Fostering Advisor
JOB DESCRIPTION
Organisation:London Borough of Waltham Forest
Salary: £42,840-£46,041
Contract Type: Full-time/Fixed Term Secondment (15 Months)
Working hours per week: 36
Application Deadline: Tues 27th February 2024
Proposed Interview Date(s): Week of 4th March 2024
Reference:1047
About Us:
In Spring 2024, a new fostering recruitment service will open, leading on the recruitment of foster carers on behalf of six Local Authorities across east London. This exciting, fast paced programme of work is part of a DfE funded fostering recruitment and retention programme and will be run as a pilot project.
Our vision is to have enough skilled and nurturing foster carers providing loving and stable homes to meet the needs of all children in our area. We're looking for two dynamic, inspiring Fostering Recruitment Advisors to help make that vision a reality. You'll raise awareness of fostering across the local community, helping to generate and nurture fostering enquiries. As the first point of contact for people considering fostering, you'll be responsible for the initial stages of foster carer recruitment and will keep in close contact with applicants throughout their journey to becoming a foster carer. You'll provide friendly, knowledgeable information, advice and guidance, helping potential applicants navigate the fostering application process.
You do not need experience in fostering or recruiting foster carers, but you do need a passion for helping the lives of children and young people. Your work will be central in helping to increase the number of fostering households across the region.
About the role:
Are you committed to improving the lives of children and young people in care? Do you understand how transformative a safe and nurturing foster home can be? If so, then we have the role for you!
Engage, by telephone, face to face and digitally with prospective fostering households, responding to queries and providing information and insight to enable the prospective carers to complete an initial enquiry.
Provide 'check in' support throughout the fostering application process.
Work closely with Fostering Teams across northeast London to make recommendations for action and to ensure enquiries are follow up in a timely manner following handover.
Work with business support, business intelligence, fostering services and communications and marketing officers to support planning and implementing recruitment strategies.
Develop relationships with stakeholders so that recruitment activities ensure suitable applicants are recommended to the relevant Local Authority Fostering Teams.
Populate, manage and maintain a database of foster carer applicants.
Maintain knowledge of relevant issues within fostering
Under the supervision of the Recruitment Hub Manager, apply locally agreed procedures to ensure enquiries are dealt with in a timely and efficient manner, maintaining confidentiality as appropriate
>> Click here to download the Role Profile <<
Key Responsibilities:
Qualifications and Requirements:
Degree or equivalent or vocational qualification in relevant subject or area
Evidence of Continuous Professional Development
Evidence of being able to work with computer systems
Terms and conditions:
The below terms and conditions apply to this role:
Satisfactory employment references and CIFAS identity checks;
This role is subject to safer recruitment practices as it involves work with children and/ or vulnerable adults;
Satisfactory DBS check;
As a public authority, we must ensure that members of staff in public-facing roles are able to speak fluent English. This means that they must have a command of spoken English, with confidence and accuracy, sufficient for the effective performance of their role. This requirement does not refer to any particular English language qualifications, regional or international accents, dialects, speech impediments or the tone of conversations. It does not require staff to speak only in English.
How to Apply:
Interested candidates are invited to submit their applications online by pressing the 'Apply' button below. This includes a supporting statement that outlines to us how your skills and experience make you a good candidate for this vacancy.
We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible.
Equal Opportunity Employer:
Waltham Forest is a diverse borough where diversity is valued and is integral to both, service delivery and employment of its staff. The Council is proud of its rich mix of communities and as the largest employer in the area, it works hard to respond to the changing needs of its population. We use our statutory duties on race, gender and disability equality and best practice in respect of age, faith and sexual orientation to ensure equality of opportunity in the workplace. The Council is committed to meeting its 4 equality objectives: - Promoting equality of opportunity - Opposing all forms of discrimination, intolerance and disadvantage - Ensuring our workforce reflects the diverse communities of Waltham Forest at all levels. - Providing fair, appropriate, accessible and excellent Services to all. Respecting Diversity is a core Council value.
To support the above and reduce the risk of bias in its recruitment activities, the council is operating an anonymous shortlisting process, which hides personal information that can identify individuals until their application has been considered for shortlisting. The council also operates a scheme whereby, for jobs graded up to and including scale SO2, internal candidates are considered first. This includes those candidates who self-identify as having a disability for the purposes of the Disability Confident scheme. For more information, please refer to our recruitment and selection policy.
We are keen to support employees to balance their working life with other commitments. Therefore, wherever possible, we will consider working arrangements that suit an individual's personal circumstances whilst still meeting the needs of the Council. If you would like to discuss the possible flexible working options that might be applicable to this role, please contact the person named below or feel free to discuss this during your interview.
For more information on the benefits of working for the Council, please visit https://www.walthamforest.gov.uk/jobs-and-training/find-jobs-and-other-opportunities/working-us.
Contact Information:
If you have any questions about this vacancy or the application process, please contact Roberta OnyeKwelu, Head of Service Permanence and Resources at 07584 913 787.
If you have any technical issues when trying to apply for this post, please contact our Recruitment Team via email at recruitment@walthamforest.gov.uk.
The Council's preference is for online application. However, if you have a disability and are unable to complete an online application, please email recruitment@walthamforest.gov.uk so we can arrange an alternative application method.
Click here for further information on the Human Resources recruitment privacy notice.
Organisation:London Borough of Waltham Forest
Salary: £42,840-£46,041
Contract Type: Full-time/Fixed Term Secondment (15 Months)
Working hours per week: 36
Application Deadline: Tues 27th February 2024
Proposed Interview Date(s): Week of 4th March 2024
Reference:1047
About Us:
In Spring 2024, a new fostering recruitment service will open, leading on the recruitment of foster carers on behalf of six Local Authorities across east London. This exciting, fast paced programme of work is part of a DfE funded fostering recruitment and retention programme and will be run as a pilot project.
Our vision is to have enough skilled and nurturing foster carers providing loving and stable homes to meet the needs of all children in our area. We're looking for two dynamic, inspiring Fostering Recruitment Advisors to help make that vision a reality. You'll raise awareness of fostering across the local community, helping to generate and nurture fostering enquiries. As the first point of contact for people considering fostering, you'll be responsible for the initial stages of foster carer recruitment and will keep in close contact with applicants throughout their journey to becoming a foster carer. You'll provide friendly, knowledgeable information, advice and guidance, helping potential applicants navigate the fostering application process.
You do not need experience in fostering or recruiting foster carers, but you do need a passion for helping the lives of children and young people. Your work will be central in helping to increase the number of fostering households across the region.
About the role:
Are you committed to improving the lives of children and young people in care? Do you understand how transformative a safe and nurturing foster home can be? If so, then we have the role for you!
Engage, by telephone, face to face and digitally with prospective fostering households, responding to queries and providing information and insight to enable the prospective carers to complete an initial enquiry.
Provide 'check in' support throughout the fostering application process.
Work closely with Fostering Teams across northeast London to make recommendations for action and to ensure enquiries are follow up in a timely manner following handover.
Work with business support, business intelligence, fostering services and communications and marketing officers to support planning and implementing recruitment strategies.
Develop relationships with stakeholders so that recruitment activities ensure suitable applicants are recommended to the relevant Local Authority Fostering Teams.
Populate, manage and maintain a database of foster carer applicants.
Maintain knowledge of relevant issues within fostering
Under the supervision of the Recruitment Hub Manager, apply locally agreed procedures to ensure enquiries are dealt with in a timely and efficient manner, maintaining confidentiality as appropriate
>> Click here to download the Role Profile <<
Key Responsibilities:
- Excellent interpersonal skills, including a confident telephone manner, excellent listening skills and an ability to proactively build relationships and influence positively.
- Ability to focus and record information whilst working in a hybrid model including working in an open plan office.
- Ability to offer information in a personable manner appropriate to the situation and provide information in suitable formats for enquirers
- Commitment to the promotion of equality, diversity and inclusion, including a desire to work with others to promote diversity and to challenge anti discriminatory actions or practice
- Understanding of the challenges faced by foster carers, and the complexities of all aspects of fostering assessments
- Experience of dealing with confidential issues discreetly and tactfully.
- Ability to engage with targeted community groups and networks to raise the awareness of local authority fostering
- Logical approach to planning and the ability to cope well under pressure coupled with good self-awareness and ability to be reflective and creative
- Experience of setting up, maintaining and developing administrative systems and processes
- Experience of working on own initiative, organising own work effectively and meeting tight deadlines.
- Exceptional attention to detail
- A keen interest in achieving best outcomes for children
- A working knowledge of relevant national legislation and regulation requirements including safeguarding policies and procedures
- Knowledge of the local area and community demographics (desirable)
- Previous experience working within a children's services setting or working with children cared for (desirable)
- Willing to work flexibly including location and work pattern. In return, LB Waltham Forest will ensure flexible working policy arrangements are promoted wherever possible to balance individual staff circumstances with organisation or operational requirements.
- Good data collection and analytical skills to establish positive outcomes in recruitment activity
Qualifications and Requirements:
Degree or equivalent or vocational qualification in relevant subject or area
Evidence of Continuous Professional Development
Evidence of being able to work with computer systems
Terms and conditions:
The below terms and conditions apply to this role:
Satisfactory employment references and CIFAS identity checks;
This role is subject to safer recruitment practices as it involves work with children and/ or vulnerable adults;
Satisfactory DBS check;
As a public authority, we must ensure that members of staff in public-facing roles are able to speak fluent English. This means that they must have a command of spoken English, with confidence and accuracy, sufficient for the effective performance of their role. This requirement does not refer to any particular English language qualifications, regional or international accents, dialects, speech impediments or the tone of conversations. It does not require staff to speak only in English.
How to Apply:
Interested candidates are invited to submit their applications online by pressing the 'Apply' button below. This includes a supporting statement that outlines to us how your skills and experience make you a good candidate for this vacancy.
We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible.
Equal Opportunity Employer:
Waltham Forest is a diverse borough where diversity is valued and is integral to both, service delivery and employment of its staff. The Council is proud of its rich mix of communities and as the largest employer in the area, it works hard to respond to the changing needs of its population. We use our statutory duties on race, gender and disability equality and best practice in respect of age, faith and sexual orientation to ensure equality of opportunity in the workplace. The Council is committed to meeting its 4 equality objectives: - Promoting equality of opportunity - Opposing all forms of discrimination, intolerance and disadvantage - Ensuring our workforce reflects the diverse communities of Waltham Forest at all levels. - Providing fair, appropriate, accessible and excellent Services to all. Respecting Diversity is a core Council value.
To support the above and reduce the risk of bias in its recruitment activities, the council is operating an anonymous shortlisting process, which hides personal information that can identify individuals until their application has been considered for shortlisting. The council also operates a scheme whereby, for jobs graded up to and including scale SO2, internal candidates are considered first. This includes those candidates who self-identify as having a disability for the purposes of the Disability Confident scheme. For more information, please refer to our recruitment and selection policy.
We are keen to support employees to balance their working life with other commitments. Therefore, wherever possible, we will consider working arrangements that suit an individual's personal circumstances whilst still meeting the needs of the Council. If you would like to discuss the possible flexible working options that might be applicable to this role, please contact the person named below or feel free to discuss this during your interview.
For more information on the benefits of working for the Council, please visit https://www.walthamforest.gov.uk/jobs-and-training/find-jobs-and-other-opportunities/working-us.
Contact Information:
If you have any questions about this vacancy or the application process, please contact Roberta OnyeKwelu, Head of Service Permanence and Resources at 07584 913 787.
If you have any technical issues when trying to apply for this post, please contact our Recruitment Team via email at recruitment@walthamforest.gov.uk.
The Council's preference is for online application. However, if you have a disability and are unable to complete an online application, please email recruitment@walthamforest.gov.uk so we can arrange an alternative application method.
Click here for further information on the Human Resources recruitment privacy notice.
Equal Opportunities
Waltham Forest is a diverse borough where diversity is valued and is integral to both, service delivery and employment of its staff. The Council is proud of its rich mix of communities and as the largest employer in the area, it works hard to respond to the changing needs of its population. We use our statutory duties on race, gender and disability equality and best practice in respect of age, faith and sexual orientation to ensure equality of opportunity in the workplace. The Council is committed to meeting its 4 equality objectives: - Promoting equality of opportunity - Opposing all forms of discrimination, intolerance and disadvantage - Ensuring our workforce reflects the diverse communities of Waltham Forest at all levels. - Providing fair, appropriate, accessible and excellent Services to all. Respecting Diversity is a core Council value. To support the above and reduce the risk of bias in its recruitment activities, the council is operating an anonymous shortlisting process, which hides personal information that can identify individuals until their application has been considered for shortlisting. The council also operates a scheme whereby, for jobs graded up to and including scale SO2, internal candidates are considered first. This includes those candidates who self-identify as having a disability for the purposes of the Disability Confident scheme. For more information, please refer to our recruitment and selection policy