Support worker for autistic young adult - united kingdom, preston, lancashire

worker for autistic young adult

we need a highly organized, reliable, and responsible individual to provide support for a young adult in developing life, social, and organizational skills. the role will involve regular shifts, but the timing and quantity of these will slowly change over time, in discussion with the post-holder, to suit the developing needs and interests of the young adult supported. the nature of the role is likely to develop over time, as the supported adult’s needs are met and his life develops.

life experience essential, autism and neurodivergence experience preferred.

job aim:

the purpose of the role is to support the young adult as he transitions in to adult life.

the perfect support worker:

the perfect support worker is committed to and enjoys the role and finds satisfaction in positive outcomes for those they support. they are highly organised, hard-working and practical. they are respectful of the rights of others and would welcome the opportunity to empower an autistic young adult to maximise their independence, ability to control their own life and to live the life they want, not the life the support worker would choose for them, whilst also recognising the importance of the parent-child relationship (even for a young adult) and the needs of all young adults for appropriate levels of guidance, advice and protection. they communicate straightforwardly and clearly. they thrive on responsibility and are patient, tolerant and accepting of difference. they are able to help the young adult’s developing understanding of the need to accept responsibility and fulfil commitments, whilst also supporting them to pursue their interests and have fun. they are able to maintain strong clear boundaries whilst remaining calm and supportive. they are able to be comfortable around others without feeling the need to converse constantly. they respect privacy and confidentiality. they have the self-confidence and self-discipline to work independently without constant guidance and supervision and the sensitivity and commitment to maintain a continual process of reviewing how best to tailor their work to meet the needs of those they support. they are well organised, a good time manager, aware of details, have a good memory (or system for remembering things) and are able to keep track of and manage multiple tasks. they are systematic and methodical in their approach to tasks. they are comfortable with or can learn to appreciate the autistic need for attention to detail and are comfortable with revisiting tasks as often as is necessary to ensure they have conformed to existing systems. they are comfortable communicating by email and take in information well in written form. they can express themselves simply and straightforwardly. they are self-aware and analytical, and are able to be clear and direct in their work.

there is no such thing as the perfect support worker. however, if you have some of these qualities and aspire to others, please apply for the post.

job environment:

you will be employed directly by the young adult’s mother on behalf of the young adult. the young person lives independently in central preston during the week and, generally, at the family home in central lancaster at weekends.

induction, ongoing training and supervision of your role will be carried out by the young adult themselves, with support from the young adult’s mother if needed.

all support workers are expected to understand that their employer’s quality of life and those of their family members are dependent on their job performance and to show a high level of commitment and responsibility.

duties:

regular duties:

supporting and participating in physical activity to help the young adult improve their fitness and strength supporting the young adult to gradually increase their stamina over time helping to tidy and organise living spaces helping to improve planning, scheduling and organisation systems driving (if possible) the young adult to activities working in either preston or lancaster to support the young adult flexibly to access shops and services that they are not already comfortable with support with organising, planning and taking steps towards learning to drive, including finding a driving instructor and organising theory test

occasional duties:

helping to develop cooking skills

providing flexible and supportive help in urgent or unexpected situations. other occasional one-off work such as taking the young adult to a special activity (e.g. going to a gaming event)

this job description gives a statement of the general purposes of the job and provides an outline of the duties and responsibilities involved. it is not intended to be comprehensive and you will be expected to be flexible and accept shared responsibility with other postholders (as they are recruited) for achieving the primary aims of the role

hours of work:

16 hours per week at present.

basic hours of work are likely to be:

monday 10am-3pm

tuesday 3pm-6pm

thursday 3pm-8pm

saturday 1pm – 4pm

note that it is anticipated that the nature of these hours will change over time, according to the young adult’s needs, and also the availability and other commitments of the successful candidates. it is expected that the number of hours required overall will increase as the young adult transitions further into adulthood.

there is a probationary period of 3 months which may be extended for up to 6 months at the employer’s discretion.

you will be entitled to 5.6 weeks paid annual leave (pro-rata to hours worked). periods of leave must be applied for in writing (which includes e-mail) at least one month in advance. the more notice you are able to give, the more likely it is that the employer will be able to accommodate your preferences. the granting of any particular dates cannot be guaranteed due to the need to ensure adequate ongoing support to the employer.

paythe young adult’s mother will be your employer (on behalf of the young adult).

the current rate of pay for part time permanent staff is £10.20 per hour, rising to £11.57 per hour upon successful completion of 3 month probationary period.

attributes 1

excellent spoken and clear, accurate written english
you should have good oral & written communication skills
highly organised
commitment to the role. we are looking for someone to support the young adult through an important life transition, please do not apply for this role unless you can commit to at least 12 months, ideally much longer.
must be located in or near to either central lancaster or central preston.
sufficient level of fitness to participate in physically demanding activities (flexibility potentially available if required due to disability)
you must be extremely reliable. predictability is vital to autistic people. you must also be punctual and completely reliable in attendance.
you must be willing to maintain good contact with the young adult (and, when appropriate, his mother) on an ongoing basis by email and text message and let them know as far in advance as possible of any difficulties, changes, illness etc.
you must be capable of maintaining a very high standard of confidentiality
you must be willing to accept the level of responsibility involved in working in a situation where disabled and vulnerable people will be adversely affected by any shortcomings in your reliability or job performance.
you need to be capable of recognising an adult’s vulnerability even when it is not immediately obvious
you need to respect the young adult’s rights to self-determination, whilst also recognising his vulnerability.
willingness to learn on an ongoing basis about autistic spectrum disorders and how the young adult functions and communicates.
the appointment is subject to an enhanced disclosure and barring service check

attributes 2

full uk driving licence
having own car.
prior experience of working with autistic people and/or knowledge of autistic spectrum conditions may be an advantage
prior experience of alternative communication approaches e.g. use of diagrams, visual and written information
prior experience of supporting a young adult through the transition into adulthood.
computer literacy
non-smoker

please apply by email attaching a cv to: joblancaster@gmail.com

this post is subject to enhanced dbs clearance (cost met by employer).

job reference: ft0922

More jobs