Senior Support Worker - Supported Accommodation

This is a Gloucestershire County Council job.
 

• Job Title:                           Senior Support Worker - Supported Accommodation
• Job Location:                     Shire Hall 
• Salary:                              £37,280 - £40,777 per annum 
• Hours per Week:                37.00 
• Contract Type:                   Permanent 
• Closing Date:                    26/07/2026 
• Job Requisition Number:    14471 
• This post is open to job share on an 18.5 hour a week basis

Are you an experienced and committed practitioner ready to support young people and care leavers on their journey to independence?

We are recruiting a Senior Support Worker to join our Supported Accommodation Service in Stroud, part of the wider Children’s Residential Service, supporting young people and care leavers aged 16–25.

This is an exciting opportunity to work within a large, purpose-designed provision of 19 self-contained studio flats, supporting young people to build the skills, resilience and confidence needed for independent living.

About the Role

As a Senior Support Worker, you will play a leadership role in delivering high-quality, trauma-informed support to young people and care leavers, promoting their safety, wellbeing and independence.

You will:

• lead shifts, ensuring effective staff deployment and high standards of care and support
• build positive, professional relationships that promote trust, boundaries and accountability
• support young people to develop essential life skills, including budgeting, cooking, self-care, education and employment
• assess and manage risk, responding to safeguarding concerns and escalating where required
• support young people through challenges using de-escalation and solution-focused approaches
• contribute to support planning, helping young people achieve their goals and aspirations
• maintain accurate records in line with organisational and GDPR requirements
• promote a safe, well-maintained environment, overseeing health and safety and property standards
• work collaboratively with social workers, personal advisors and partner agencies
• supervise, mentor and support Support Workers, modelling best practice
• deputise for the Registered Manager and Deputy Manager when required
• contribute to quality assurance, audits and continuous improvement of the service

You will be expected to uphold safeguarding responsibilities at all times and contribute to a positive, consistent and child-centred culture.

About the Service

• a Supported Accommodation provision for young people and care leavers aged 16–25
• 19 self-contained studio flats, promoting independence within a supportive environment
• focused on developing practical life skills, emotional resilience and positive futures

About You

We are looking for someone who:

• has experience working with young people and/or care leavers
• has experience leading shifts or supporting staff
• understands safeguarding, risk management and trauma-informed practice
• can remain calm under pressure and make sound decisions
• is passionate about supporting independence and positive outcomes

Essential requirements:

• Level 3 qualification in a relevant field (e.g. Residential Childcare, Health & Social Care)
• experience supporting young people (ideally aged 16–18) in supported accommodation, residential care, youth services, housing, or similar settings
• experience leading shifts, coordinating staff, or supporting team decision-making
• experience working with young people with complex needs, including emotional dysregulation and risk-taking behaviour
• knowledge of risk assessment, risk management, and identifying safeguarding concerns
• experience of multi-agency working with professionals such as social care, health, and education services
• strong record-keeping skills and experience using electronic case management systems

Working Pattern

This role operates on a weekly rotating shift pattern (Monday to Sunday), example:

• Week 1 Morning shifts: 6:30am – 3:30pm
• Week 2 - Afternoon shifts: 3:00pm – 11:30pm
• Week 3 - Waking night shift: 11:00pm – 7:00am

Please note that this shift pattern is indicative and may be subject to reasonable change in line with service needs and operational requirements. Flexibility is essential, including weekends and bank holidays.

Important Information – Service Development

Please note that this Supported Accommodation service is currently progressing through its registration process and is not yet fully operational. As part of your induction, training and preparation, you will work within existing children’s homes across the Children’s Residential Service. This will provide valuable experience, strengthen your practice, and help you integrate into the wider service, ensuring you are fully prepared once Southfields becomes operational.

In accordance with Schedule 9, Part 1, of the Equality Act 2010, this role has a Genuine Occupational Requirement for the postholder to be aged 21 years or above. This is an essential and proportionate requirement to ensure the effective and appropriate delivery of the service due to the nature of the duties of the role and the ages and complex needs of the children and young people in our care. 

Interviews for this post will be held on Wednesday 29th July and Wednesday 5th August.

We reserve the right to close an advertisement earlier than the stated closing date if we receive a suitable number of applications.

If you would like to find out more about our Children's Service please take a look here: Children's Social Care Careers | Careers hub

Under the terms of our Safer Recruitment Policy, if you are invited to interview, we will take up safeguarding references prior to your interview to understand your suitability to work with vulnerable children. These references will then be discussed in your interview. Please give details of at least two referees, one of whom must be your present and/or last employer and the other from a previous employer(s). These will need to cover the last three years of employment/education. In the case of applicants leaving full time education or not having worked since doing so, the Head of School, College or University should be one of the named referees. We do not accept references from friends or family members or workplace colleagues (who are not more senior). To ensure we process your application in a speedy and efficient way, we will contact your referees by DocuSign. Where appropriate, please inform them of your application.

Additional Information

To access the Job Profile for this role, please follow the link below:-

Senior Support Worker (Supported Accommodation) job profile

This position is subject to a DBS check.

Gloucestershire County Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people or vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.

We want to be an employer of choice, attracting and retaining excellent people to work for us, so that we can best serve all of Gloucestershire’s diverse communities.  Our promise to you is that we will provide an inclusive and supportive working environment that enables you to bring your whole self to work and realise your full potential.

It is a legal requirement, under the Immigration Act 2016, that anyone appointed to a ‘customer facing role’ must be able to demonstrate an ability to fulfil all spoken aspects of the role with confidence in fluent English.

Hybrid working arrangements are available for the majority of our roles, giving teams the opportunity to work in a way that suits them, balancing service need and individual choice, with a mix of both remote and office working.