Leaving Care Personal Advisor

Hertfordshire County Council; Stevenage; On-site; GBP 32,000 - 42,000; Full time

Job summary

Hertfordshire County Council is recruiting Leaving Care Personal Advisors to support Care Leavers aged 18–25. The role covers assessment, planning and multi-agency coordination to ensure smooth transitions into adulthood and independent living.

You will work with partners to address housing, education and wellbeing needs, maintain caseloads, and monitor progress with regular reviews and reporting. Driving is required, and applicants should have right to work in the UK.

Qualifications

• Knowledge of child development, adolescence, social, emotional and mental health needs.
• Knowledge/experience of working with care leavers, young people and/or families.
• Knowledge of current legislation and guidance relating to safeguarding children and adults.
• Experience of multi-agency working with various statutory agencies.
• Ability to build trust, engage and safeguard young people and families; including those that may be parents.
• Ability to use structured assessment tools and plan interventions.
• Ability to communicate effectively with young people, their families, and other professionals.
• Effective skills in organisation, time management and managing a complex workload.
• Competent in using ICT packages relevant to the role to store and present information.
• Commitment to own continuous professional development and best practice.
• Hold a full driving licence, access to your own vehicle, and include business insurance when appointed.

Responsibilities

• Hold a case load of Care Leavers aged 18 to 25.
• Assess needs and develop clear pathway plans and risk assessments.
• Engage in multi-agency working and coordinate support across services.
• Support young people preparing to leave care and transition to independent living.
• Record data and produce reports as required within timescales.
• Keep up to date with legislation, guidance and policy affecting Care Leavers.

Skills

Child development

Adolescence knowledge

Mental health awareness

Multi-agency collaboration

Building trust

Communication skills

Organisation & time management

ICT proficiency

Driving licence

Job description

We have 4 exciting opportunities within the Care Leavers Team as Leaving Care Personal Advisors, to support young people transitioning from being Children Looked After to Care Leavers. Leaving Care Personal Advisors provide fundamental support, advice and guidance in a range of areas to ensure young people access a smooth transition into adulthood and to have the skills and knowledge to thrive throughout their future., As a Leaving Care Personal Advisor, you will work with young adults who are Care Leavers alongside a range of statutory and community services to ensure the best outcomes for those we work with. This includes;

• Working in line with statutory responsibilities set out in the Children (Leaving Care) Act 2000 and the guidance supporting the Children and Social Work Act 2017.
• Holding responsibility for a case load of Care Leavers from the age of 18 to 25.
• Assessing young people's needs and acting as lead professional, developing clear pathway plans and risk assessments, involving other agencies where appropriate.
• Engaging in effective multi agency working, developing collaborative relationships with agencies, and coordinating support i.e. mental health, substance use, homelessness.
• Engaging with and providing support for young people, including those with significant additional needs to identify and address barriers to personal development, learning and work, particularly during periods of transition.
• Providing direct support to young people preparing to leave care, in order to ensure a smooth and positive transition to independent living. This will include transporting young people to appointments, supporting with moving them and their belongings during transitions of accommodation and travelling inside and outside of Hertfordshire.
• Working with young people and their significant others, including family members/carers and others, to enable them to contribute to maximising the young person's potential.
• Working to agreed targets, monitoring the progress of young people on caseload through regular review, recording data on relevant management information systems to appropriate timescales and standards, producing reports and correspondence as required.
• Keeping up to date with relevant updates in legislation, guidance, policy and procedures in relation to Care Leavers and issues which impact on them i.e. housing, cost of living.

The duties and responsibilities listed above describe the post as it is at present. The post holder is expected to accept any reasonable alterations that may from time to time be necessary.

This role is open to secondments for eligible employees who work for HCC.

Additional information We are changing Hertfordshire County Council is undergoing Local Government Reorganisation (LGR). If you are employed by Hertfordshire County on 1 April 2028, it is expected that most roles will transfer to the newly-created unitary councils on existing terms and conditions under TUPE (Transfer of Undertakings - Protection of Employment) principles. LGR is one of the biggest changes we will face in a generation. It will reshape how we work and how services are organised and gives us a real opportunity to build something better. To find out more, visit Disability Confident We are proud to be a and guarantee an interview to anyone disclosing a disability whose application meets the minimum criteria for the post.

Safeguarding This role has been identified as requiring a Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) check.

Driving required

• Knowledge of child development, adolescence, social, emotional and mental health needs
• Knowledge/experience of working with care leavers, young people and/or families
• Knowledge of current legislation and guidance relating to safeguarding children and adults
• Experience of multi-agency working with various statutory agencies.
• Ability to build trust, engage and safeguard young people and families; including those that may be parents.
• Ability to use structured assessment tools and plan interventions
• Ability to communicate effectively (in both written and verbal forms) with young people, their families, and other professionals
• Effective skills in organisation, time management and in managing a complex workload
• Competent in using ICT packages relevant to the role to store and present information
• Commitment to own continuous professional development and best practice
• Hold a full driving licence, access to your own vehicle, and include business insurance when appointed.

Desirable:

• Knowledge of working with Care Leavers within a formal working environment.
• Understanding of transition to adulthood and of Child Looked After processes.

We welcome applications from candidates who currently reside in the UK with established proof of right to work documentation. We are not able to offer sponsorship at this time for this role.

You’ll need to have the ability to drive and/or travel around Hertfordshire, either using your own mode of transport or a company car to travel to other locations. English Fluency The ability to converse at ease with members of the public and provide advice in accurate spoken English is essential for the post (for those whose language is a sign language the provision of a sign language interpreter who speaks English to the necessary standard of fluency will be required).