Health Advocate 

Location: Newport, Isle of Wight.  

Salary: £32,979pa    

Permanent, Full Time (40 hours per week)

The first suitable applicant will be appointed

PARAGON are a specialist team within The YOU Trust and our mission is ‘together empowering change’ for individuals, families, and our communities. We are committed to ending violence against adults and children, and do this through empowering individual and communities to change.

Essential Requirements:

• Experience of supporting adults and children as victims and survivors of domestic abuse 

• Experience of effective multi-agency and partnership working, person-centred service delivery and enabling client involvement

• Able to work flexible hours including evenings, weekends, when planned and required

• Experience of delivering training

• Be a car driver with use of car for work purposes

The Role:

The role of the DVA Health Advocate is to work closely with health colleagues to share knowledge and skills and improve their referral processes into existing commissioned services, which will lead to increased referrals.  

The DVA Health Advocate will carry a caseload and work directly with victims of domestic violence and abuse, receiving referrals across all risk categories with a focus on medium and high risk, utilising existing services and referral pathways for standard risk clients.  

DVA Health Advocates work from the point of crisis to provide high quality advocacy and support and engaging with local partners ensuring each person has a co-produced support package.

The DVA health advocate will also  train Health colleagues to increase their knowledge of DVA and develop their confidence to identify victims and refer to specialist support.

About You:

• You will be experienced, skilled and enthusiastic. 

• You will be used to working in a fast-paced environment. 

• You will be passionate about working with adults

• You will work alongside our clients as an equal partner and give advice and guidance at a level matching the person’s skills and strengths.

• Developing positive working relationships with the local community and support agencies to create a network of support for your clients will be central to the work you do.

• This role will require a person with skills and experience to be able to support the development and delivery of the IOW commissioned service.  You will be able to work independently to meet the required Key Performance Indicators and be a skilled communicator with a desire to take your practice to the next level.

• You will have an understanding and commitment to a wide range of values that underpin this work including being non-judgemental, person centred, trauma informed and gender responsive and be able to demonstrate these values.

• You will hold values that inspire a client led approach and be self-motivating, reflective and have a positive response to challenging situations.

• You will be passionate about supporting individuals experiencing domestic abuse and skilled in identifying risk.

• You will be experienced in providing practical and emotional support to victims. Co-producing safety and support plans to ensure interventions are appropriate for the level of risk.

• You will be experienced in working in a multi-agency environment and skilled at developing and maintaining effective professional working relationships for the best interests of the client.

• You will be confident to share your knowledge and deliver training to health colleagues to improve responses to victims accessing health services.

Our Benefits:

If you choose to begin a career with our organisation, you are guaranteed: 

*       Competitive rates of pay and paid travel time, including a higher mileage rate for car sharing. 

*       Enhanced annual leave entitlements, with the opportunity to buy and sell holiday. 

*       Matched pension scheme contributions, plus Death in Service Benefit and salary sacrifice options.
*       Enhanced sick pay allowances and paid compassionate and emergency dependent leave.

*       Excellent and professionally certified training, as well as access to fully-funded apprenticeship programmes. 

*       Real opportunities to develop in your profession. 

*       Free health and wellbeing advice via a 24/7, confidential Employee Assistance Programme. 

*       Everything you need to carry out your role free of charge, which may include a mobile phone, safety equipment and other necessary technology, a uniform where applicable, and of course a nice cup of tea or coffee throughout your day! 

*       Access to discounts across lots of your favourite stores and online shopping sites.   

The You Trust is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of our clients. Applicants must be willing to undergo appropriate Adult and Child protection screening, including employment references and DBS check.

Where a role involves engaging in regulated activity relevant to adults and/or children it is an offence to apply for the role if you have been barred from engaging in such regulated activity.    

#IND3