeguarding issues, you may be the one person telling them that they matter for the very first time.”

The position (Children's Rights and Advocacy Worker – Project Worker 2) is line managed by a Team Manager, reporting to an off‑site manager. The post holder will need to be able to work autonomously, working to the requirements of the contract and the regime of the STC. The secure estate is a highly structured environment; as a Barnardo's service we deliver independent advocacy and support for a range of issues, whilst still having to follow and adhere to this structure.

This role includes lone working in this challenging secure environment. It is, therefore, critical that the successful candidate can follow guidance and policy and is able to take proactive and individual responsibility to understand and access the service support mechanisms. This role requires the worker to be onsite for their contracted hours, working remotely only for occasional training or meetings. The advocacy team work on a rota system with set hours each week, which can include weekends and bank holidays. Applicants should also be aware, that due to the nature of working within secure estate, the vetting and induction process can take several months to complete.

This is a part‑time vacancy with 33 hours available per week.

We are committed to a rounded colleague experience with an approach to both pay and rewards that are fair, attractive, and progressive. This is in support of our strategic ambition to ensure Barnardo's is a place everyone can belong, grow and thrive.

The salary range advertised is in line withour pay principles, for consistency and fairness while recognising the skills and experience applicants bring to the role. Appointing salaries can be discussed further at appointment stage; we do seek to appoint within this range always exercising responsible stewardship.

Workplace Offer: What it means for you

Our hybrid working initiative is based on trust, flexibility and empowerment. We understand our workplace offer means different things to different people, and we encourage those conversations. This may mean working at one of our stores, services, working at home, in the community, at one of our Collaboration Hubs or depending on the role any combination of these. Please read through the advert carefully to understand the remits of hybrid working that will be specific to the role.

Barnardo's require colleagues to be UK residents, based in the UK and to complete their roles from within the UK (with the exception of colleagues providing Barnardo's services in Jersey and colleagues who live in the Republic of Ireland providing services in Northern Ireland)

• Annual Leave entitlement for full-time colleagues is 26 days per annum, increasing to 27 days per annum, after 3 years Barnardo's service, 29 days per annum, after 5 years Barnardo's service and 30 days per annum, after 7 years Barnardo's service. Those working less than full time are entitled to the same level of holiday pro rata
• The ability to buy up to another 5 days annual leave via our Buy Your Leave scheme
• Service related sick pay from day 1
• Cycle2work scheme
• Interest free season ticket loans
• 20% discount at Barnardo's stores
• Opportunity to purchase a health cash plan to claim towards dental, glasses, therapy etc
• Free access to round the clock employee assistance program for advice and support
• Access to Barnardo's Learning and Development offer

*T&C's apply based on contract

We are committed to being an inclusive employer and cultivating a culture where everyone can belong and thrive through inclusion and connectivity. We want our workforce to be reflective of the communities we work with, and for equality, diversity and inclusion to be embedded in everything we do. We are a Disability Confident Leader, are progressing our ambition to be an anti-racist organisation with Anti‑Racism Commitments and actions in place and have networks for colleagues who are disabled, LGBT+, Black and Minoritised Ethnic and Women. We particularly encourage applications from Black and Minoritised Ethnic and/or disabled candidates who are currently underrepresented in our workforce. For disabled applicants, we offer reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process.

• Reference number:23765
• Job Title:Children's Rights Advocate
• Location:Oakhill STC (Secure Training Centre)
• Contract type:Permanent
• Hours:33
• Salary:£28,687 - £32,786 FTE (£25,585.70 - £29,241.58 pro rata)
• Closing Date:18 October 2026
• Interview Date:22.10.26 (via Teams)