Youth Worker – Space4U

No Limits; Southampton; Hybrid; GBP 26,000 - 28,000; Part time

Benefits offered by this job

36 days annual leave

Pension scheme

Life assurance scheme

Hybrid and flexible working

Comprehensive induction and training

Job summary

No Limits is seeking a Youth Worker for Space4U on the Isle of Wight. You will support children and young people aged 11–17 (up to 25 with SEND) in self-defined crisis, providing in-person and drop-in support across Newport, Sandown and community settings.

The role includes collaboration with ED/Social Prescribing Youth Workers and a strong safeguarding focus. Initial training in Southampton is provided, with a commitment to DEI and a diverse team.

Qualifications

• Qualified in youth work, social work, mental health or equivalent experience.
• Experience providing mental, emotional, health and wellbeing support in crisis.
• Excellent communication and organisational skills.
• Ability to travel between Newport, Sandown, and community locations.
• Commitment to safeguarding of children and young people.

Responsibilities

• Facilitate youth work in-person and virtually with a mental health focus.
• Deliver open access drop-ins and outreach to 11–17 year olds.
• Provide information and advice to parents, carers, and partners.
• Respond to crises with safeguarding and aim to reduce hospital attendance.
• Coordinate with ED and Social Prescribing Youth Workers for post-crisis support.
• Address wider issues via YIACS model (relationships, health behaviours, attendance, attainment).

Skills

Youth work experience

Communication

Organisational skills

Safeguarding knowledge

Travel ability

Relationship building

Job description

Role Terms

Salary: Band C - £26,167 to £28,031 per annum (Full Time Equivalent, pro-rata for part-time). The starting pay rate is £13.56 per hour.

Hours: 10 hours per week over Monday and Tuesday evenings (15:00 - 20:00)

Role type: Permanent

Place of work: Barnardo’s Family Hubs, Newport (Monday) / Sandown (Tuesday), and occasionally within the community. Initial mandatory training held in Southampton.

Essential Driver?: No, but must be able to travel to locations easily.

Closing Date: 9 am on Thursday 15th October 2026

Interview Date: Week commencing Monday 19th October 2026

Our Charity

No Limits is the leading youth services charity in Southampton, supporting children and young people in the city and across Hampshire.

At No Limits, it is important our staff and volunteers reflect, represent, and have experience of the challenges faced by the children and young people we support. We are proud of and appreciate our many staff and volunteers who use their own lived experience to support the children and young people they work with.

With this in mind, we are committed to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in all aspects of our work and organisational culture – and when recruiting, it’s important to us that we continue diversifying our staff and volunteer teams, with children and young people at the centre of everything we do. You can learn more about our DEI approach here.

When we talk about talent, we value the transferrable skills and experiences you can bring to No Limits, whether through work (in the same or a different sector), volunteering, or personal experiences. To make sure we get the best talent on our team, we are open to and actively encourage applications from all backgrounds and sections of the community, including diverse ethnic backgrounds, LGBTQIA+, disabled, and neurodiverse individuals.

Your Role

As a Youth Worker within the Space4U Team, you will play a crucial role in supporting children and young people aged 11 to 17 years (up to 25 with SEND needs) on The Isle of Wight who present in a self-defined crisis and need access to out-of-hours emotional and practical support. The children and young people accessing Space4U support present to the service when they feel their crisis has become unmanageable, and interventions are to support them to reduce the crisis in their life and the need for hospital attendance.

You will be providing in-person support, through 1-2-1 appointments and open access drop-in as part of a team of 3 staff. There will also be occasional promotional and preventative work in educational settings and community locations.

We are looking for someone who is committed to young people, reliable, organised, flexible, able to use their initiative and work within policies and procedures.

Your key responsibilities will include:

• To facilitate the running of quality youth work through physical and virtual spaces with a mental health and wellbeing focus
• Working across a range of youth work styles including open access drop-in sessions, outreach workand working with children and young people who have recently visited local emergency departments/walk in clinics
• To provide information and advice to parents and carers, partner agencies and community services
• Respond to young people presenting in a self-defined crisis, providing practical support and prompt safeguarding, with the aim of reducing the need for hospital attendance
• Work closely with our Emergency Department and Social Prescribing Youth Workers to coordinate ongoing support in the community after being supported by them in the ED
• Through a Youth, Information, Advice and Counselling Services (YIACS) model, address the wider practical and social issues that may be affecting a child or young person's mental health, such as relationships, health behaviours, sexual health, attendance, and attainment in education.

Please see thejobdescription for further details about the responsibilities of the role.

We are committed to making a difference in the lives of the children and young people we work with, and as such, you must show a willingness to demonstrate commitment to the values and behaviours which flow from the No Limits ethos. Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people is paramount.

We particularly welcome applicants from diverse backgrounds and those who have had experiences similar to the young people we aim to support. We are committed to creating a diverse environment where people can be their authentic selves, where their experiences and opinions are valued, and we are all open to learning from each other.

As part of our team, you’ll receive a comprehensive induction and access to learning and development opportunities relevant to your role, supporting your ongoing growth.

You’ll have the essentials of:

• Relevant qualification, or equivalent experience, in youth work, social work, mental health or similar
• Experience of providing mental, emotional, health and wellbeing support, information and advice to individuals in a self-defined crisis
• Knowledge of mental health issues and support, including the evidence base for intervention, for example: suicidal ideation, self-harm, eating disorders, depression, substance use, anxieties, phobias, neurodiversity etc.
• Knowledge and experience of developing and maintain contacts / positive relationships with external agencies and organisations
• Excellent communication, organisational and time management skills, with the ability to work under pressure
• Able to build trusting relationships with children and young people, enabling them to develop new skills, make their own informed choices and support them to achieve their goals

Please let us know if we can support you with any reasonable adjustments at any point prior to, during or after the selection process, such as access arrangements, flexible working, or a suitable place to pray.

Our Benefits

We are committed to being a great place to work, where people achieve and feel valued. In our People Survey, 98% of staff and 100% of volunteers said they were proud to tell people they work or volunteer for No Limits. We’re proud to offer some great benefits, on top of being able to make a meaningful contribution to the lives of local children and young people:

• 36 days annual leave (including public holidays)
• Two additional wellbeing days per year – Supporting you to take additional time off for your wellbeing or development.
• Pension scheme – Supporting your future by matching your additional pension contributions up to 2%.
• Life assurance scheme – Giving you peace of mind with 2x annual salary cover for pension members.
• Hybrid and flexible working – Giving the flexibility to work in the best way for your role.
• Comprehensive induction and training offer – Including our online learning management system with hundreds of opportunities to support your development.
• Employee Assistance Programme – Providing you with counselling, financial, personal support and health and wellbeing services.

Find out more about our benefits here

Interested? We’d love to hear from you!

We’d be happy to have an informal discussion and answer any immediate questions you might have. If you’d like an initial discussion please contact Charlotte Tommans-Porter, our Mental Health & Crisis Support Operations Manager on [e-mail] , or Lucy Wattley, our Safe Havens Assistant Operations Manager, on [e-mail].

In the ‘Your Supporting Statement’ section of the application form, please include how your knowledge, skills and experience meet the ‘About you – knowledge, skills and experience’ section of the role description: link to JD

Please note that as we follow safer recruitment guidelines, we do not accept CVs, only completed applications.