Adviser / Advocate

Job Title: Independent Health Complaints Advocate / Independent Living Adviser

Location: Burpham, GU4 7HL

Salary: £28,145.78 per annum

Job type: Full Time, Permanent, 35 hours a week

Surrey Independent Living Charity is a Disabled Person's organisation that provides advocacy, information, advice and support throughout the county of Surrey.

We provide a range of services including Independent Health Complaints Advocacy and support to people who are arranging and managing their own health and social care.

• Are you a great communicator?
• Do you have experience of working or volunteering in advocacy or providing advice in a community setting and are looking for a new challenge?
• Are you passionate about providing support and information to enable disabled people to live independently in their own homes?
• Are you a team player but able to work on your own initiative?
• Do you have strong time management and organisational skills to take on a busy and fast-paced role?

As part of our ongoing development, we seek to recruit an Independent Health Complaints Advocate/Independent Living Adviser to join our established team.

Our Values

SILC believes that everyone can live independently with the right support. At the heart of everything we do is the social model of disability and the concept of full human rights. We believe that these give a basis for treating everyone with respect, understanding and fairness.

We also believe that disabled adults, children, older people and carers can learn from and support each other.

About the Role:

• Providing independent health complaints advocacy to people making complaints about the NHS in line with current legislation and guidelines, including writing letters, attending meetings and filling in forms related to complaints.
• Assisting disabled people funded by social services/the NHS or paying for their own care to set up and successfully manage their care to stay living independently at home. This includes supporting people to employ their own personal assistants to care for them at home, for example: supporting people to set up employment contracts, payroll and relevant insurance.
• Attending engagement and promotional events to promote our services.
• Working as part of the team at SILC in order to ensure the delivery of services to the highest possible standard.

About You:

Experience of health complaints advocacy would be useful but not essential. However, applicants will need to demonstrate that they have some experience of advocacy and/or providing advice or support in a community setting.

Strong communication skills, both verbal and written, are essential. You should be a quick learner and able to work as part of a team as well as on your own initiative. You must have strong time management and organisational skills to enable you to work in a busy and fast-paced role.

Applicants will also need to demonstrate a good understanding of the Social Model of Disability and the issues facing disabled people. They will also need a commitment to the philosophy of Independent Living and the values underpinning direct payments and personal health budgets.

The job is primarily home-based but involves attending regular meetings in Burpham, near Guildford, Surrey, and travelling throughout Surrey so access to own transport is essential.

Benefits:

• 25 days annual leave increasing to a maximum of 30 days with length of service plus bank holidays
• 5% employer pension and 5% employee contribution
• Supportive working environment fostering a good work/life balance
• Mostly home-based working

Additional Information:

The closing date for applications is 5th May. However, please note that we will be interviewing for this role on a rolling basis so may end recruitment sooner if a suitable applicant is found.

No agencies/sales, please.

SILC is an Equal Opportunities employer and we positively welcome applications from disabled people and carers.

Please note: candidates must have the right to live and work in the UK.

Please click the APPLY button to send your CV and a covering letter explaining why you feel you would be suitable for this job. Please use work, voluntary or personal experiences and examples to tell us how you meet our specification and values and why you should join the SILC team

Candidates with the relevant experience or job title of: Carer Support Coordinator, Carer Support Advisor, Senior Support Worker, Care Management, Support Coordinator, Care Manager, Support Manager, Care Coordinator, Customer Services, Care Advisor, Care Support Coordinator, Independent Living, Vulnerable Adults Carer, Elderly Carer, Support Officer, Care Support Worker, independent advocate, community adviser, disability adviser may also be considered for this role.