FIRST STEP TRUST JOB DESCRIPTION
Job Title:
General Assistant
Reports to;
Assistant Manager - Practical
Location:
FST Salford and other locations as required.
Some travel to other FST projects may be required.
Hours per week:
37.5 per week
Mon-Fri during normal office hours (excluding meal breaks).
Some flexibility as required by the demands of the post, which may
include occasional evening and/or weekends.
Background:
First Step Trust (FST) is a national charity that provides opportunities for people excluded
from working life because of mental health problems or other disadvantages in secure and
community settings.
We do this by operating a wide range of trading social enterprise businesses that provide
opportunities for volunteers to gain exposure to the pressures and demands of real work, gain
skills, experience, training, qualifications and progression towards employment. We call these
volunteers members of our workforce.
FST Salford is a project commissioned by Greater Manchester West Mental Health NHS
Foundation Trust (GMW MH NHS FT) to provide a non-clinical service that supports their
service-users’ recovery, alongside other clinical services within their medium secure hospital
setting in Prestwich.
The FST project currently provides a range of opportunities for our workforce in practical,
office and retail work sections for adult males and females. These work sections provide our
workforce opportunities to contribute to managing the finance & administration of the work
sections, running our on-site shop, providing car valeting and site maintenance service
contracts, including painting & decorating, alongside other meaningful activities to support
their recovery.
First Step Trust. Company no. 373 0562. Registered in England and Wales. Charity reg. 1077 959.
Registered office: 9 Kingside Business Park, Ruston Road, Woolwich, London SE18 5BX. VAT reg. 6500 196 68.
Tel/fax: 020 8855 7386. Website: www.firststeptrust.org.uk. Email: [email protected].
Job Summary:
This role is an opportunity for a suitably qualified or experienced person to develop the
capacity and ability to support people with mental health issues to access the demands,
challenges and responsibilities of real work within a secure setting.
A significant portion of this role will be hands on, involving in the delivery of our regular
commercial painting & decorating contract work for the estates and facilities department within
the secure setting environments, across the Prestwich hospital site, together with the delivery
of the project’s other practical work sections.
The successful applicant, with the support of the assistant manager will assist in the delivery
and development of the project’s painting & decorating and other commercial operations, to
involve members of our workforce wherever possible in developing trading income and
improving opportunities across the range of work sections at the project.
The wider role, where you will be supported by your manager and other experienced
workforce and colleagues to deliver within this environment, requires the successful candidate
to support the provision of ‘on the job’ vocational training and support to members of the
voluntary workforce, enabling them to develop the core skills, abilities and attitudes to work.
In practice this means engaging, working alongside and including members of the workforce
as equals in all aspects of the delivery of pieces of work, including; health & safety, training,
purchasing of materials, invoicing customers, liaising with suppliers and working within
established FST policies and procedures.
All of the work is undertaken as it would be in any other commercial environment or place of
work, and no experience of working within a secure setting, or with people with mental health
issues is required.
MAIN DUTIES

Working with colleagues, members of the workforce and sometimes service
commissioners and/or other external partners or clients.

Scheduling and coordinating the necessary resources required to operate each of the
work sections on a day-to-day basis

Support the operation and delivery of each practical work session as required; ensure
sessions start on time, operate for the required duration and have the appropriate
numbers of voluntary workforce involved.
Identify, develop and implement improvements within the scope of the role.

Customer service:
 Communicate clearly and effectively with colleagues and customers, both written and
verbal.
 Invite, review and act upon customer and colleague feedback to maintain high
standards of service.
 Encourage and deliver high standards of customer service from yourself and by others.
Health and Safety:
 Ensure that sessions operate safely and within other policies and procedures.
 Deliver and involve others in regular safety discussions and safe working practices.
 Involve others in sharing the responsibility for health & safety.
 Complete and record suitable and sufficient risk assessments in compliance with
existing safe working methods for all work activities and equipment.
Policies & procedures:
 To work in accordance and within the limits and parameters of First Step Trust’s own
policies and procedures.
 To work in accordance and within the limits and parameters of GMW MH NHS FT’s
Policies and Procedures.
 Maintain an up to date awareness of, and work in accordance with all policies you will
be provided with including security, confidentiality and Health & Safety.
Administration:
 Work with the others to encourage the recruitment and development of workforce,
including actively identifying potential new workforce for the project.
 To monitor and produce accurate work section and session data and performance
reports as required.
 Effectively monitor others in the day to day operation of sessions, including maintaining
the session documentation, completion of workforce training records, attendance and
development records.
Business development:
 Support your Line Manager and colleagues to identify and develop further commercial
opportunities at the project.
 Establish and maintain solid relationships with internal and external clients, customers
and colleagues.
 Support the overall project plan and perform any other task as reasonably required
according to the needs of the project and First Step Trust.
PERSON SPECIFICATION
Qualifications and Experience
 Ideally, NVQ level 2 qualification in painting & decorating, similar qualification, or a
minimum of 2 years demonstrable experience within the painting & decorating trade.
 Ideally, winning, estimating, planning and delivering jobs of work within a commercial
environment.
 Some experience or understanding of planning work schedules for staff.
 Some experience of supervising and/or supporting and developing others within a work
environment.
 Some experience and understanding of managing finances and working within a
budget.
 Some experience of purchasing, pricing or dealing with suppliers.
 Experience of using MS Excel spreadsheets, ideally MS Word within a work
environment.
 Ideally some experience or understanding of producing regular reports and
information, accurately and on time.
 Experience or understanding of conducting risk assessments and Health & Safety at
work.
 A Full UK Driving license is desirable, although not essential.
Essential Knowledge and skills
 A desire and ability to develop the capacity to support people with mental health issues
to access the demands, challenges and responsibilities of real work within a secure
setting.
 Some knowledge or experience of the issues affecting people with mental health
issues, particularly at work.
 A clear understanding and experience of delivering good customer service.
 An ability to manage and communicate well with customers, suppliers and colleagues.
 A positive attitude, with a solution focused approach to resolve problems/issues
effectively.
 Good organisation and administrative skills, with a working knowledge of common
office software packages including Microsoft Excel, the Internet, email and word
documents.
 Good written and verbal communication skills.
 Some experience of implementing and working in compliance with policies, procedures
and regulations, including H&S in the workplace.
Essential Attitudes
 Presentable and approachable.
 A dedicated “team” orientated person, with resilience and a positive ‘can-do’ attitude.
 An ability to maintain a flexible approach to meet the demands of work.
 Motivational, with an ability and willingness to challenge and develop others.
 Empathetic but not sympathetic.
 Commitment to opposing all forms of discrimination and actively promoting equality of
opportunity.
 Willingness and ability to continually develop, including taking any further training or
qualification deemed essential to the role.
 An understanding and commitment to the values, principles and philosophy of FST.