Residential Child Care Practitioner

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Please apply online via the link provided.

Please note, we do not accept CVs submitted without a fully completed online application form.

Brighter Futures for Children

About us

Brighter Futures for Children is a not-for-profit company, owned by, but independent of, Reading Borough Council. Although we are independent, we are very much part of the Reading Family. Our people enjoy all of benefits as other Council employees including membership of the Local Government Pension Scheme and continuous service.

We work closely with partners in the local community and key organisations including Reading Borough Council, policy, public health and voluntary groups. We are responsible for the delivery of children’s social care, early help & prevention, education services (including SEND). This also includes fostering and adoption, the Youth Offending Service and traded services with schools.

Our main aim is to protect and enhance the lives of the children of Reading. We help families find long-term solutions to ensure children lead happy, healthy and successful lives.

Our Home

Pinecroft shared care service is dedicated to supporting children with physical disabilities, learning difficulties and/or sensory impairment. We pride ourselves in offering high quality personalised care to the most vulnerable and complex children aged 8-18. Our goal is to transform lives by being passionate, committed and creative in everything we do. We believe improved outcomes for children are possible through a proactive and consistent approach, where learning through play and accessing the community is essential.

About the role

This role has a starting salary of £29,420 per annum (Including 15% shift allowance), based on a 37-hour week rising up to £35,675 per annum. Enhanced rates of pay are available for overtime, weekend work and sleep-ins.

The role requires staff to work on a shift pattern rota, which will include a combination of early (7am-3pm) and late (2pm-10pm) shifts, long days (7am-10pm), sleep-ins, alternate weekend working and religious celebration days. The home will be closed on bank holidays unless service needs require us to be open. This shift-based role involves personal care/manual handling, domestic duties including preparation of meals and cleaning, medication administration, key working, report writing and accompanying the children on activities and appointments. Pinecroft invests heavily in the continued professional development of its staff, once you have completed your probation, we will offer the opportunity to gain the nationally recognised Level 4 children and young peoples and family’s practitioner residential pathway qualification.

For more information about the role, please read the job description and person specification.

To apply you will need to upload your CV, complete an application and answer the following questions.

1. Could you start by telling us why you have applied for this position, and what skills or experience you can bring to the role?
2. Do you have any experience working with children whose behaviour may challenge? Please give an example of how you managed this.
3. If your current team could describe you, what would they say makes you a good residential childcare practitioner?

Our offer

We offer a supportive environment to grow and develop your career with the opportunity to put your ideas across. Innovation and ambition are strongly encouraged, and you’ll get a great feel for that working in our friendly and collaborative environment.

A competitive salary alongside a range of benefits including:

• Local Government Pension Scheme with generous employer contribution
• Incremental holidays starting with 26 days plus public holidays (rising to 33 after 10 years’ service)
• Discounted Child Care (on site nursery)
• Cycle to work scheme.
• Season train ticket loans
• Salary Sacrifice Car Lease Scheme
• A range of local shopping discounts

Inclusion and Diversity

We want Brighter Futures for Children to be a great place to work and to ensure that our children, young people and families are represented in leadership roles and positions of power. A vital part of this is ensuring we are a truly inclusive organisation that encourages diversity in all respects, including diversity of thinking.

We particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian and those of Other Ethnicities, LGBT+, disabled and neurodiverse communities to make a real difference to our children, young people and families so that equalities and justice remains at the heart of everything we do.

Asking for Adjustments

Brighter Futures for Children is committed to making our recruitment practices barrier-free and as accessible as possible for everyone. This includes making adjustments or changes for disabled people, neurodiverse people or people with long-term health conditions.

If you would like us to do anything differently during the application, interview or assessment process, including providing information in an alternative format, please let us know.

Closing date: 26th August 2025

Interview date: W/C 1st September 2025

We look forward to hearing from you!

In January 2025 the decision was made to bring Children’s Services (currently operating as Brighter Futures for Children Ltd (BFfC)) back in-house to Reading Borough Council (RBC).

All staff employed by BFfC on 30 September 2025 will transfer, via the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 (TUPE), to the Council on 1 October 2025.

For new starters who BFfC confirms before 27 September 2025 their pre-employment checks are completed and a start date agreed will be issued with a BFfC contact and will transfer to RBC.

For new starters whose pre-employment checks have not been completed and / or a start date has not been agreed before 27 September, you will be issued with an RBC contract and your start date will not be before 6 October 2025.