Allied Support Workers - Te Kaipara Dargaville

New Zealand Government; Dargaville; On-site; NZD 68,000 - 76,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Training & development

Competitive remuneration

Employee benefits

Job summary

Oranga Tamariki is offering permanent Allied Support Worker positions at our Dargaville site, joining frontline social work teams to support tamariki, rangatahi and whānau. You will perform home visits, transport tamariki, and handle administration to enable social workers to focus on statutory duties.

We seek individuals with strong community ties, cultural awareness, and reliability. A recognised Social Services qualification is desirable, and a full driver’s licence is essential.

Qualifications

• Working in the community assisting or supporting people in need.
• Experience with Māori and/or Pasifika cultures.
• Experience handling emotional situations with empathy.
• Excellent verbal, written and interpersonal communication.
• Ability to work in collaborative relationships.

Responsibilities

• Provide support across a site on an on-demand basis.
• Assist social workers to enter case notes in CYRAS and other information systems.
• Safely transporting tamariki and rangatahi to appointments and school.
• Assist with Family Group Conferences setup and admin tasks.
• Support tamariki and rangatahi during placements and transitions.
• Arrange administrative tasks for tamariki in placement and/or programme transitions.
• Support tamariki at school and settling in after absences.
• Conduct supervised visits and write contact notes.
• Some weekends and after-hours work may be required.
• Foster cooperative working relations with colleagues and external partners.

Skills

Communication skills

Cultural awareness

Empathy

Collaboration

Relationship-building

Education

Social Services qualification (desirable)

Tools

CYRAS

Microsoft Office

Job description

Oranga Tamariki have exciting new opportunities available for those who are looking to change up and develop their career pathways, making a meaningful contribution to the wellbeing of tamariki, rangatahi and whānau. These positions have been established to provide consistent and reliable operational support to frontline Social Work teams and to respond to sustained service demand across sites. Unlike previously advertised fixed‑term roles, these permanent Allied Support Worker positions are intended to be a stable, ongoing part of Oranga Tamariki’s workforce, strengthening team capacity and continuity of support. For our Dargaville site, we welcome applications from people who have a strong connection to and understanding of the local community. We are looking for individuals who are passionate about working alongside tamariki, rangatahi, whānau, hapū, iwi, and community partners to help achieve positive outcomes. Local knowledge, cultural awareness, and the ability to build trusted relationships within the community will be highly valued in this role.

Mō te tūnga | About the role

Allied Support Workers work under the direction and oversight of qualified Social Workers and supervisors, contributing to positive outcomes for tamariki, rangatahi and whānau by enabling Social Workers to focus on statutory requirements and professional practice. The Allied Support Worker role is non-regulated and is not a Social Worker in training, or para-social worker. The position does not undertake social work activities and does not have a case load. These roles support Social Workers with home visits and other engagements, administration tasks and transporting tamariki and rangatahi.

Day‑to‑day responsibilities

• Providing support across a site on an on‑demand basis based on the day‑to‑day operating needs of the team.
• Assisting social workers to enter case notes and other information into the case management system CYRAS and other information systems.
• Safely transporting tamariki and rangatahi from one location to another such as appointments, school and sports.
• Helping social workers in the set up and administrative tasks of Family Group Conferences (FGC).
• Supporting and assisting social workers in the care of tamariki and rangatahi on occasions when out of school or waiting for placements.
• Making necessary administrative arrangements for tamariki in placement and/or programme transition.
• Supporting tamariki and rangatahi at school through settling in or returning after periods away.
• Conducting supervised access/visitations by driving clients, supervising contact and writing up contact notes.
• Some weekends and afterhours work is required.
• Fostering cooperative working relations with internal colleagues and external partners and stakeholders.

Ngā pūmanawatanga ōu | What you will bring

This is a high‑trust, safety‑critical children’s worker role, requiring sound judgement, emotional resilience, and a high level of reliability.

Experience:

• Working in the community assisting or supporting people in need.
• Working with Māori and/or Pasifika cultures.
• Experience in dealing with emotional situations and being empathic to people's challenges and stresses.
• Excellent verbal, written and interpersonal communication skills.
• Ability to work in collaborative peer and other stakeholder relationships.

Skills:

• Well- developed written and verbal communication skills and effective interpersonal skills.
• Able to maintain a calm professional demeanour in emotionally complex situations, with the ability to maintain performance under stress.
• Understanding and appreciation of cross-cultural practices in particular; knowledge of tikanga Māori, and Pacific peoples' culture.
• Ability to manage sensitive and confidential information in an appropriate manner.
• Ability to uphold the principles of Te tiriti ō Waitangi and demonstrate this in practice.
• Intermediate level of competence across the Microsoft Suite.

Qualifications/Licence:

• A recognised Social Services qualification is desirable.
• A clean, current full driver's licence is essential and a willingness to drive the Ministry's vehicles. (Historic convictions may be considered on a case‑by‑case basis).

Nōu te rourou | What's in it for you

This is your opportunity to apply your skills and experience to the wellbeing of tamariki and rangatahi.

• We offer a competitive remuneration package starting at $68,371 to $75,501 as well as significant training and professional development so that you can thrive and grow.

We welcome diversity and are committed to working in an inclusive and respectful way.

To see all the benefits of working for Oranga Tamariki, please visit https://mahi.orangatamariki.govt.nz/working-with-us/employee-benefits/