RECONNECT Pathway Lead

Forward Trust; Bedford; On-site; GBP 23,000 - 29,000; Full time

Job summary

Forward Trust in the United Kingdom is seeking a RECONNECT Pathway Lead for Cambridgeshire & Bedfordshire. You will develop and lead a comprehensive female pathway within the RECONNECT service, working with women in custody and in the community to ensure access to the right support.

You will visit clients in custody and community settings to assess needs and create personalised action plans, delivering trauma-informed, person-centred support and building strong external partnerships.

Qualifications

• Experience in trauma-informed, person-centred work with women.
• Ability to develop personalised action plans and coordinate support.
• Strong partnership-building with external agencies.
• Experience supervising or supporting a team.
• Willingness to travel to community and custody sites.

Responsibilities

• Lead development and delivery of a female pathway within RECONNECT.
• Develop strategies to improve access for women.
• Provide trauma-informed, safe interventions with female clients.
• Visit clients at HMP Peterborough and Yarl’s Wood to assess needs.
• Complete robust assessments ~12 weeks before release and create action plans.
• Coordinate referrals to ensure continuity of care pre- and post-release.
• Support needs across physical/mental health, housing, wellbeing.
• Ensure gender-specific support addressing menopause, pregnancy, sexual health.
• Build partnerships with custodial and community services.

Skills

Trauma-informed approach

Leadership experience

Experience with complex needs

Gender-specific support

Stakeholder partnerships

Independent worker

Vehicle ownership

Job description

RECONNECT Pathway Lead- Cambridgeshire & Bedfordshire

Location: Cambridgeshire & Bedfordshire

Salary: £26,000 per annum

About The Role

We are looking for an experienced, passionate and motivated Female Pathway Lead to join our RECONNECT service and help develop pathways that enable women leaving custody to access the right support at the right time. ensure that female clients have equal access to appropriate, safe and effective support, using a trauma-informed and person-centred approach.

You will work with female clients both in the community and within HMP Peterborough and Yarl’s Wood Immigration Centre, visiting clients to assess their needs for the RECONNECT service, develop personalised action plans and put appropriate support in place to ensure continuity of care.

RECONNECT supports people before and after release from prison, helping them access and sustain support around physical and mental health, wellbeing and wider social needs. This can include GP referrals, signposting, accompanying clients to appointments, meet-and-greet support at the prison gate, aftercare and connecting clients to the wider Forward community.

What you’ll be doing

• Lead the development and delivery of a comprehensive female pathway within the RECONNECT service.
• Develop strategies and programmes that improve access to RECONNECT for women and address the specific challenges they may face.
• Work directly with female clients in custody and the community, providing trauma-informed, safe and supportive interventions.
• Visit female clients at HMP Peterborough and Yarl’s Wood Immigration Centre to assess their suitability and needs for the RECONNECT service.
• Complete robust assessments approximately 12 weeks prior to release and develop personalised, client-centred action plans.
• Coordinate appropriate support and referrals to ensure continuity of care before and after release.
• Provide support around a range of needs, including physical health, mental health, general wellbeing, housing, healthcare and wider social needs.
• Ensure dedicated female workers provide gender‑specific support, including areas such as menopause, pregnancy and sexual health.
• Build and maintain strong partnerships with external agencies, custodial partners, community services and other key stakeholders.
• Develop and maintain clear referral pathways, including referrals from custodial partners, family members and self‑referrals.

What we’re looking for

• Passionate about supporting women and improving outcomes for women leaving custody.
• Experienced in working with people who may have complex needs and multiple disadvantages.
• Able to understand and respond to the unique needs and experiences of women, including issues relating to trauma, health, pregnancy, menopause and sexual health.
• Committed to working in a trauma‑informed, strengths‑based and person‑centred way.
• Experienced in developing and maintaining effective partnerships with external agencies and stakeholders.
• Confident in assessing individual needs and developing personalised support and action plans.
• Experienced in managing, supervising or supporting a team and able to provide strong leadership.
• Able to motivate and develop staff, volunteers and people with lived experience.
• Confident working across both custodial and community settings.
• Organised and able to manage competing priorities while maintaining a high standard of service delivery.
• Able to collect, analyse and report data and monitor performance against KPIs and contractual requirements.
• Knowledgeable about safeguarding, risk management and effective partnership working.
• A strong communicator who can build positive relationships with clients, colleagues and external agencies.
• Able to work independently while also contributing effectively as part of a wider team.
• Committed to equality, diversity and inclusion and ensuring women receive fair and appropriate access to support.
• Able to demonstrate values and behaviours aligned with the Forward Trust's mission and values.
• Able to drive and has access to their own vehicle – this is essential for the role.

Prison

All prison-based roles are subject to enhanced DBS checks and HMPPS security vetting. These checks can take up to 5 months to complete. Any offer of employment will be conditional upon the successful completion of both checks.

Please note if you have lived overseas within the last 5 years then checks may take longer.

Please note that we may close this vacancy early if we receive a high volume of suitable applications.

Please note that remote roles may require occasional travel for site visits, training and meetings.

This is an opportunity to make a genuine difference to women at a critical point in their lives. By working alongside female clients before and after release, you will help remove barriers to accessing healthcare, wellbeing support and community services, helping women to build stability and sustain positive change beyond custody.

The successful candidate will play a key role in developing, overseeing and implementing strategies and programmes that address the unique needs and challenges faced by women. You will help