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Support Worker- Day services- Acorns

Position: Support Worker

Location: Acorns, Cornford Lane, Pembury, Kent, TN2 4QU

Hours of Work: 37.5 hours per week, Flexible hours across Mon-Fri

8.45am - 16.15

Salary: £12.71 per hour

Empowerment. Inclusivity. Integrity
#MadewithCare

Equal Opportunity/Accessibility and Accommodations Statement:

As a Disability Confident employer, Aspens Charities is committed to fostering an inclusive and supportive environment for individuals with disabilities. We actively promote the recruitment, retention, and career development of people with disabilities, recognising the invaluable contributions they make to our organisation. We are dedicated to ensuring an accessible recruitment process for all candidates. If you require any accommodations during the application or interview process, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

Aspens’ mission is to provide high-quality care and support to individuals on the autism spectrum and with learning disabilities; meeting their needs and aspirations and empowering them to learn and grow through an integrated network of services across the South-East.

We provide support and care to children, families and adults across Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Brighton and Hove, Surrey and the London Borough of Bexley. Our services include registered care homes; supported living; community outreach; day services, including pathways to employment; children and young people’s groups and support; specialist support; and free online support for families and carers across the South-East.

The challenges you might face as a support worker are well matched by the rewards and opportunities that come hand in hand with working at Aspens.

Acorns is located on our main Cornford Lane site, It provides a wide range of activities for people on the autism spectrum, with a learning disability or with complex needs, supporting them to lead interesting, active and rewarding lives.

We hold small group sessions with six people to one tutor. This ensures that everyone works at their own pace and receives all the support they need. We also provide one-to-one support. We actively encourage visitors to view our facilities and offer taster sessions for those who are interested in taking part in our activities. Acorns are fully accessible. These daytime activities help people gain new, practical and social skills and provide beneficial therapy.

About the Candidate:

As a Support Worker you would be expected to help support individuals on a one to one basis including; taking individuals on days out, providing personal care, cleaning, attending appointments, assisting individuals to day services, going on service user holidays and anything else to help improve the lives of those we support.

We would require you to hold a UK driving licence an access to a vehicle

Aspens Charities are looking for Caring, hardworking and understanding people to join us to promote the values that Aspens champions; respect, honesty, empowerment and professionalism.

We recognise that good support workers come from all walks of life.
Whether you have years of care experience or no experience at all, if you are a caring person, passionate about empowering others and ready to learn new skills we think you could be a great fit at Aspens!

Essentials Skills & Requirements:

· A caring personality with a drive to help others

· Positive ‘can-do’ attitude

· A calm, friendly and patient nature

· Good problem-solving skills

· Good sense of humour

· Team worker with good communication skills

· Flexible approach to work

· Trustworthy

· Good listening and ability to show empathy

· Good English and Maths Skills

· Willingness to learn and develop

Our ideal Support worker should be able to work as part of a team but also be able to work on a 1:1 basis, be confident, caring, able to assist with recording finances, medication & writing and recording daily information.

Desirable Skills, Qualifications and Experiences:

· Experience as a care or support worker

· Experience in supporting vulnerable adults with learning difficulties, physical disabilities and autism.

Experience - Manual handling required (training is given)

· Full Driving Licence with access to transport

What you can expect from us:

• Comprehensive paid training and excellent career progression opportunities, including recognised qualifications in health and social care
• Paid DBS check
• Flexible work arrangements, with the option to take on additional bank shifts
• Generous annual leave (pro rata based on hours), with entitlement increasing with length of service
• Nest Pension and Death in Service benefit
• Access to a dedicated Employee Assistance Programme and Mental Health First Aiders
• Blue Light Card discounts
• 20% discount at Aspens High Street Stores for all staff
• Discounted staff menu available at the Bluebell Café (Pembury)
• Refer a Friend scheme - earn up to £250 for every successful referral
• Employee recognition programmes, including ‘Employee of the Month’

Please note: This role does not meet the minimum criteria for visa sponsorship under the current UK immigration rules, which set specific salary and skill thresholds. As such, we are unable to provide sponsorship for this post. Applicants will therefore need to already have the right to work in the UK to be considered. We include this information at the outset to provide clarity and avoid unnecessary inconvenience for applicants.

Contact: Recruitment@aspens.org.uk

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