Youth Worker

Youth Worker | Out of Home Care | Toowoomba

• Employment Term: Casual Opportunities

• Location: Toowoomba

• Remuneration: $48.31 p/hr including casual loading + Super + NFP Salary Packaging (save tax and increase your take home pay)

Make a meaningful difference with UnitingCare Queensland

At UnitingCare we are leaders in crisis response, the protection of vulnerable people and children, financial resilience and family wellbeing. Our FaDS (Family and Disability Services) team work passionately across Queensland to make a meaningful difference in people's lives.

As a Youth Worker, you'll be encouraged to grow, develop and feel empowered to make the everyday easier for the people we care so passionately about.  Let's make a meaningful difference, together

Your part in our UnitingCare's team

This position will involve:

• Working in accordance with the CARE model, you will be able to make a meaningful difference in the lives of children, young people and families by taking a therapeutic centred approach

• You will support the provision of stable, trauma informed, nurturing non-family-based care arrangements

Our Youth Workers work with young people in our care who have moderate to extreme needs, supporting them to:

• Feel safe and nurtured in a stable environment

• Feel a strong sense of identity and belonging

• Support the practical application of the CARE model when caring for the children in their care

• Build positive and trusting connections with family, friends and community

• Develop to their full potential, growing strong social and interpersonal skills

• Make healthy lifestyle choices and access health care services

• Maintaining a clean and safe home environment

• Completing verbal and written reports as well as managing other day to day tasks

What makes a difference for us?

Working with young people in residential care who have complex and challenging needs will require a calm and non-judgemental nature, you will have the following:

• Cert IV in Child, Youth & Family Intervention or Minimum Cert IV in Human Services, Community Services, Youth Services or related field

• Experience incorporating the six CARE Principals when supporting Children and Young People, or reflection on how you would incorporate these into your practice

• Hope and Healing Training or be willing to undertake this

• A solid understanding of the child protection system as well as having a strong therapeutic background would be highly advantageous

• Availability to work in a 24hr roster system

• Ability to build strong relationships with young people

• Current Blue Card (Working with Children), First Aid & CPR and QLD Driver Licence

• Must also be willing to undergo a personal history check under the provision of the Child Protection Act 1999 in relation to Licensing of Care Services (LCS2 screening check)  

Please note, that as part of UnitingCare's commitment to professional development and provision of trauma informed care, successful candidates will be paid to attend training in person for TCI, CARE and Three Pillars of transforming care.

What makes a difference for you?

• Flexible work arrangements to support work-life balance 

• NFP Salary Packaging: Save tax and increase your take home pay by salary packaging your everyday living expenses and bills (up to $15,900) and meal entertainment (up to $2,650) per annum. To learn more about this benefit watch the video via the following link: Salary Packaging Explained  

• A recognition and rewards platform, providing employee discounts at hundreds of retailers, including everyday expenses, holidays, health insurance, annual awards celebration, wellbeing and employee assistance programs  

• 12 weeks paid parental leave and 2 weeks paid partner leave, available after 6 months service, in addition to the government scheme  

• Diversity and inclusive leave, offering paid gender affirmation leave and cultural leave options (paid and unpaid) for those who may celebrate Lunar New Year, Diwali, Ramadan, NAIDOC weeks and other significant cultural events  

• Career development opportunities to challenge yourself, grow and make a meaningful difference   

• A positive and inclusive team based on respect, shared standards, strong values and a commitment to serving others 

We'd love you to be part of our UnitingCare family  

Joining our FaDS, team, you'll also be welcomed as part of the UnitingCare family. The second-largest Queensland employer, we're a proud not-for-profit with more than 16,500 staff and 9,000 volunteers across our brands of BlueCare, Lifeline, ARRCS, The Wesley Hospital, Buderim Private Hospital, St Stephen's Hospital, and St Andrew's War Memorial Hospital, and have been leading by example for more than 100 years.  

Child safe, Child friendly 

UnitingCare is committed to being a Child Safe, Child Friendly organisation and will:  

• provide welcoming, safe and nurturing services for children  

• implement measures to prevent child abuse and neglect within our services 

• appropriately and immediately address child abuse and neglect if it does occur 

Diversity & Inclusion   

Our approach is simple – everybody is welcome here.  At UnitingCare, diversity is at the core of our who we are, our mission and our values. We are committed to providing equal opportunities to all employees no matter their sex, race, culture, sexual orientation, disability or gender identity. Demonstrating our commitment to reconciliation and building long-term employment opportunities for First Nations peoples, UnitingCare strongly encourages Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander applicants for this position.    

Safe workplace   

We work hard to make our services welcoming and safe for every person. We are united in keeping children, young people and the elderly safe from harm, within our services, workplaces and the communities we support. We are committed to speaking up loudly for their safety.