Jane Caress Ltd

SUPPORT WORKER

Jane Caress

Our staff work every day to assist and improve the lives of those that we work with. At Jane Caress Ltd we try to ensure that the support given to each individual is right for them as a person and enables them to reach their full potential to maximise their right to choose how and where they want to live. We deliver care and support through personal support plans which give independence, choice and control.

We are looking for people to join our team who are passionate about people and who are flexible in their approach to work. The clients we assist will also have their own views on the type of person they wish to support them.

Support Workers should provide practical household support, social assistance and personal care where required. This may include giving full support to the person:

• With keeping in contact with their family and friends.
• By supporting them at social events, appointments, places of worship.
• With household tasks - cleaning, pet care, plant care, light gardening.
• With personal laundry, ironing and bed changing.
• With shopping, meal planning, preparing and cooking meals.
• Assistance with eating and drinking.
• By assisting with or administering medication and the collection of medication from pharmacies.
• By organising and supporting the person at appointments.
• By reading, writing and dealing with correspondence
• With getting in or out of bed and supporting them to move about.
• With dressing or undressing, personal hygiene and bathing.
• With money management - household bills, council tax, personal management of monies.
• To ensure their home is safe and secure.

• Listens to the person you are supporting.
• Asks relevant & pertinent questions.
• Communicates in a clear & concise way.
• Effectively uses a range of communication tools & techniques.
• Keeps accurate, objective & clear records.
• Get to know the person you are supporting, what’s important to them and how they want to be supported.

• Able to prioritise tasks & manage workload.
• Reliable under pressure.

• Earns the respect of others.
• Shows respect for the views & actions of others.
• Builds & maintains mutually beneficial relationships.
• Motivates self & others.

• Plans ahead.
• Tackles issues voluntarily & positively.
• Able to identify the cause & not just the symptoms of problems.
• Able to anticipate problems & develop solutions in advance.
• Solves problems in a calm, direct & organised manner.
• Helps other people with problems.

• Full of ideas which provide fresh insight & broader perspectives.
• Responds positively to change.
• Self-motivated.

Please note that this is a general Job Description. The person you work with may not require everything that is included below and full details will be given when arranging the interview. Do not worry if there are aspects that you have not done as training will be given to suitable applicants.

It may be the job of the Support Worker to assist in areas of personal and domestic needs and to act as a companion/carer to aid with the disabled person’s social and day to day activities.

By receiving assistance at the right time, the disabled person is enabled to lead an individual and independent lifestyle in their own home within the community.

The Support Worker should understand their role in facilitating the self-defined needs of the disabled person. They should feel confident to ask what the disabled person’s needs are and always listen and act upon the request and the directions given.

Support Workers should be able to handle the physical skills of transferring safely and using the appropriate moving equipment, handling, pushing and bending in order that neither the person requiring assistance nor the Support Worker damages themselves. The Support Worker does not have to be a strong person physically to do the job well, however good health is important.

New guidelines set out by the Care Quality Commission state that all support workers employed after the 1st April 2015 must meet a set of standards, which are set out in the Care Certificate. At Jane Caress, we endeavour to achieve this by the end of your 12-week probation period. In order to achieve this, you will be shadowing with our current support workers and be enrolled onto a 4-day knowledge based training course. Following the successful completion of this course, our senior staff will come out whilst you are shadowing to ensure you are confident in your role and working towards our company standards.

• Washing and bathing in bed or in bathroom as required.
• Grooming: attention to hair, skin, teeth etc. as required.
• Dealing with incontinence management, helping in maintaining a bowel and bladder routine. Fitting and attention to urinary drainage systems if appropriate.
• Assistance to turn in bed if required.
• Daily physiotherapy exercises if required.
• Preparing food, cooking, preparation for serving food as required.
• General domestic duties as required.
• Assisting with shopping and other associated tasks.
• Making and changing of bed.
• General housework, including the cleaning and dusting of rooms, furniture and fitments.

• Ability to work in a person-centred way, ensuring that clients rights, wishes, independence and dignity are respected at all times.
• Ability to support someone in all appropriate areas, as identified by them and in their support plan. This could involve supporting someone to find a job, learn how to use public transport, attend a gym, and manage their finances, helping them with basic domestic and personal care tasks.
• Ability to enable clients to seek out & process organisations & professionals who may be able to offer advice on specific issues (i.e. benefits, education, employment, etc.)
• Where appropriate, to support clients to maintain their home & environment (i.e. general domestic tasks, DIY, decorating, etc.)
• Ability to take an active role in any reviews for the client.

• Ability to understand & action all relevant paperwork (e.g. medication records)
• Ability to understand all relevant policies & procedures) & other written guidelines & act accordingly.
• Ability to keep accurate & up-to-date records.

• Ability to work as part of a team, ensuring a consistent, positive service to our clients.
• Ability to work positively in partnership with other people involved in the life of the client (e.g. statutory & voluntary organisations, carers, relatives.)
• Show commitment to working as part of a wider team of ATI employees, contributions to the support of other departments such as client inclusion.

• Willingness to attend & take an active part in supervision meetings & annual development reviews.
• Commitment to attend any relevant training.

• Willingness to attend all meetings relevant to this role.
• Ability to remain professional & keep appropriate boundaries.
• Ability to work the hours dictated by the requirements of the post, this could be evenings, weekends or sleepovers.
• Willingness to work in the ways which are consistent with ATI’s organisational polices (e.g. Equal Opportunities, Health, etc)

• Experience of working in the support sector, desirable but not essential.

• NVQ in support-related area, desirable but not essential.
• Knowledge of the Care Certificate is desirable but not essential.