Residential Care Officer Level 1

Lincolnshire County Council; Boston; On-site; GBP 30,000 - 33,000; Full time

Job summary

A local authority in the UK is looking for a Children's Residential Carer to join their team at Haven Cottage in Boston. You will provide support to children with disabilities during overnight short breaks, ensuring their safety and well-being. The ideal candidates are child-focused and possess qualities such as kindness and a passion for welfare. Competitive salary and career development opportunities are offered, along with comprehensive training.

Benefits

Excellent local government pension scheme

Comprehensive benefits package

Career progression opportunities

High-quality induction and training

Qualifications

• No prior professional care experience required.
• Essential qualities include kindness, compassion, and passion for children's welfare.
• Ability to create a secure and nurturing environment.

Responsibilities

• Support children and young people during overnight short breaks.
• Provide personal care and follow detailed care plans.
• Ensure children's voices are heard and valued.

Skills

Child‑centred

Reflective

Dynamic

Caring and Playful Demeanour

Kindness and Compassion

Passion for welfare

Boundary Settings

Basic IT skills

Education

Willingness to obtain a QCF qualification in working with children

Job description

Are you passionate about making a meaningful difference in the lives of children with disabilities? At Haven Cottage, we’re looking for caring, energetic, and child‑focused individuals to join our dedicated team as a Children’s Residential Carer.

Due to recent changes in immigration law in the UK we are unable to offer skilled worker visa sponsorship for this role.

About the Role

As a Children’s Residential Carer at Haven Cottage you will support children and young people in experiencing overnight short breaks away from home.

Salary & Hours

Salary: £30,024 – £32,597 plus a sleeping‑in payment of £43.12 and mileage reimbursed at 45p per mile. Overtime is paid at time‑and‑a‑half.

Shift pattern: The home is open all year, including some bank holidays and at times Christmas and New Year. The rota covers 24 hours a day with a mix of early shifts, late shifts, night duties, and sleep‑ins. The rota is carefully planned to try and ensure a good work/personal life balance.

Our Home

Haven Cottage is a short break provision for children with disabilities located in Boston. We support children diagnosed with a wide range of disabilities to access independent experiences away from home in a safe, nurturing and child‑focused environment.

Our children’s needs are as individual as they are, and the care we provide reflects this. We support with all aspects of personal care, health care and behaviour, in line with very specific and detailed care plans and risk assessments.

Our Team

We are an experienced, child‑focused and established team of care workers who all take pride in the service we deliver. Our staff are encouraged and supported to develop their skills and interests to further enhance our home and the experiences we can offer our children and families.

We are passionate about celebrating our children and ensuring that we offer bespoke experiences that encourage and support them to learn and grow in a safe and secure environment.

Empowering children to have their voice heard and valued is central to how we deliver care and advocate for our children while working as part of a multi‑agency service provision.

About You

No prior professional care experience is required for this position. We offer comprehensive training. The qualities we seek include:

• Child‑centred: Recognising and celebrating individuality.
• Reflective: Able to see opportunities for new ways of thinking and working.
• Dynamic: Short breaks are a fast‑paced service delivery, with each day bringing new and exciting challenges.
• Caring and Playful Demeanour: Children are full of energy and love to explore and play.
• Kindness and Compassion: Essential for creating a secure, nurturing environment.
• Passion for welfare: An advocate for children’s holistic wellbeing.
• Boundary Settings: Establishing boundaries gently but firmly.
• Qualifications and Skills: Basic IT skills and knowledge / experience of the caring profession, along with a willingness to obtain a QCF qualification in working with children.

Our Offer

We offer a competitive salary with an excellent local government pension scheme, along with a comprehensive benefits package and career progression opportunities.

Benefits include high‑quality induction, training and professional development, trauma training, therapeutic support enabling children to feel safe and a strong leadership team to support you in your new role.

Next Steps

Applications close on 17th December. Interviews will take place w/c Monday 5th January.

For an open and informal discussion regarding this vacancy, please email [e-mail] or call 01522 555003.

We wish you the best of luck with your application!

Please be advised that this position may be subject to a criminal record check.

Please refer to our Job Information Pack for further details.

All candidates are advised to read the attached job information pack prior to making an application.

On occasion we receive significantly more applications than expected for some vacancies and under such circumstances we reserve the right to bring forward the closing date of the advertisement.

We therefore strongly advise you to apply for the role promptly to avoid disappointment should the closing date be brought forward.

We operate a talent pool scheme whereby candidates who are not successful on this occasion may be considered for a period of up to 3 months for equal positions.

Lincolnshire County Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.

Fluency Duty: In accordance with Part 7 of the Immigration Act 2016, the ability to converse at ease with customers and provide advice in accurate spoken English is essential for the post.