• After School Care, School Holiday’s and Weekends
• Are you passionate about working with children and young adults with a disability???

We are looking for a team of dedicated & enthusiastic individuals to join our casual pool of staff to work across our services to children and young people, in Ipswich and Sunnybank.

About us:

Focal provides centre-based and community access services to children and young people aged 5 to 18 years of age, within the Ipswich and Sunnybank areas.

Our team work together to deliver high quality service that is responsive and tailored to the interests, special needs, and goals of each child. We provide all children the opportunity to actively explore their own environment in a safe and welcoming space; and also facilitate a range of play-based learning and recreational activities aimed at supporting positive developmental outcomes.

So, if you’re looking for a rewarding role that offers diversity and great professional development opportunities on implementation and delivery of children services and disability support, please apply!

Eligibility criteria:

To be eligible, the interest and enthusiasm to work with school-aged children with complex needs, is highly necessary. Previous experience working with individuals with a disability, in particular children is ideal, but not mandatory for this role, however you must have the willingness to be trained and mentored on the job by our experienced staff.

We are looking for candidates who can demonstrate the following skills:

• Promote a supportive, flexible and inclusive environment for all children, families and staff attending the service.
• Demonstrate ability to work effectively with children in a group setting and also individualised support, identifying and addressing additional needs of children.
• Maintain allocated supervision ratio and comply with OH&S and relevant Focal policies during delivery of service.
• Effective team work and communication skills with children, parents, professionals and other stakeholders.
• Ability to carry out any additional described duties/responsibilities of the role.

General duty statement:

As a support worker in the school holiday service, you will be responsible for assisting in direct supervision and personal care of children, organising and supervising program activities, OH&S, cleaning duties, food preparation and any other duties required by the centre manager/group leader. The support worker should be willing to participate in all activities, which contribute to our program’s objectives, philosophy and meeting NDIS Standards and Code of Conduct.

Responsibilities on duty:

• Supervise children both indoors and outdoors, and adhere to the allocated staff to children ratio at all times, ensuring no child is left unsupervised. This is generally 1:2 or in some cases 1:1 ratio.
• Work and communicate as a team effectively throughout shift.
• Provide support in program set-up and provision and ensuring that it reflects and respects the individual needs/cultural practices of the children and families.
• Attending all personal care needs and mealtime assistance for children on a regular basis or as required, using appropriate health & hygiene practices.
• Support positive interactions among children through role modelling positive language and behaviour to guide their development.
• Assisting in safely redirecting behaviour of concern that may present in children by applying strategies as per behavioural support plan, or escalating the matter to the manager/group leader/staff member experienced in the child’s behavioural management.
• Encourage the children’s active participation in program activities, but also maintaining flexibility that supports their interests and spontaneity.
• Help in maintaining cleanliness, safety and tidying up the centre during and at the end of shift.
• Ensure medication records, client progress, activities/significant events and outcomes of services are accurately documented and filed appropriately.
• Reporting any incidents/mandatory reporting to the centre manager/group leader, who will inform the parents if needed.
• Identify and report maintenance needs, safety issues or unsafe practices to the centre manager.
• Engage in planning meetings, training sessions, and staff memos as required and have a commitment to ongoing professional development/feedback.

Please check that you have the following ESSENTIALS before applying:

• Blue Card Screening (Working with children and young people) or willingness to obtain
• Positive Notice Screening/Exemption (Yellow Card, Disability Services) or willingness to obtain (No cost for an exemption if applying for a paid Blue Card)
• National Police Check or willingness to obtain (within the last 90 days)
• Certificate of completion of the NDIS Support Worker introduction (or willingness to complete) N.B. this is free and available online https://training.ndiscommission.gov.au
• Current First aid and CPR

• Willingness to work across the greater Ipswich and greater Brisbane area.

• Availability during weekdays of school holidays (our operating hours: 8:00am to 5:30pm) and Weekends (Friday evenings or Saturday/Sunday, operating times will vary)

• Willingness to complete further training (if applicable)

Desirable

• Own vehicle and Driver’s License, comprehensive vehicle insurance, registration along with a vehicle safety check (in case of client transport during excursions, or 1:1 support)

This is only a guide as the role may change with the needs of the client. If you feel you have the necessary skills and experience for this specialised growth area within Focal, please submit your application.