Keyworker (11122)

Do you want to be part of shaping an innovative Keyworker support service for children and young people in Northamptonshire? 

Can you support and achieve transformational change for children, young people with a learning disability autism or both?

If you're passionate about supporting children and young people navigate services and support, this may be the opportunity for you!

Service Overview

The Keyworking function in Northamptonshire has been developed as part of the National Health Service long term plan for all children and young people (CYP) with a learning disability, autism or both to have a designated Keyworker by 2024.

This recruitment is for 4 full time Keyworkers to work as part of this function.

Initial Location of Post

The post covers the county so you will be  required to work across  Northamptonshire. You will be co-located within one of the teams either within the local authorities or Health teams, but will also spend time together as a team to create and maintain a Keyworker team identity.

Supplementary Information

Objectives of Service

Keyworking Function/Model

Keyworkers will work across the Northamptonshire system with and for Children and Young People and families, capitalising on cross-system knowledge and experience to help them effectively navigate services. They will support lead professionals, ensuring that they have the knowledge of education, care and health services and processes, and are mandated to work across sectors to facilitate timely and properly integrated assessment, care and support. Staff across the team will be recruited from a range of professional backgrounds within education, social care, health and the third sector to establish a multi-disciplinary team.

The function is a system enhancer and requires development of a strong understanding of the Northamptonshire system; to be confident in challenging the system when necessary; and forming strong relationships with Children, Young People and families.

There will also be a strong focus on practice development, and a commitment to sharing functions and principles back into all system partners.

The Keyworkers will co-ordinate, enable/organise direct support with personalisation and Children and Young people and family-centred planning; provide effective communication, challenge, problem-solve and influence; achieve change and unblock the system.

The Keyworkers will work with the Children and young People's expressed views and feelings and work flexibly and responsively to help Children and Young People and families understand and navigate the system.

The Keyworkers will ensure co-production is maintained throughout Children and Young People and family journeys, including close working relationships with parent carer representatives who are supporting with the implementation, appraisal and monitoring of the Keyworking function.

The Keyworking function will work closely with the Parent Carer and Young people Forums and parent carer representatives, who have worked as family voice consultants to co-design and co-produce the vision, implementation plans, key opportunities and processes for continuation of co-production during mobilisation and roll-out. The key principles are:

• Improving the experience of Children and Young People.
• Improving the experiences of parents/carers and families.
• Improving access.
• Improving quality of care.

Keyworker Role

Keyworkers will be embedded within local authorities /Health teams across the system, but will come together as a team regularly to ensure a team identity is developed and maintained.

Keyworkers will require a holistic understanding of the education, health and social care systems, and the expertise and authority to navigate the system and be the single point of contact for CYP and their families.

Keyworkers will require experience, passion and vision to be effective in this pivotal role. We will recruit professionals from across a range of backgrounds within health, education, social care and the third sector, with a focus on skillsets and values as opposed to specific experiences or qualifications.

Keyworker Values

• Empathy/Understanding: believes in an approach that requires an understanding of needs from the perspective of the child, young person and family.
• Respect: respects the opinions and beliefs of the child, young person and family and works to ensure they are represented, with a commitment to the principles of child-centred, personalised care.
• Positive and Solution-Focused: has a positive, solution-focused approach to ensuring the best outcomes for the child, young person and family.
• Commitment: commitment to ensuring the rights of children and young people with a learning disability and/or autism are protected and enforced and that their views and preferences, and those of their families, are listened and responded to.
• Tenacious: in the pursuit of appropriate support and outcomes.
• Always Learning: commitment to personal learning and helping the system learn and improve.
• Compassionate: to listen and respond to the needs of the child, young person and family with understanding and compassion.
• Collaborative: committed to joined-up, collaborative working.

When completing your application please refer to your skills knowledge and experience in relation to the Person Specification, Job Description and Additional Information document. This should be done with an understanding of the context of the service described.

At Barnardo's we believe in children – no matter who they are, what they have done or what they have been through. Please read about our basis and values following the link below. You will be asked questions relating to them as part of the recruitment process for this role.

Barnardo's is committed to having a diverse and inclusive workforce for staff and volunteers. We actively encourage applications from disabled, Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic and male candidates as they are under-represented within Barnardo's.

About Barnardo's

At Barnardo's we believe in children – no matter who they are, what they have done or what they have been through. Please read about our basis and values following the link below. You will be asked questions relating to them as part of the recruitment process for this role.

Barnardo's is committed to having a diverse and inclusive workforce for staff and volunteers. We actively encourage applications from disabled, Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic and male candidates as they are under-represented within Barnardo's.