Family Time Coordinator

Overview

We currently have an exciting full-time opportunity within our Family Time Service for a Family Time Coordinator based in High Wycombe. 

The Family Time Service is determined to make a difference and offers an excellent chance to have a genuine impact on the lives of children and families in Buckinghamshire. 

The Family Time Service is required to support the overall development of children and young people by providing quality time with birth relatives from whom they are separated whilst being looked after by the Local Authority. 

The Service provides safe and beneficial family time in a child-centred environment and is committed to promoting children’s rights and the processes necessary to ensure their welfare. 

If you are looking for a new challenge to be part of a nurturing and supportive team, then apply today! 

About us

Buckinghamshire Council is a relatively new organisation that combines the strengths and expertise of the previous five councils in the county to create positive change for local people, communities, and businesses. We are firmly focused on the future and have made a clear commitment to serve residents better and to provide stronger representation for Buckinghamshire, both locally and nationally.  

Buckinghamshire is an ambitious, rapidly growing county, and our economy is one of the strongest in the country. It is an area of outstanding natural beauty and ranks as one of the top rural areas to live in the UK and yet it is incredibly well connected– only an hour from London on the train. The county has a rich history and heritage and is the birthplace of the international Paralympic movement. 

We are looking for motivated, ambitious and inspiring people to join us on our journey. You will be entitled to a range of different benefits to make sure you are happy both at work and at home. 

This is a fantastic opportunity for you to support with the development and progression of the service; ensuring that direct intervention support to families is linked to best outcomes for children and young people.  

 

About the role

This is a full-time position based at the Family Time Centre in High Wycombe. The post is offered on a fixed-term contract for 12 months. The standard working pattern is 37 hours per week, Monday to Friday, although flexibility may occasionally be required to meet the needs of the service.

To work proactively within the team and to ensure that supervised family time sessions are coordinated for all children in Local Authority care with their birth relatives within appropriate timeframes.  

Have appropriate experience of working with the relevant client group and understanding of the relevant statutory frameworks/requirements and practical knowledge of a range of procedures and interventions to support families. 

 Responsibilities: 

 Arrangements are planned within the child’s needs to include a suitable venue and staff under the direction of the Assistant Team Managers and Family Time Practitioner.      

• To be responsible for the daily facilitating and coordinating of the Team Up calendar with the assistance of the Management Team. Work in a flexible way to accommodate changes and update Team Up in a timely way to make sure changes are reflected.  
• Ensure agency staff have updated information regarding risk assessments, planning or review notes.  This is to make sure they are aware of the risk level of family time and what they should specifically focus on. 
• Ensure a Referral and Risk Assessment is received prior to family time being set up. 
• Liaise closely with colleagues via monthly meetings to ensure the best service for children is being offered.  
• When feasible, undertake risk assessments on external venues to ensure suitability for family time.  
• Resolve issues and ensure an alternative course of action is provided if unable to achieve original plan for family time. Action escalated or complex issues from internal and external customers. 
• Manage complex diaries and travel arrangements to enable effective delivery of family time service using specific software. 
• Ability to deal with challenging situations as they arise. 
• Liaise, communicate, and build relationships with families, foster carers, and other Council contacts to provide specialist advice and support.  
• Plan and organise work and priorities, co-ordinating with others to ensure that timescales and targets are achieved. Day to day decision making is required in relation to making sure family time sessions are covered. 
• Work independently to plan and deliver own work activities within agreed timescales, coordinating with others to ensure work is completed to the required timescales and standards. 

 

For a full list of responsibilities please see attached job description. 

 

About you

Educated to NVQ 4 / HND / BTEC standard or equivalent experience. 

The role is customer-facing, and the post holder is required to speak to members of the public, the ability to converse at ease with service users and provide advice in accurate spoken English is essential for the post. 

You will have sensitivity and empathy to build trusting and supportive relationships with families and skills to influence, persuade and motivate them to achieve agreed goals and targets. 

For a full list of requirements, please see the attached job summary.

Other information

If you would like to find out more about this role, please contact Ruchelle Jones at [email protected]

This is a 12-month secondment opportunity based in High Wycombe.

We reserve the right to close the vacancy once we have received sufficient applications, so please be advised to submit your application as early as possible.

Buckinghamshire Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults at risk.

This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and therefore applicants are required to declare:

• All unspent convictions and conditional cautions
• All spent convictions and adult cautions that are not protected (i.e. that are not filtered out) as defined by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (as amended in 2020 and 2023).

For further information on filtering please refer to Nacro guidance and the guidance published by the Ministry of Justice (see, in particular, the section titled ‘Exceptions Order’).

 

 

 

 

Our values

We have a set of values, which our employees have chosen, that represent what we are – Proud, Ambitious, Collaborative and Trustworthy.

By joining Buckinghamshire Council, you can expect:

• a fair and inclusive culture
• the chance to really make a difference to those around you
• health and well-being initiatives including an Employee Assistance Programme, Mental Health First Aiders and mindfulness workshops
• a unified voice through our Employee Representative Group
• ongoing support, and the opportunity to develop and progress in your career with us
• opportunities to take part in fun activities such as fundraising and social events

At Buckinghamshire Council, we know that our biggest strength comes from the people that work for us, and that’s why we’re working hard to ensure we continue to be an accessible and inclusive organisation.

From dedicated staff networks overseen by our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Steering Group, to proudly standing as a Disability Confident employer, it’s important to us that all our colleagues feel engaged, listened to, and valued. Our offer of flexible working empowers a productive and happy workforce and allows employees to combine work with other responsibilities and commitments.

We believe our workforce should reflect the diverse communities we service in Buckinghamshire, and are looking for like-minded individuals to join us in promoting equality, fairness, and inclusion for everyone.

We recognise and reward you

Hard work and success deserves recognition. That’s why we pride ourselves on the benefits we give our people. We actively encourage a good work-life balance and promote flexible and agile working arrangements.

We provide discounts on various Cafés, restaurants and shops, a generous employer pension contribution in line with the Local Government Pension Scheme, discounts on gym memberships and more - https://jobs.buckinghamshire.gov.uk/working-buckinghamshire-council/