Job Description

Hertfordshire's Family Centre Service brings together the Public Health Nursing Service (Health Visitors and School Nurses) and the Family Support Service. Our mission is to help children and families get the best possible start in life, develop well, and thrive.


We provide a wide range of services, information, and support to families with children aged up to five years, focusing on key areas of family life and early childhood development.


The Role


As a Family Support Practitioner, you will play a vital role in supporting parents and carers of children under five, encouraging involvement in their children's learning, development, and wellbeing. You will work closely with families, particularly those who are most vulnerable or harder to reach, and build strong links within the local community.


Key responsibilities include:


Supporting hard-to-reach and vulnerable families


Delivering tailored one-to-one programmes of support to achieve positive outcomes for families


Maintaining accurate and up-to-date records, requiring a good level of computer literacy


Working in partnership with colleagues and external agencies


Engaging with all parents and carers, including expectant parents and young parents


Developing a strong understanding of local demographics, services, networks, and community resources


Some evening and occasional Saturday work will be required. Family Centres operate between 8:00am and 6:00pm.


Requirements


To be successful in this role, you will need:


A minimum of Level 3 qualification in a recognised professional field such as health, education, childcare, social care, or an equivalent qualification


A sound understanding of the importance of safeguarding children


Excellent communication and interpersonal skills


Experience of working with families from a wide range of backgrounds


A valid UK driving licence and access to a car during working hours


Willingness to travel regularly, with appropriate business-use car insurance


An enhanced DBS check (required for this role)


One YMCA and its subsidiaries, the Early Childhood Partnership (ECP) and Signpost are on an exciting journey to double our impact by 2025. We are over half way through an exciting new strategy launched in the first hour of the new decade, via email where all staff and volunteers were invited to put themselves forward to apply and attend an intensive, three-day Kickstarter Event.


By the end of these three days, there was a brilliantly multi-faceted set of themes and ideas, which formed the starting point for the rest of the Mission 25 process to build on. The aim of Mission 25 is to give every staff member and volunteer the opportunity to play their part in shaping the strategy to do "more and better, together" so that we double our impact by 2025. We deliver a vast array of services across Herts, Beds and Bucks that reach over 135,000 individuals annually.


These include:

Provision of over 700 units of accommodation for homeless people Move on accommodation for individuals moving onto independent living Housing and practical/emotional support for young asylum seekers Community HUBs hosting a range of activities and meeting space hire Childcare provision in Hertfordshire Family support through a network of children's and family centres covering Hertfordshire and Bedford Therapeutic and non-therapeutic support for male and female victims of domestic abuse and their children Independent sexual violence services across Bedfordshire, Luton and Hertfordshire Domestic abuse perpetrator reform programmes across Bedfordshire Youth services offering emotional wellbeing support and youth club opportunities for 11-19 year olds alongside our National Airplay programme funded by the RAF Benevolent Fund * A community gym where everyone can enjoy the benefits of physical exercise Our values remain at the forefront of how we operate as a charity, and it is important to us that all staff and volunteers can fully buy in to our ethos.