Waking Night Support Worker - Ealing, London

Look Ahead; Greater London; On-site; GBP 21,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading not-for-profit care provider in London is seeking a Waking Night Support Worker in Ealing. The role involves building trusting relationships with young people and providing support for independent living in a nurturing environment. Ideal candidates will have experience supporting young people or those facing mental health challenges. This position offers a salary of £21,000 per annum for a 30-hour work week and a range of benefits, including an employee assistance program and extensive training opportunities.

Benefits

Annual leave increasing up to 30 days

Free DBS

Exclusive discounts and cashback

Fully paid induction programme

Cycle to work scheme

Employee Assistance Programme

Online wellbeing resources

Generous pension scheme

Quarterly Staff Awards

Qualifications

• Experience supporting young people or those with mental health challenges.
• Ability to complete regular paperwork and organization skills.

Responsibilities

• Build supportive, trusting relationships with young people.
• Work proactively with the team to manage caseload.
• Conduct engaging key work sessions.
• Provide practical support for independent living.
• Assist in the management of risks with positive risk taking.
• Follow health and safety protocols.
• Engage in learning and development activities.

Skills

Advocacy for young people

Cultural awareness

Team collaboration

Mental health understanding

Flexible and open to feedback

Confident in IT systems

Education

NVQ Level 2 / 3 or equivalent

Job description

Job Details

Waking Night Support Worker - Ealing, London

We’re looking for a kind, compassionate and resilient Waking Night Support Worker to join our Young People’s service in Ealing. £21,000 per annum, working 30 hours per week.

Want to feel in control of your career? You’ll feel at home here. Helping you thrive in every way. That’s why we offer a wider range of benefits, award‑winning Learning & Development and a culture that welcomes all. These aren’t token gestures – we’ve thought long and hard about how best to support our team. After all, our people are doing something amazing: helping to transform lives every day.

Benefits

• Annual leave increasing up to 30 days with length of service
• Free DBS
• Exclusive discounts and cashback via Reward Gateway® and opportunity to buy a Blue Light Card
• Fully paid induction programme and further training
• ILM courses and Apprenticeship Programme
• Cycle to work scheme
• Employee Assistance Programme for 24‑7 confidential support
• Online wellbeing resources
• A generous pension – we will contribute up to 4% and life assurance cover up to £10, (T&Cs apply)
• Quarterly Staff Awards to reward & recognise our amazing staff’s commitment and contribution

All applicants must be legally eligible to work in the UK by the start of employment as Look Ahead is not able to offer sponsorship.

About Oaklands & St Kilda’s

Oaklands & St Kilda’s is made up of two newly refurbished six‑bedroom homes, located close to each other in Ealing, West London. We work with up to 12 young people at a time, providing a safe, supportive, and welcoming environment. Many of the young people joining us are moving on from hospital, stepping down from more intensive placements, or transitioning from Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services to Adult services. Our team delivers 24‑hour trauma‑informed and psychologically informed support.

What You’ll Do

• Building supportive, trusting relationships with young people and creating a positive atmosphere
• Working proactively with other members of the team to handle the service caseload and administrative responsibilities
• Conducting key work sessions as required, that are innovative and engaging in order to achieve Support Plan goals
• Co‑producing ongoing assessment and management of risks in collaboration with young people with an attitude of ‘positive risk taking’
• Providing support with daily living activities, including practical assistance to support young people to independent living e.g. budgeting, cooking, establishing a night time routine
• Supporting young people to maintain a healthy environment and where appropriate assisting them to clean their accommodation and maintain good personal hygiene
• Assisting in the recording and reporting of customer incidents
• Managing referrals, completing assessments and obtaining and maintaining all relevant paperwork
• Developing productive relationships with partner organisations to improve service outcomes
• Adhering to lone working protocols and maintaining high levels of awareness in relation to the health and safety of yourself and colleagues
• Involving young people in the design, development and delivery of the service
• Encouraging and enabling tenants to pay their rent and avoid personal debt
• Ensuring Look Ahead Health and Safety policies and local protocols are adhered to at all times e.g. fire risk assessments, fire alarm checks etc.
• Taking on shift leading responsibilities by coordinating and leading shifts in the absence of a manager
• Being responsible for the handover of key information between shifts
• Adhering to all other Look Ahead’s policies and procedures
• Engaging in learning and development activity to increase knowledge and skills
• Undertaking any other duties consistent with the grade and nature of the post as assigned by the Team Leader/Manager
• Undertake any other duties consistent with the grade and nature of the post as may be reasonably assigned
• This is not an exhaustive list of all the duties and responsibilities that may be required from time to time and is subject to change in accordance with the needs of Look Ahead

About You

• Ability to advocate for young people in different professional and community spaces
• Values working collaboratively with young people to ensure the service best meets their needs
• An understanding of peoples’ contexts and how this might be impacting them their lives and mental health
• Cultural awareness and respect for the many different ways a person might make sense of their experiences and distress
• We welcome applications from people with lived experience of some of the challenges that this service aims to support e.g. mental health difficulties
• Plans and encourages involvement in local activities
• Approachable and open behaviour
• Recognises the value of both 1:1 working with young people and the importance of working as part of a group or team
• Confident in the completion of regular paperwork and is well organised
• Flexible, open to feedback and self‑development
• Recognises the likelihood that the service will be a dynamic diverse environment and considers the impact of changes
• Confident in the use of IT systems such as SharePoint and Microsoft Office suite
• Is respectful, articulate and sensitive in style of communication
• Ability to cope positively with challenging and diverse behaviours

What You’ll Bring

Essential

• Up to NVQ Level 2 / 3 or equivalent or experience supporting young people or people experiencing mental health challenges

Desirable

• Experience working in complex mental health environments

About Us

Look Ahead is a leading, not‑for‑profit care and support provider in London and the South East. Our vision is to build better lives through social care and housing in local communities. As an organisation we deliver over services, providing support to thousands of customers each year. Our mission is to co‑design and deliver services that offer innovative social care solutions and support people to thrive. We work across mental health, homelessness and complex needs, young people and care leavers and learning disabilities so there are plenty of opportunities to grow and progress your career with us. We have a strong social purpose and we live and work by our values: We focus on Excellence and innovation. We are Caring and Compassionate. We are Inclusive and Trusted. We work in Partnership and are One‑Team. Look Ahead is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and adults at risk, and expects all employees, workers and volunteers to share this commitment. If your application for this role is unsuccessful, but we feel that you would be suitable for another role, we may contact you to discuss alternative opportunities. If this occurs you would not need to submit another application for the alternative role.

We reserve the right to close this advert early if we are able to appoint to the vacancy before the advertised closed date.

We are committed to diversity and inclusion at work and are accredited with Silver in the Inclusive Employers Standard. We are a proud member of the Employers Domestic Abuse Covenant and encourage applications from a diverse range of applicants of all backgrounds.