Youth Justice Worker

Ministry of Justice; Harrogate; On-site; GBP 33,000 - 39,000; Full time

Job summary

A government department is looking for a Youth Justice Worker in Harrogate to support children and young people in custody. This role includes ensuring their safety while providing daily support, managing behaviors, and facilitating positive change. Applicants should possess strong communication and decision-making skills, and no formal qualifications are required. Comprehensive training will be provided, with career progression opportunities in this vital area of youth justice. Competitive salary and benefits included.

Benefits

25 days annual holiday

Civil Service pension with employer contributions

cycle to work scheme

Qualifications

• Demonstrate passion for supporting children, young people, and families.
• Skilled in identifying and assessing the complex needs of children and young people.
• Collaborate with young people and their families to agree on interventions.

Responsibilities

• Ensure the security and safety of children and young people in custody.
• Provide supervision and support in the custodial setting.
• Facilitate safe movement and manage behavioral issues.

Skills

Strong communication and influencing skills

Commitment to high standards of care and service

Effective decision-making abilities

Empathy and understanding

Job description

Overview

All staff have a responsibility to safeguard and promote the welfare of children. The post holder must undertake the appropriate level of training and is responsible for ensuring that they understand and work within the safeguarding policies of the organisation. This role is not eligible for new Skilled Worker visas in accordance with the current immigration rules. From 22 July 2025, the Government introduced changes to the Skilled Worker visa route. The department cannot consider sponsoring you for this role unless you have held a Skilled Worker visa prior to the 22 July 2025 changes. If you have held a Skilled Worker visa continuously, please raise this during your vetting checks and eligibility will be assessed in accordance with the immigration rules and transitional provisions in place. If you are applying for this role and you have not held a Skilled Worker visa prior to the 22 July 2025 changes, you will need to consider your options for obtaining and/or maintaining your right to work in the UK in light of these changes. Successful applicants must ensure they have and maintain the legal right to live and work in the Civil Service and in the United Kingdom. The Department will continue to comply with UK Immigration Rules applied in the UK and Civil Service. You can read more about Skilled Worker visas and the eligibility criteria here.

Someone like you: The Youth Custody Service is transforming its workforce, and we invite you to be part of this journey. The youth justice worker role is similar to that of a prison officer but specifically focused on supporting children and young people in custody. This role is vital in reshaping how children and young people are cared for in custody. In this role you will be responsible for ensuring the security and safety of children and young people while providing day-to-day support in a custodial setting. Comprehensive training and development will equip you with the knowledge to understand the diverse backgrounds and individual circumstances of those in youth custody, and how your responses in complex or dynamic situations can help these individuals build better futures. We are seeking individuals with a special ability to support and guide vulnerable children and young people. You will need a DBS check.

Role and responsibilities

This extraordinary job involves the practical side of life for children in custody. This includes, but is not limited to, interventions when required, overseeing and facilitating safe movement around the site, and providing supervision to ensure safety. You will be working with children and young people who may have committed serious offenses, come from challenging backgrounds, and/or have mental health needs. These young individuals may test boundaries, but they also have significant potential for positive change. You will play a significant part in providing them with opportunities to better their future.

Once we identify a vacancy for you, we will invite you to complete a medical and fitness test. This will cover an eyesight test, hearing test and basic health screening, including a blood pressure check. Please note we are not able to facilitate medical and fitness assessments outside of the UK. Applicants will be required to attend a UK based medical and fitness assessment centre to progress their application. Find out more about the medical assessment and fitness test on the application information centre.

Training and career progression

Working within youth custody, you'll have a clear progression pathway. Following successful completion of your 12-month probationary period, you will be offered the opportunity to undertake a Level 4 Qualification focussed on working with children and young people in custody. Full details regarding this course will be made available prior to the time of enrolment. Once you have successfully completed your qualification you have the opportunity to progress to a band 4 Youth Justice Worker Specialist role. Ongoing training and development for specialist skills such as child protection and safeguarding will be provided.

Provisions and diversity

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy.

Reasonable Adjustment and Veterans initiatives

Reasonable Adjustment Support: As a Disability Confident employer, the MoJ is committed to ensuring that everyone can demonstrate their skills, talent, and abilities. Offering reasonable adjustment support to candidates when they apply for one of our jobs is just one way, we do this. Before completing online tests or attending an online assessment centre, it is essential to arrange reasonable adjustment support. Due to practical and logistical constraints, our assessors cannot accommodate requests on the day of the assessment centre. Therefore, we kindly request that you let us know in plenty of time if adjustments are required. This will help ensure the right support is in place for you when you need it.

Veterans: The "Making the Civil Service a Great Place to work for veterans" initiative includes a guaranteed interview scheme to those who meet the minimum criteria to provide eligible former members of the Armed Forces with opportunities to secure rewarding jobs. Allowing veterans to continue to serve their country, and to bring highly skilled individuals with a broad range of experience into the Civil Service in an environment, which recognises and values your previous service in the Armed Forces. For further details about the initiative and eligibility requirements visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/making-the-civil-service-a-great-place-to-work-for-veterans

Redeployment

Redeployment Interview Scheme: Civil Service departments are expected to explore redeployment opportunities before making an individual redundant. The MoJ are committed, as part of the Redeployment Interview Scheme, to providing opportunities to those who are \'at risk of redundancy\'. MoJ are able to offer an interview to eligible candidates who meet the minimum selection criteria, except in a limited number of campaigns. Candidate's will not be eligible for the Redeployment Interview Scheme if they are applying on promotion.

What's it really like to work as a prison officer?

Our interactive online activity will give you an insight into some of the situations prison officers may experience day-to-day in their work. This is to help you decide whether the prison officer role is right for you, and your responses in the activity will not form part of your application.

Qualifications and eligibility

No formal qualifications are required to become a youth justice worker; personal qualities are what matter most. You should demonstrate:

• Strong communication and influencing skills
• Commitment to high standards of care and service
• Effective decision-making abilities
• Empathy and understanding

As a practitioner, you will work with children, young people, and their families or carers to help achieve meaningful and lasting changes in their lives. You will:

• Show a passion for supporting children, young people, and families
• be skilled in identifying and assessing the complex needs of the children and young people you work with
• collaborate with young people, their families, or carers to agree on interventions or referrals that support their needs
• handle interventions when necessary, including de-escalating situations, managing behavioural issues, and applying conflict resolution techniques
• approach your work with respectful curiosity, balancing challenge and support to help young people reach their potential and stay safe
• work closely with other professionals and organisations to collectively improve outcomes

Each child's journey is unique, and you will need to exercise sound judgment, using evidence-based approaches to inform your practice. You will continuously evaluate the effectiveness of your actions and methods. Regular supervision with an experienced practitioner will help you reflect on and improve your practice. Following successful completion of your 12-month probationary period you will also be offered the opportunity to undertake a Level 4 Qualification focussed on working with children and young people in custody, the high standard of your work will be making a genuine difference to the lives of those you support.

• be at least 18 years old at the point you commence employment
• meet the Civil Service Nationality requirements (see nationality requirements section below)
• pass a medical and fitness assessment as part of the application process as this is a physically active job
• meet the required eyesight standard in both eyes (both with and without corrective lenses)
• For safety reasons, everyone training to be a youth justice worker needs a suitable standard of hearing (without the use of hearing aids)
• Whilst tattoos are permitted, including those that are visible, they must not be deemed as offensive, discriminatory, violent, or intimidating in any way. Facial tattoos are generally not acceptable, except where this is for cultural, religious, or medical reasons.

Travel to work and transport

Travel to Work: Some establishments are situated in rural locations with limited public transport options; therefore, a driving licence and own transport is beneficial but is not an essential requirement of the role (unless specified). Please note that shift start, and finish times are fixed, and it is your responsibility to get to and from your place of work on time for the start of your shift. Please carefully consider the location of this vacancy and your transport options before applying.

Your natural strengths are assessed to find out what motivates and energises you. We will also assess your numerical, written English and spoken English abilities. The jobholder must be able to fulfil all spoken aspects of the role with confidence in English or (when specified in Wales) Welsh.

Nationality and pay

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nationality-rules
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements. Successful applicants must ensure they have and maintain the legal right to live and work in the Civil Service and in the United Kingdom.

• Pay: The initial training is 37 hours a week. After training, you can choose to work 37, 39 or 41 hours a week. Your annual salary will reflect your weekly hours.
• 37 hours a week = £33,746 a year
• 39 hours a week = £35,875 a year
• 41 hours a week = £38,003 a year

All salary figures quoted include any additional allowances that are applicable to the role/location. Young Offender Institutions operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This means you will have to cover various shift patterns that will include evenings, some nights, weekends and public holidays (these days are added to your holiday allowance). The standard working week of a youth justice worker is based on a 39 hours per week shift pattern. You may also have opportunities to work additional paid hours.

• 25 days' annual holiday (rising to 30 days after 10 years' service)
• paid time off for public holidays and 1 extra privilege day
• Civil Service pension with employer contributions of 28.97%
• cycle to work scheme, travel loans and other benefits

Read more about youth justice worker benefits.

Assessment process

During the recruitment process you will be assessed on the behaviours, strengths and abilities you need to become an effective youth justice worker. These include:

• communicating and influencing
• managing a quality service
• making effective decisions
• caring