Triage and Information Officer

\"Family Action\"; England; Remote; GBP 10,000 - 13,000; Part time

Benefits offered by this job

25 days annual leave + bank holidays (

6% matched pension contributions

Flexible working arrangements

Enhanced paid sick leave and paid/fam­

Eye care and flu jab vouchers

Cycle to work scheme

Ongoing professional development

Job summary

Family Action in Dorset is seeking a Triage and Information Officer for the SENDIASS. The role is 15–18.5 hours weekly across 2–3 days, with one Friday required, and flexibility on other days.

The role is home-based with occasional travel in the Dorset area. Salary £25,176 FTE plus £480 home working allowance, pro-rata for part-time hours. One-year fixed-term contract with possible extension.

Qualifications

• Clear, helpful first-point contact and guidance
• Ability to triage urgency and refer to Case Workers
• Maintain confidentiality and impartiality
• Manage shared email, voicemail, and social media channels

Responsibilities

• Act as first/central contact via phone, email, text, social media, or in person.
• Make initial triage decisions on urgency and relevance for further input.
• Respond to information requests confidentially and promptly.
• Conduct feedback/evaluation with users and report trends for strategy.
• Oversee social media accounts and create analytics reports.

Skills

Communication

Triage decisions

Information signposting

Social media management

Education

IPSEA Level 1 Legal Training

Job description

ID: 1922 Triage and Information Officer Dorset SENDIASS

Hours: 15-18.5 hours per week across 2-3 days (one of which must be a Friday; with other days negotiable) to fit the service needs - (Part-time)

Salary: £25,176 FTE per annum plus £480 home working allowance – (Pro‑rata for part‑time hours – 15 hours-18.5 hours £10,206-£12,588 per annum plus pro‑rata HWA)

Location: Home‑based in the Dorset area, with a requirement for occasional travel

Contract type: One‑year fixed term from the start date in the first instance, with an opportunity to extend if budget allows

Family Action & the Role’s Impact:

At Family Action we support people through change, challenge or crisis. It’s what we’ve done for over 150 years. We protect children, support young people and adults and offer direct, practical help to families and communities.

We see first‑hand the power of family to shape lives, for better or worse, so we speak up for the importance of family in national and local policymaking, amplify family voices and represent the changing needs of families in the UK today.

As Dorset SENDIASS Triage and Information Officer, you will provide a high quality first point of contact to parents, children, young people, carers, and professionals who reside in Dorset and are contacting the statutory Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Information Advice and Support Service. The service provides confidential and impartial advice on the rights in the SEND process and other relevant legislation and SEND policy, supporting navigation through the SEND assessment process.

This role is to provide up to date and local information, make an initial triage judgement about the appropriateness and urgency of any requests for service and signpost to other services as appropriate, taking advice from the Project Manager as necessary.

The post holder will also lead on the external information and communication channels, including the shared email accounts, voicemail service, service websites and social media platforms.

There is a requirement for the post holder to undertake a minimum of Level 1 Legal Training (IPSEA), which comprises e‑study of up to 30 hours and face‑to‑face training for one day funded by the service within 3 months of being in post. The post holder will be expected to maintain confidentiality and impartiality at all times and may from time‑to‑time experience contact with families that could be upsetting and challenging.

Main Responsibilities:

• Act as a helpful, clear, and efficient first and central point of contact for the services by telephone, email, text, social media, service websites and in person. To assess their information and guidance needs and provide up‑to‑date information and guidance on services which meet those needs, signposting appropriately.
• To make initial triage decisions in relation to whether there is an urgency or relevance for further input and support from SENDIASS Case Workers, gaining advice from the Project Manager when appropriate.
• To respond to information requests by the public (children, young people, and adults), colleagues, professionals, and partners according to the service customer care Minimum Standards of Delivery, in a confidential, impartial and timely way.
• To undertake a programme of feedback and evaluation with children, young people, parents and carers and professionals who have used the service. To contact service users via a range of access channels and systematically record and report on trends and findings for strategic reporting.
• Under the direction of the Project Manager, to oversee social media accounts; to research and create content in line with organisational guidance; add and share relevant posts and review and respond to posts from the public and other professionals. To create reports of analytics and usage for strategic reports.

Main Requirements (for full details of responsibilities, please check the accompanying job description and person specification).

Appointments are subject to Family Action receiving a satisfactory disclosure from the Disclosure and Barring Service – Child and Adult Workforce, including Enhanced with Children’s Barred List.

We will offer you support and funding to undertake the IPSEA Legal training up to Level 1 to support your career development and progression. Level 2 IPSEA training may also be available for those demonstrating the necessary skills and knowledge during induction.

Benefits:

• an annual paid leave entitlement of 25 working days plus bank holidays (pro‑rata)
• up to 6% matched‑pension contributions
• flexible working arrangements and new starters have the right to make flexible working requests from day one of employment
• enhanced paid sick leave and paid family leave provisions
• eye care and winter flu jabs vouchers
• cycle to work scheme
• investing in your professional development with ongoing quality training and career development opportunities

We are forward looking, ambitious and committed to continuous improvement. We are a people focused, can‑do organisation, which strives for excellence in all we do and operates with mutual respect.

For any queries, or if you would like to discuss any aspect of the selection process or the potential for flexible working, please email Lucy Holliday, Project Manager Dorset SENDIASS [e-mail]

All appointments with Family Action are subject to satisfactory Safer Recruitment checks.

Our commitment to Equality, Diversity & Inclusion:

We are happy to consider any reasonable adjustments that candidates may need during the recruitment process and you will be asked whether you require any adjustments if shortlisted for interview. We also make reasonable adjustments on the job, where required.

We are committed to Equality, Diversity & Inclusion in all that we do and welcome applications from all sections of the community. Intersectionality is important to us and we particularly welcome applications from ethnically diverse communities, LGBTQIA+ candidates and disabled candidates because we are committed to increasing the representation of these groups at Family Action. We know that greater diversity will lead to even greater results for families and children and strive for our workforce to be truly representative of the diverse communities we support. We offer a guaranteed interview scheme for disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the role.

To help remove financial barriers to working with us, we will reimburse travel costs if you are invited to attend an interview in person.

*Ordinarily Family Action appoints new starters at the starting point of the salary scale (with subsequent annual pay progression), unless you have experience that would justify appointment further up the salary scale or there are any other exceptional reasons.