Specialist Support Worker - Care Leavers

London Borough of Sutton; London; On-site; GBP 37,000 - 44,000; Full time

Job summary

The London Borough of Sutton is seeking a Specialist Support Worker for its Care Leavers program. This full-time role involves helping young adults transition into independent living while ensuring their safety and providing essential support services. The position requires experience with vulnerable youths and an understanding of related legislative frameworks.

Benefits

Generous annual leave entitlement

Local Government Pension Scheme

Comprehensive learning and development programme

Interest free season ticket loans

Confidential wellbeing and counselling support

Qualifications

• Experience of working with vulnerable young people.
• Knowledge of statutory requirements and relevant legislation.
• Culturally sensitive approach.

Responsibilities

• Support care leavers to transition into adulthood.
• Provide safeguarding and practical support.
• Complete pathway plans with young people.

Skills

Communication

Report writing

Engagement with stakeholders

Education

Experience working with vulnerable young people

Job description

Specialist Support Worker - Care Leavers

Employer Sutton Council

Location(s) Sutton

Contract Type Fixed Term

Length of Employment / Contract End Date 1 year

Working Hours Full Time

Grade 7

36

Salary Range £37,068 - £43,299 (£45,510 unconsolidated maximum)

Salary Basis Per annum

Leave Entitlement 28 days

Application Deadline

15/06/2025, 23:55

About the Borough

In Sutton, there is much for us to be proud of both as a council and as a borough. This includes high levels of resident satisfaction, the quality of our services, our success in addressing our financial challenges to date, the way that we involve and engage with residents on key issues facing the borough, and the enthusiastic and motivated staff that we employ.

Looking ahead, there are plans for the delivery of new homes and new schools and the London Cancer Hub is being developed, while the Council is also seen as a driving force within the South London Partnership of five outer south west London boroughs focused on strategic growth, regeneration and investment.

All of this demonstrates a good track record and an authority that is ambitious and set to deliver more improvements for the borough. We've set out our vision for the future of Sutton in our corporate plan - Ambitious for Sutton. This strategic plan will shape the outcomes we achieve, the services we provide, and the impact we have on residents, to make Sutton a great place to live, work and raise a family.

Situated in Zone 5, Sutton is less than 30 minutes by train from central London, and south and south west London are easily accessible by public transport. There are 10 train stations which serve key neighbourhoods within the borough providing direct connections to London Victoria, London Bridge, London Blackfriars and St Pancras International. Sutton also has direct rail connections with Epsom, Dorking, Guildford and Horsham, as well as Wimbledon for an interchange with the London Underground and West Croydon for the London Overground. There’s also an extensive road network which provides close and easy access to the M25 and M23.

About the Role and our Ideal Candidate

About Us

Sutton’s Children Looked After and Leaving Care Service progresses children in care into independence whilst keeping them safe and providing guidance and skills to navigate adulthood. A settled team with a positive culture located at The Quad which is to be used as pioneering hub around contextual safeguarding and innovative practice around work with adolescents. We have a fully supportive and restorative approach to both staff and families we work with. The Team are also leading innovative projects with fantastic engagement with young people who inform the service and who work closely with local organisations and businesses.

Following Ofsted's inspection of Sutton's Children's Service outcomes for children in care and care leavers was graded 'good'.

They found that "Care leavers receive positive and timely practical help and guidance from their easy-to-reach PAs, who are based in The Quad. A variety of support, including advice on how to navigate the benefits systems, is available."

This is supported by ofsted rated 'outstanding' leadership.

"Stability of leadership and strong aspirations to ‘get it right’ are key factors in their success. A strong culture of continuous learning and support to staff is bringing greater consistency of management oversight. Practitioners’ effective and authoritative practice leads to better outcomes for the majority of children. Most vulnerable children receive good help and effective care and protection that are making a difference to their lives."

About You

We welcome applications from individuals with good report writing and communication skills and the ability to engage with a variety of service users and stakeholders at all levels. Experience of working with vulnerable young people and knowledge of statutory requirements, The Children’s Act, Children Leaving Care Act and the Children in Social Care Act. Candidates will need to be culturally sensitive, working with people from all walks of life including those who have English as a second language and unaccompanied asylum seeking young people. This role also requires the need to pick up on safeguarding concerns and understanding the limits of confidentiality, knowledge of development of young people, working in a restorative and trauma informed way. A driving Licence is desirable for this role.

About Us As a Specialist Support Worker (Personal Advisor) within the Children Looked After and Leaving Care Team you will be responsible for supporting care leavers (aged 18+) and young people to transition into adulthood to be independent, safe and contributing members of society. Responding to safeguarding concerns, providing practical support like housing and educational support, signposting to other services such as mental health services, budgeting and health. As well as providing a listening ear to young people there are also statutory requirements such as completing pathway plans with young people, smart planning and needs assessments.

Our Offer To You

Apps.

Employees have access to a wide range of benefits, some of which include:

• Generous annual leave entitlement plus bank holidays (pro-rata if part-time working hours apply)
• Flexi-time (Please note, this applies to roles at grades 1-9 only)
• Comprehensive learning and development programme
• Local and national discounts for shopping, eating out and leisure activities
• Interest free season ticket loans
• Local Government Pension Scheme
• Car parking scheme
• Bicycle loan facilities and cycle to work scheme
• Zip car scheme
• Free eye tests and contribution towards glasses
• Confidential wellbeing and counselling support
• Subsidised gym membership

Application Process

Please apply online outlining what skills, abilities and experience you can bring which makes you an ideal candidate for this role. Please ensure you refer to the requirements outlined in the job profile when completing your application.

To support our diversity agenda and reduce the risk of bias in our recruitment activities, our short listing process completely anonymises personal information that can identify job applicants e.g. name, title etc. Our hiring managers review and short list applications based on the information provided as part of your application as to how well you meet the requirements and criteria for the role, as outlined in the job profile.

The closing date is given as a guide. We reserve the right to close this vacancy once a sufficient number of applications has been received. Therefore, it is strongly advised that you complete and submit your application as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.

Additional Information

We pride ourselves on being a diverse, inclusive and welcoming Borough and we aim to create a workforce which reflects the community we serve - the key highlights from our recent Equalities Workforce Report can be seenhere. We are respectful of difference and realise the positive value of diversity in our workforce. We welcome and encourage job applications from people of all backgrounds and particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic candidates and disabled candidates, as these groups are currently under-represented in our workforce. As part of our Disability Confident Committed status, we guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum/essential criteria for the role.

We offer a range of family friendly, inclusive employment policies, flexible working arrangements, staff engagement forums, and inclusive staff networks who help drive our diversity agenda.

The UK has introduced a new points-based immigration system affecting EU and Non-EU workers and sponsorship requirements. We advise checking theGOV.UK website for right to work guidance.