Advice Worker (Ukraine Programme)

ADVICE WORKER (UKRAINE PROGRAMME) RECRUITMENT PACK

Registered Charity 1078794

Who we are

Suffolk Refugee Support aims to ensure that all asylum seekers and refugees in Suffolk are enabled to live integrated, fulfilled and contributing lives in their new communities. We provide a welcoming environment where clients can access help, advice, support and practical services in order to be healthy and safe and begin to rebuild their lives. We work with external agencies, community and voluntary sector organisations, health providers and others to enable our clients to access a range of support. We are based in Ipswich, but our services operate increasingly on location with refugees and asylum seekers housed in accommodation across Suffolk.

Values

Individuals Matter - Each Client is unique and has an intrinsic value and constructive role to play in UK society Respect - We are open, welcoming, respectful, and transparent in our dealings with one another and with others Self Determination - We direct our efforts towards self-determination and ultimate independence for our Clients Client Centred - We are led by the needs and interests of our Clients and design our services to work holistically to meet these

Safe Environment - The all-round safety and security of our Clients and everyone who works for and with SRS is of paramount importance

Keeping Informed - We keep ourselves fully informed and knowledgeable about every sphere of our work

Aims

Basic Needs - To address our Clients' fundamental needs including immigration status, housing, education, physical and mental health, employment and personal safety

Social Well-being – To facilitate and support recreational and leisure-time activities aimed at enhancing our Clients’ social well-being and quality of life

Independence - To support our Clients in transitioning towards independence from SRS’ services

Awareness and Rights - To promote awareness and understanding of our Clients’ experience in the community, including advocating, advising, and lobbying to encourage statutory and other bodies to meet their obligations to our Clients

Client Partnership - To develop our partnership with our Clients to achieve a co-production model of service design, evaluation, and delivery

Governance - To uphold the effective governance and management of SRS in order to maximise its impact and ensure that its work is informed by ‘voices of lived experience’

Staff - To maintain a workplace that values and supports Staff, enabling them to effectively carry out their roles in a healthy working environment

Volunteers - To increase and develop Volunteers’ contribution to the work of SRS

Registered Charity 1078794

What we offer

Financial

• Competitive salaries

• Contributory pension scheme – up to 6% Employer contribution in addition to Employee contribution

• Enhanced sick pay scheme after successful probation period

Development

We believe that investment in our staff to develop their skills is essential to providing high quality support to our clients. We provide:

• Training for role related duties

• Generic skills training to contribute towards personal development

On the job training and mentoring

• Opportunities to shadow other roles or activities within the wider team

Wellbeing

Hybrid working (role dependant)

Opportunities for social activities

• Workplace activity sessions, for example, lunchtime walks

• A welcoming, diverse team with lots of cooking skills and a strong sense of community!

Time off

• 25 days annual leave pro rata (plus public holidays pro rata)

One-week pro rata paid carer’s leave

One-week pro rata paid compassionate leave

• Options for unpaid leave after successful probation period

The opportunity

Job Title Advice Worker (Ukraine Programme)

Reports to Ukraine Programme Support Coordinator & Advice Worker

Hours 21 hours a week (likely to be Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays)

Salary £16,854 (pro rata from £28,091 FTE for 35 hours per week) – Band 2

Contract Fixed term until 31st March 2027, subject to a 3 months’ probation review

Location Partly based at Suffolk Refugee Support offices, 38 St Matthew’s Street, Ipswich, IP1 3EP and on location in Suffolk. This role will involve travel across the county

About the role

The Advice Worker (Ukraine Programme) will work in Ipswich and elsewhere in Suffolk and will be responsible for delivering advice and practical support for Ukrainian refugees living in the county under Ukraine Family Scheme, Homes for Ukraine Scheme, or Ukraine Permission Extension. They will ensure that all clients receive appropriate help and assistance, working either directly, via volunteers, or by signposting to other agencies.

The work will involve communicating with different agencies and individuals in a cohesive and clear manner to ensure that Suffolk Refugee Support is responsive and effective in overcoming the hurdles experienced by people housed across the county where fewer services are available. The role will involve helping Ukrainians to settle into life in the UK, offering practical support with health provision, schools and education for children, English language classes, applications for benefits and making referrals to the Employment and Training Advice team and/or Housing Advice Worker when relevant.

The post holder will need to be sensitive to the needs of highly traumatised people and able to offer them reassurance, security and hope through their interventions. They will need to advocate for the refugees to ensure other agencies respond appropriately to their needs.

Main Deliverables

Main Duties and Responsibilities

• To assist with the planning and delivery of services for both new and existing clients

• To assist Ukrainian refugees with accessing benefits, healthcare, school places, ESOL courses and wellbeing activities

• To assess clients’ needs and make referrals, when relevant, to our Employment and Training Advice team, helping clients to gain independence, develop skills, and to progress in their lives.

• To direct clients to other services provided by Suffolk Refugee Support or external agencies (making appointments where appropriate).

• To attend occasional meetings with the local authorities and statutory agencies to advocate for client needs and to provide a voice for them to ensure services are geared to their best interests.

• To attend meetings with other partners, including community groups, to ensure everyone is working to an agreed plan, seeking shared solutions to improve clients’ quality of life and ensure duplication of services is avoided.

• To deal with telephone requests for information and act as a point of contact for clients, statutory, voluntary and private sector organisations and the general public.

• To work closely with the Evaluation and Programmes Manager and the Ukraine Programme Support Coordinator & Advice Worker to achieve agreed outcomes which will bring about positive changes in our clients’ lives.

• To work closely with the Health Outreach teams and other local authority and health partners to ensure health needs are dealt with appropriately.

• To promote independence on the part of the clients and actively empower them to help themselves according to their individual abilities.

• To develop activities which enable and encourage clients with more skills and knowledge to share them with those in need.

• To advise clients about all aspects of living in the UK and to ensure they understand their rights and responsibilities under UK law.

Vulnerable Client & Safeguarding Work

• In liaison with SRS’s Safeguarding Leads and external authorities, to support very vulnerable clients or where there are cases with safeguarding concerns.

Client representation

• To represent the views and experiences of SRS’s clients at external meetings and advisory boards.

Monitoring, Evaluation and Funder Reporting

• To record services given and outcomes achieved on internal monitoring systems and to maintain the filing system in line with data protection regulations.

• To report activities to the Evaluation and Programmes Manager and the Ukraine Programme Support Coordinator & Advice Worker. To communicate and discuss proposed changes and feedback from the frontline work.

• To assist with reports in reference to our funders’ outcomes and targets.

• To help with the development & administration of written information produced by SRS for our clients’ benefit.

Additional Duties and Responsibilities

• To occasionally contribute to media features and SRS newsletter articles concerning the scheme and its clients, and to promote public awareness and positive perceptions.

• To take responsibility for keeping up to date with changes to legislation, policy and rules affecting refugees, including attending training as applicable.

• To contribute to other SRS work including weekly team meetings and activities as requested by Management, such as assisting with external SRS events or other similar activities.

• To work in line with SRS’s policies and codes of conduct.

Other requirements

The role may require you to either hold a full and current driving licence and have access to personal transport or meet the mobility requirements of the role through other reasonable and suitable means. If you require a reasonable adjustment due to a disability to meet the travel requirements of this role, please speak with the HR and Training Officer on HR@suffolkrefugee.org.uk

To deliver services effectively, a degree of flexibility is needed, and you may be required to perform work not specifically referred to above. Such duties, however, will fall within the scope of the job, at the appropriate skills and responsibility level. This job description will therefore be subject to periodic review with the post-holder to ensure it accurately reflects the duties of the job.

Please note that an Enhanced DBS Check is required for this post. The decision to request a DBS disclosure is made in accordance with the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. The check will be paid for by Suffolk Refugee Support.

What we are looking for

Person Specification

Experience and knowledge
Essential	Desirable
Knowledge of the experiences and needs of refugees and howtrauma impacts on all aspects of their lives	Experience of working with volunteers
Experience of working with groups of people with urgent and differing issues, in a professional and organised manner	A full UK driving licence, access to your own transport and awillingness to work in locations around Suffolk
Experience of working with vulnerable individuals to improve theircircumstances
Knowledge of UK benefits system
Skills
Essential
Good writen and spoken English, with experience of succinct record keeping and accurate report writing
Fluency in Ukrainian or Russian
Abity to communicate with potentillytraumatised people with low levels of English and to make them feel at ease, whistmaintaining boundaries
Ability to organise and deliver outcomes with limited supervision using own initiative and creativity to get results
Proven time-management skils with the ability to multitask, organise work to meet tight deadlines and manage a varied andfulworkload.
Proficiency in working with Microsoft Ofice packages and using a CRM database
Ability to manage difficult and sensitive situations including using safeguarding good practice
Ability to work in a flexible and agile way, adapting to changing circumstances in a positive and solution focused way
Attributes
Essential
Commitment to inclusive practices and equal opportunities
Commitment to Safeguarding Children, Young People and Vulnerable Adults.
Friendly, helpful and positive atitude when meeting new people with a confident, friendy and outoing character and a"can-do"attitude
Conscientious, calm under pressure

Equal Opportunities Statement

Suffolk Refugee Support (SRS) is committed to equal opportunities and to supporting diversity both in the provision of services and as an employer. These commitments are set out in the Equality and Diversity policy and are integral to the provision of SRS’s services and to the work done by its staff, trustees, and volunteers, who are expected to promote equality in the workplace and to deliver services with sensitivity.

In essence, this means that no service user, job applicant, employee, volunteer, trustee, or member will be treated less favourably on the grounds of the following protected characteristics: age, disability (physical or mental impairment), gender reassignment, marital or civil partnership status, pregnancy or maternity, race (colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin), religious beliefs, sex and sexual orientation. In addition, SRS is committed to ensuring that no service user, job applicant, employee, volunteer, trustee, or member will be treated less favourably on the grounds of membership of a particular social group, political opinion, caring responsibilities, HIV status and employment status.

SRS recognises that refugees and asylum seekers are a particularly vulnerable group of people and may experience additional prejudice and discrimination. As a result, SRS is committed to supporting refugees and asylum seekers to take their full place in society, including being involved in SRS’s governance structures.

Equality and Diversity and you

You will be required to support individuals, families, children, women, and young people from very diverse backgrounds and engage them equally irrespective of political, religious or other affiliations.

We expect our team members to act professionally at all times and uphold the values, ambitions and aims of Suffolk Refugee Support.

We are committed to making every reasonable adjustment to the workplace or working arrangements to accommodate people with disabilities.

Please be aware that our offices are accessed via a steep staircase. We will endeavour to accommodate staff with mobility issues as far as possible.

You will have received an Equality and Diversity Monitoring Form as part of this recruitment pack. Please complete and return to Marianne Walker at HR@suffolkrefugee.org.uk

How to apply

Please complete the Application Form, the Equal Monitoring Form and attach your CV (which should cover your education history, employment history and any relevant training) and send the three documents to Marianne Walker at HR@suffolkrefugee.org.uk

If you require a larger print form or a paper form, please contact Marianne Walker at HR@suffolkrefugee.org.uk

Alternatively, you can send the documents by post to Suffolk Refugee Support, 38 St Matthews Street, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP1 3EP.

Note on the use of AI: We value applications that authentically reflect your own skills and experiences. Submissions suspected of being generated using AI may be rejected. Please ensure that all answers and work presented are your own.

Deadline for submission: no later than 12 noon on Thursday 11th June 2026

Interview date: Thursday 18th June 2026

We reserve the right to close this vacancy early and interview at an earlier date if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible.

How we choose who we invite to an interview

Shortlisting is completed by a panel of Suffolk Refugee Support staff members who will review and independently score your anonymised CV and the responses you have given to the questions asked in the application form’s Why are you the right person for this job section.

They then meet as a group to discuss their scores and decide which candidates’ answers have ranked highest for them.