Family Support Practitioner

Action for Children; Banbridge; On-site; GBP 23,000 - 29,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid leave (7+ weeks)

Well-being day

Cycle to work

Professional training

Parental leave flexibility

Pension up to 7%

Life assurance

Blue Light Card discounts

Job summary

Action for Children in Banbridge, County Down, Northern Ireland seeks a Family Support Practitioner to provide respite and one-to-one support to young carers and their families. You will offer guidance, signpost to agencies, and advocate where needed, while working as part of a team to plan activities that meet each young person’s needs.

The role emphasizes safeguarding, detailed care assessments, building trust with families, and collaboration with local services.

Qualifications

• Diploma in Health and Social Care Level 3 or above or equivalent/related qualification.
• Experience of direct work/engagement with children and families.
• Good report writing skills.
• Good working knowledge of safeguarding.
• Excellent communication skills and IT skills including Microsoft Office.
• Registration or willingness to register with NISCC.
• Driving licence and access to a car with the ability to travel across a large rural catchment.

Responsibilities

• Adhere to safeguarding of all children in the service.
• Carry out detailed assessment of the caring role to tailor support for young carers.
• Build trusting relationships with young people and families; may involve home/site visits.
• Attend meetings and collaborate with statutory and voluntary agencies.
• Be aware of issues affecting young people and attend required training.
• Present information to professional groups about young carers and their impact.
• Manage an active caseload and maintain records to required standards.

Skills

Excellent communication

Report writing

Safeguarding

IT skills

Driving licence

Education

Diploma in Health and Social Care

Tools

MS Office

Job description

Family Support Practitioner.

Salary:£26,006.84 per annum.

Location:Based in our office in Banbridge, County Down, Northern Ireland.

Contract/Hours:Permanent – 37 hours per week (with occasional evenings or weekend work required).

Benefits:

• Over 7 weeks inclusive paid leave and the option to buy or sell leave.
• 1 well-being day per year.
• Cycle to work scheme.
• Excellent training and the opportunity to undertake professional training for some roles.
• Flexible maternity, paternity and adoption packages.
• Up to 7% employer pension contribution and life assurance cover.
• Blue Light Card eligibility with discounts at 15,000 national retailers.

Vulnerable children in the UK need your help

Wherever you work in the Action for Children family, you'll be helping to change the lives of the most vulnerable children in the UK.

Last year, we helped more than 687,000 children and families across the UK. From direct work in communities to national campaigning, we are focused on making sure every child has a safe and happy childhood, and the foundations they need to thrive.

Why Action for Children?

Working here is more than a job. Everyone in the Action for Children family is passionate about protecting and supporting children. It's the sense of purpose that drives us every single day. Because we know that, when we work together, we can make a huge difference to bring lasting improvements to vulnerable children's lives.

A bit about the role

A Family Support Practitioners role will be to primarily offer support to young carers through providing respite activities and offering one to one support in relation to their caring role.

They will help and advise Young Carers and their families in signposting to other appropriate agencies and support the young carer where they can. This may include advocating on their behalf, attending meetings and presenting information to professionals to highlight the role of the young carer and how it can impact them.

Along with this, being able to work as part of a team in planning and organising activities and considering the needs of the young person is paramount.

How you'll help to create brighter futures

Some key responsibilities of the Family Support Practitioner role are.

• Adhering to the Risk and safety of all children that come into our service and be aware of the safeguarding of each young person.
• Carry out a detailed assessment of the caring role to provide tailored support to meet the needs of young carers involved with the service.
• Building trusting relationships with young people and families, which may include home or site visits.
• Attend internal and external meetings as directed by your line manager and collaborate and work in partnership with all statutory and voluntary agencies
• Be aware of the general issues and concerns that affect young people currently and attend training as required.
• Being able to present information and facts regarding young carers to varied professional groups is also a part of the Family Support Practitioner role.
• Managing an active caseload and ensuring high quality support across all allocated case including maintaining records to the standard as required by the organisation.

Let's talk about you

Ideally you will have:

• Diploma in Health and Social Care Level 3 or above or equivalent/related health, counselling, or social care qualification.
• Experience of direct work/engagement with children and families.
• Good report writing skills.
• Good working knowledge of safeguarding.
• Excellent communication skills.
• Excellent IT skills including use of Microsoft (Outlook, Excel, Word, and PowerPoint).
• Registration or the willingness to register with NISCC.
• Driving licence and access to a car. The job requires the ability to travel across a large rural catchmentaccording to the needs of the job.

Closing Date: Wednesday 7th October 2026.

Please note: Interviews are planned to be held week commencing 12th October 2026 face to face in Belfast.

Please note we are unable to offer visa sponsorship for thisrole.

Our Commitment to Equity, Inclusion and Anti-Racism

At Action for Children, we are committed to creating a workplace where everyone feels respected, valued, and able to thrive. We know that racism and discrimination create barriers, and we are taking active steps to challenge these inequalities in our organisation and in the communities we serve.

We strongly welcome applications from people who are Black, Asian, or from other racialised and ethnically marginalised communities, as well as disabled people, who are currently under-represented in our workforce. We are committed to removing barriers in our recruitment processes and ensuring fair access to opportunities.

We also encourage applications from men, who are under-represented in our Children’s Services roles. We recognise that people hold multiple identities, and we value the richness this brings to our team.

Don't meet every single requirement?

If you're excited about this role but your experience doesn't align perfectly with the job description, we'd love you to apply anyway. You might just be the perfect person for this role, or another role within the Action for Children family.

Want to know more about Action for Children?

Find us on LinkedIn,FacebookorYouTubeto get to know us better.

See below for further information about working with us:

Action for Children Employee Benefits

AfC Commitment Statement

Action for Children Northern Ireland Booklet

Make a Difference - A Career in Residential Services