Therapeutic Intervention Worker- Children's Therapist

Do you want to change the lives and life chances of children and young people in Newport? Are you committed to offering opportunities for healing to children who have experienced trauma? Do you work from an attachment focussed, ACE aware and trauma informed therapeutic base and want to be part of a team of creative, talented, and passionate individuals committed to making a difference to children's lives? Would you like to be involved in this unique opportunity to support children and young people in a collaborative partnership between Barnardo's Cymru and Newport City Council? Then this is the role for you.

Your primary responsibility will be to deliver therapy to children. You will work as part of a small team within the Family Support Service specialising in providing therapeutic interventions. Your knowledge, skills, energy, enthusiasm, creativity and experience will allow you to support this team of professionals to work with families in a systemic, relational way. You will work closely with the Therapeutic Lead to help drive an approach that focuses on addressing the holistic needs of families.

The service as a whole supports children and young people on the edge of care as well as looked after children, aiming to stabilise placements and ensure that children get the best possible start in life. We are working with increasing effectiveness with other organisations around Newport to promote better opportunities for families, and to deliver improved (including contextual) safeguarding. We have been building our therapeutic offer over the past few years and now have a dedicated team delivering therapy.

About the Newport Partnership

This is an established partnership with an innovative vision for the delivery of edge of care support services for children, young people and their families living in Newport. The aim of the service is to provide a continuum of family support including intensive support for families on the brink of care or where the plan is for a child's rehabilitation home as well as placement support for children looked after. The Family Support Service work with families focusing on their strengths to build resilience enabling them to make changes to their lives. The team provide evidence-based intervention centred on the family's individual needs.

The aim of the service is to provide holistic family centred interventions for children, young people and their parents or carers arising from an assessment of need. The team contributes to the following objectives:

• To diminish the need for unplanned admissions to the 'Looked After" system.
• To safeguard and promote the well-being of children.
• To support parents and carers so that they are able to meet the needs of their children.

Job Role

To provide therapy to children who have experienced significant trauma.

• Utilising effective communication skills to engage children and their families, building collaborative relationships and ensuring that all views are included.
• Assisting the Therapeutic Lead with the development of the Therapeutic Team.
• Offering consultation to the Family Support Service and Children's Services staff with a particular focus on increasing understanding of children and young people.
• Assisting in the delivery of training to the Family Support Service and Children's Services staff.
• Supporting the wider service in the application of trauma informed practice.
• Taking part in, and facilitating reflective practice and formulation.
• Delivering therapeutic groups.
• Gathering, analysing, evaluating and summarising information from children, families and other agencies to undertake a holistic assessment of the family's needs.
• Taking responsibility for and giving primary consideration to the needs of children with particular regard to child protection procedures and safeguarding.
• Enabling service users to participate in the evaluation and development of the service.
• Preparing reports, including for court and child protection conferences.
• Establishing, developing and maintaining productive working relationships, through liaison and joint work with other agencies, organisations, groups and individuals within the team's operational remit.
• Recording and collating information- including utilising outcome measures- to contribute to the monitoring and evaluation of the service.
• Supporting trainee therapists.

You will have (essential):

• A level 6 or above professional qualification, which allows you to deliver therapy to children such as Play Therapy, Child and Adolescent Psychotherapy, Art Psychotherapy or Psychotherapeutic Counselling.
• Experience of delivering therapy.
• Examples of your utilisation of continuing professional development such as Therapeutic Life Story Work, DDP, Theraplay, CATT, BUSS.
• Experience of applying psychological theory to your work with children and their families.
• Experience of delivering group interventions.
• Knowledge of child development and attachment.
• Knowledge of safeguarding and procedure.
• Ability to prioritise, organise, self-motivate and work on own initiative.
• Ability to work flexibly including some evenings and weekends if needed.