• Position: Full Time, Fixed Term- 12 months contract
• Salary: $88,753.53- $92,771 (based on skills & experience) plus Super plus Attractive Salary Packaging option
• Location: Preston

A little bit about VACCA...

The Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency (VACCA) is an Aboriginal Community-Controlled organisation that supports and advocates for the Aboriginal Community and is the largest organisation of it’s kind in Australia. The VACCA team is committed to the organisation’s visions and values, passionately providing support, service and advocacy for our children and other vulnerable members of the community.

Our Aboriginality is what distinguishes us from other community organisations and our culture of teamwork and inclusivity is why we are able to deliver positive outcomes that lead to ongoing change. Our strength lies with our people and all people are welcome.

Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency (VACCA) is the largest organisation of its kind in Australia, employing more than 800 employees and delivering more than 70 programs across Victoria. VACCA is an Aboriginal community-controlled organisation that supports and advocates for the Aboriginal community. Our strength lies with our people. Our team is committed to the organisation's vision and values; advocates for our children and other vulnerable community members; and shows respect for, observance and compliance with Aboriginal cultural protocols, practice and ceremony. Our Aboriginality is what distinguishes us from mainstream services and what enables us to deliver the positive outcomes we achieve for

Let's have a yarn about the opportunity...

VACCA is delivering Family Violence Therapeutic programs across multiple locations which will deliver culturally safe and trauma informed counselling and group-based work with Aboriginal women, children, adolescents and their families who are impacted by family violence.

The Family Violence Therapeutic Practitioner position has been created to provide 1:1 trauma-informed assessment, counselling and group-work to Aboriginal women, children, adolescence and their families who are impacted by or have experienced family violence. This position will be involved in the design and delivery of new group programs with Aboriginal women, children and adolescents. The therapeutic practitioner will:

• Deliver counselling
• Undertake intake and assessment, including family violence risk assessments and safety planning
• Develop a family violence healing plan – identifying risks and strategies
• Support the client with regular review touch points
• Engage with client’s in-service and outreach (including home visits)
• Support Aboriginal women, children, adolescents and their family through their individual healing journeys by creating or rebuilding strong positive connections between participants and their culture, land, family and community
• Co-deliver Cultural therapeutic Family Violence Group Programs
• Co-Develop group programs that are provided in a culturally safe place allowing individuals to build trust, yarn up, open up in their own time and heal through the use of therapeutic interventions.
• Establish effective working relationships with partner agencies.

The position will contribute to the delivery of quality, culturally safe approaches to individuals and whole of family as appropriate through applying VACCA’s Cultural Therapeutic Ways framework and the Family Violence Therapeutic program guide. Healing through Culture will underpin all aspects of the work.

The key ingredients to success are...

• Degree qualification in social work, psychology, family therapy or a related discipline along with demonstrated experience or willing to enrol in a course.
• Demonstrated understanding of, and commitment to, the values that underpin VACCA’ vision and purpose and the capacity to take a leadership role in championing these internally and externally
• Demonstrated awareness and appreciation of Aboriginal societies and cultures, and commitment to continually build knowledge of such, along with a high level of awareness of the key issues which impact upon Aboriginal communities.
• Demonstrated experience in group facilitation
• A comprehensive understanding of the dynamics and impact of family violence in Aboriginal families
• Experience and training in risk assessment and safety planning.
• A demonstrated ability to work therapeutically and sensitively in a range of healing interventions with Aboriginal women, children, adolescents and families who are impacted and/or have experienced family violence and/or have perpetrated family violence
• Requirement: Current COVID-19 vaccination (including booster dose, as applicable), a Working with Children’s Check for a paid employee (or willingness to obtain) and a Victorian Drivers License.

Become a member of our team at VACCA, and you can expect...

• Professional support and training via in-house learning and development training modules
• Attractive salary packaging to increase your take home pay
• Great career development opportunities.
• Access to Employee support and wellbeing program(s)
• Opportunity to work and build connection with the Aboriginal Community and culture

We strongly encourage Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders people to apply.

Applications should include a cover letter addressing the key selection criteria and current resume.

To find out more about us, visit our website here.

Please click here to view the position description.

A position description is also attached below.

We are committed to Aboriginal self-determination and supporting strong, safe, thriving Aboriginal communities and aim to ensure every individual is treated with dignity, honouring all cultural backgrounds, abilities, ethnicities, sexual orientations, gender identities and spiritual beliefs.

VACCA is a child-safe organisation and is committed to ensuring the safety and wellbeing of children and young people with zero tolerance for child abuse. All successful applicants will be required to undertake a National Police Record Check and Working with Children Check prior to commencement of employment and periodically following commencement.

VACCA is an equal opportunity employer and has a smoke-free workplace policy.