Childrens Residential Care Worker x6

Peripatetic Residential Worker x 6

Mainstream Residential Service

Working in Residential Childcare at Wakefield Council

More than just a job

Working in one of Wakefield Council's children's homes is a chance to change lives and transform your own future. Every child deserves a safe, loving home and positive experiences that set them up for life. That's why residential childcare is so important, and why we're looking for people who care.

As part of our continued investment in children's residential services, we have created six new Peripatetic Residential Worker posts to support our growing service of nine children's homes across Wakefield.

These exciting new roles offer variety, flexibility, and the opportunity to make a real difference across multiple homes, supporting children, young people, and residential teams wherever your skills are needed most.

Who we're looking for

You don't need to have worked in residential childcare before. We welcome people from all walks of life who are:

• Warm, nurturing and emotionally intelligent
• Enthusiastic, motivated and adaptable
• Excellent communicators who build positive relationships
• Resilient and able to remain calm under pressure
• Passionate about helping children achieve positive outcomes
• Flexible and willing to work across different homes and teams
• Equipped with transferable skills from previous employment or life experiences

The Role

Full Time Peripatetic Residential Worker x 6

Our Peripatetic Residential Workers provide support across our nine mainstream residential homes, helping ensure children receive consistent, high-quality care whilst supporting service resilience.

No two days are the same. You may be supporting a home through staffing changes, providing additional support during transitions, covering annual leave, helping establish routines with newly admitted children, or sharing your skills and experience across different teams.

This role is ideal for individuals who enjoy variety, can quickly build positive relationships, and are passionate about supporting children and young people wherever they are needed most.

You will work with children and young people aged 5-17 years who have experienced trauma and adversity. You will help create nurturing, stable environments where children feel safe, valued and able to thrive.

What you'll do

• Support children and young people in their daily lives
• Build trusted, positive relationships with children, families and professionals
• Promote positive behaviour and emotional wellbeing
• Support children to attend education, health appointments and activities
• Help children develop independence and life skills
• Contribute to care planning, recording and review processes
• Work flexibly across our nine residential homes as required
• Be part of a service committed to achieving outstanding outcomes

Why choose a Peripatetic role?

This is a unique opportunity to:

• Gain experience across multiple children's homes
• Develop a broad range of residential childcare skills
• Build relationships with a diverse group of colleagues and children
• Increase your knowledge of different residential home environments
• Access excellent development opportunities
• Play a vital role in maintaining stability for children across the service
• Enhance your future career progression opportunities within Wakefield Children's Services

In addition to your salary, you will receive:

• Weekend allowance
• Shift allowance
• Enhanced bank holiday and weekend pay
• Generous annual leave entitlement
• Competitive salary with yearly increments
• Funding for Level 3/4 Residential Childcare Diploma qualification
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Occupational Health support
• Local Government Pension Scheme
• Blue Light Card discounts

What our children say

"I love my carers."

"They mean the world to me."

"My carers care about my family as well."

What our colleagues say

"Every day is a new opportunity to make a difference."

"Being part of the change and seeing positive outcomes is the best thing about the role."

"We create memories and help children enjoy their childhood."

"The support from managers and colleagues is amazing."

Why Wakefield?

Wakefield is ambitious for children and has adopted an innovative and trauma-informed approach throughout its residential model.

Our mainstream residential service consists of nine children's homes that are committed to delivering safe, loving and nurturing care close to home. We believe children should grow up in their local communities, maintaining important relationships and achieving the very best outcomes.

We are proud of our residential offer and continue to invest in our workforce, creating opportunities for people who share our vision and values.

Training and Development

Our people are our greatest strength, and we are committed to helping you develop a rewarding career.

We offer:

• Level 3/4 Diploma in Residential Childcare Apprenticeship
• Mandatory and specialist training
• Trauma-informed practice training
• Reflective supervision and support
• Career progression opportunities across Wakefield Children's Services

Shift Times

A combination of:

• Early shifts: 7:00am - 3:00pm
• Late shifts: 2:30pm - 10:30pm
• Sleep-ins
• Waking Nights
• Alternate weekend working

As a Peripatetic Residential Worker, flexibility is essential as you will be deployed across our nine mainstream residential homes according to service needs.

Join us

Whether you're already working in children's residential care or looking for a new and rewarding challenge, our Peripatetic Residential Worker roles offer the chance to make a lasting difference to children's lives while building a fulfilling career in a supportive, forward-thinking service.

If you care, we can teach you the rest. Join our team and help us ensure every child has the opportunity to thrive.

What can I expect?

• A competitive salary
• Generous holiday entitlement with the option to buy up to 10 extra days of annual leave
• Hybrid working (subject to role suitability)
• Access to high-quality training programs to advance your career to the next level.
• We are committed to supporting the wellbeing of our staff. We recognise that resilient teams need good work life balance as well as supportive leadership.
• Discounted and subsidised public transport (Arriva Bus Annual Travel Ticket, Northern Trains Limited (NTL), MetroCard).
• Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) and a Shared Cost Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVC) scheme providing a tax efficient way to increase our pension.
• Great range of benefits including an Employee Assistant Programme, discounted membership to our excellent leisure facilities with free 12 weeks exercise program, discounts for a range of retail, entertainment, health and leisure providers, a cycle to work scheme, and many more

Want to know more?

If you would like to know more about the role, the recruitment process or working for Wakefield Council, feel free to contact.

Name: Claire Smith

Tel: 01924 306137

E-mail: clasmith@wakefield.gov.uk

Join us and make a real impact in the community. Apply today to become a valued member of our team!

Safeguarding

Wakefield Council is wholly committed to ensuring children and vulnerable adults are fully supported and safe. We are dedicated to the safeguarding of all children and vulnerable adults whilst promoting their welfare. We expect all staff and volunteers to share this responsibility.

DBS (Disclosure & Barring Service)

The successful applicant will be required to complete a Disclosure Application Form and to provide criminal conviction information.

Probation

In accordance with the Council Probation Procedure, this post is subject to a 6-month Probationary Period.

Fluency Duty

To comply with Part 7 of the Immigration Act 2016 (Fluency Duty), public facing roles will be subject to the Fluency Duty.

Diversity

Having a diverse workforce that is reflective of the communities we serve helps us to achieve the best outcomes for all. We encourage applications from everyone and actively seek to ensure that everyone feels included in the workplace so that we can make the most of our differences.

Why Wakefield

To find out more about the benefits of working at Wakefield Council, click here.