Residential Waking Night Support Worker

Ambitious about Autism; Falmer; On-site; GBP 21,000 - 25,000; Full time

Job summary

Ambitious about Autism is seeking a Waking Night Residential Support Worker to ensure learners feel safe and supported during the night, staying awake and alert to respond to individual needs. The role involves maintaining a calm home environment, supporting personal care and health monitoring, and coordinating with other night staff.

You will need a calm, dependable, values-driven approach, with strong safeguarding, communication and written skills, plus emotional resilience and sound

Qualifications

• Calm demeanor and ability to stay composed through night shifts.
• Reliable, with a strong commitment to safeguarding.
• Clear and effective written and verbal communication.

Responsibilities

• Staying awake and vigilant to ensure learner safety and wellbeing.
• Carrying out regular checks of the home and responding to any concerns.
• Supporting learners with personal care and medical needs where required.
• Monitoring health needs in line with care plans.
• Completing accurate handovers and written records.
• Working collaboratively with night staff across residential homes.

Skills

Calm demeanor

Dependable

Values-driven

Communication skills

Written communication

Safeguarding

Emotional resilience

Judgement

Job description

At St John's College, we support autistic young people to develop confidence, independence and skills for adult life.

As a Waking Night Residential Support Worker, you will ensure our learners feel safe, secure and supported throughout the night. You will remain awake and alert, responding to individual needs and helping maintain a calm and structured home environment. This is a rewarding role where your vigilance, compassion and professionalism make a genuine difference.

Key responsibilities include:

• Staying awake and vigilant to ensure learner safety and wellbeing

• Carrying out regular checks of the home and responding to any concerns

• Supporting learners with personal care and medical needs where required

• Monitoring health needs in line with care plans

• Completing accurate handovers and written records

• Working collaboratively with night staff across residential homes

We are looking for someone who is calm, dependable and values-driven, able to work independently during the night while remaining connected to the wider team. You will need a strong commitment to safeguarding, good communication and written skills, emotional resilience and sound judgement, and a willingness to work flexibly.

Experience in care or education is helpful but not essential. We welcome applicants with transferable skills and the right attitude.

This role is not eligible for visa sponsorship, renewals or transfers. Applicants must ensure they have the appropriate right to work in the UK prior to applying.

Interviews will be scheduled on a rolling basis as suitable applications are received, therefore early application is strongly encouraged.

Ambitious about Autism is committed to fostering equity, diversity, and inclusion at every level of our organisation. We warmly welcome applications from all qualified candidates, valuing the diverse backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives they bring. We encourage applications from individuals regardless of race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origins, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital or civil partnership status, pregnancy or parental status, disability, or age.

Our recruitment process promotes equal opportunities, and we are committed to providing reasonable adjustments for candidates with disabilities or additional needs throughout the recruitment process. Please contact our Recruitment Team for accommodations. We recognise disability as a physical or mental impairment that significantly and long-term affects a person's ability to perform day-to-day activities, as defined by the UK Equality Act 2010. All applications will be considered solely on merit, aligned with our mission to support autistic children and young people.

Ambitious about Autism is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and successful candidates will be subject to an Enhanced DBS check. As part of our Safer Recruitment checks, an online search maybe carried out in line with Keeping Children Safe in Education.

The Safeguarding responsibilities of the post as per the job description and personal specification.
Whether the post is exempt from the rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and the amendment to the Exceptions Order 1975, 2013 and 2021. This means that when applying for certain jobs and activities certain spent convictions and cautions are 'protected', so they do not need to be disclosed to employers, and if they are disclosed, employers cannot take them into account. Further information about filtering offences can be found in the DBS Filter Guidance.

Documents

• Residential Waking Night Support Worker 2026 STJ (2).pdf (0.98 MB)