Who Cares? Scotland Job Specification
Post Title:
Salary range
Hours of work
Area
Base location
Responsible to
Last Update
Participation Assistant (East Renfrewshire)
£8.25 p/h
17.5 hours
East Renfrewshire
WCS National Office (Glasgow)
APM
May 16
Purpose of the post
The post holder will support the Advocacy and Participation Worker (APW) across East Renfrewshire
to ensure that young people with care experience are empowered and supported to have their
voices heard and to become champions for positive change.
They will work directly with young people within East Renfrewshire and support young people’s
participation, the Champions Board meetings and other related activities.
The post holder will support the APW across East Renfrewshire in creating opportunities for
involvement and engagement activities/projects (group work etc) to development the work of the
Champions Board. The main focus of this role will be supporting the planning and delivery of the
consultation, participation and influencing opportunities for children and young people who are, or
have been, looked after to facilitate their involvement with the Champions Board. This is an exciting
opportunity to learn to use a range of communications, engagement techniques and creative
methods, to promote involvement and engagement. The post holder will work with the APW to
promote Children’s Rights awareness across the Local Authority and partner agencies.
Main Duties and Responsibilities
1) Support the Engagement & Involvement work of Who Cares? Scotland and development
activities for care experienced young people, with a specific focus on the East Renfrewshire
Champions Board.
2) Work directly with young people as part of the Champions Board and support the APW to
actively promote group work opportunities with children and young people across East
Renfrewshire.
3) Work with partners and corporate parents
4) Support and assist the APW in the successful delivery of the involvement and engagement
activities and materials
5) Support the administration of engagement and involvement activities as directed by the
APW, Senior Practitioner, and the Advocacy and Participation Manager.
6) Assist the Young Person’s Workers to develop youth work tools and session plans/activities
for WCS staff to use with young people.
7) Be an ambassador for Who Cares? Scotland by upholding the staff code of conduct, adhering
to policies and procedures and promoting values at all times.
8) Be able to attend and support the delivery of residential activities.
9) Be part of regular regional team meetings and development sessions, which includes
providing updates on your activities.
10) Carry out any other duties commensurate with the post as agreed with the Advocacy and
Participation Manager and Senior Practitioner.
Probation period and expectations
The post holder will be expected to demonstrate progress on a series of projects and outcomes in
the first 6 months of their post. This will be their probation period. Areas of the probation period
that will be recorded and assessed include (but are not restricted to):
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time management
reliability
attitude and values
delivering on tasks that are set.
Regular support and supervision will be in place during this period to help the post holder achieve
success in this probation period. The post holder will be subject to Who Cares? Scotland HR policies
and will be expected to ensure they adhere to these at all times.
Line Management
The Advocacy and Participation Manager has overall responsibility for the work of the APW and the
Participation Assistant. The post holder will be directly supervised by a senior practitioner and will
be expected to work with the APW, the Local Authority and contribute to the national work of Who
Cares? Scotland.
Communication
The post holder will have key contacts with:
 Children and young people
 East Renfrewshire Council
 Corporate Parents
 Advocacy and Participation Manager/Senior Practitioner
 Advocacy and Participation Worker
 Representatives of other organisations as directed.
Working environment
The post is based in the WCS National office in Glasgow. The post holder will travel across East
Renfrewshire and out with as required to undertake role.
Attitudes and values
Commitment to:
 Children’s rights
 Working inclusively with an understanding of equal opportunities practices
 Belief that young people can make transformative change happen in their lives if given the
opportunity.
 Working in partnership with young people, empowering them to make decisions about their
own lives
 Developing skills through regular supervision and training opportunities
Essential knowledge, skills and experience
Knowledge:
Demonstrable knowledge of:
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The issues affecting young people who are care experienced.
The care system in Scotland
Children’s rights
Child protection issues
Skills and Competencies:
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Ability to manage your time and workload effectively to meet deadlines
The ability to facilitate children and young people sharing their views within a collective
advocacy model
Ability to effectively evidence and plan work
Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
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Ability to form positive relationships with children and young people
Ability to work collaboratively as part of a team and on own initiative
Ability to work evenings and weekends, with some overnight commitments required.