Project Worker

Job title: Project Worker (Link Academy)

Location: This post is based at LinkLiving’s Edinburgh office.

Hours of Work: 37.5 per week (Monday- Friday 9-5)

Are you passionate about helping people to live a better life? Do you want to work for a charity where your health and wellbeing matter just as much as the people you support? Do you want to be part of a trauma-informed team where you will be supported to develop creative and flexible ways of working?

At LinkLiving, our values and people are at the heart of everything we do including how we recruit our staff. It is important for us to find people who share our values, which are:

• Empathy (listen to and understand an individual’s needs and circumstances)
• Respect (treat others the way they wish to be treated)
• Integrity (be honest and have strong moral principles)
• Caring (show kindness and concern for others)

LinkLiving is a Scottish health and wellbeing charity that supports people to manage or overcome the effects of negative life experiences (including trauma, mental health challenges, poverty and inequality) so that they can build on their strengths and aspirations in order to live their best possible lives. We support people through a range of models including: 

• Personal development and employability programmes 
• Self-help coaching
• Supported accommodation
• Care at home
• Housing support
• Befriending
• Social cafes

The Service

The Link Academy team works primarily with people with complex backgrounds. The service works hard and creatively to maintain the early engagement of participants. We support people by offering mental health and wellbeing programmes, independent living skills and a wide range of qualifications to support their progression including employability, tenancy, youth work and leadership award qualifications.

The Job

The purpose of the job is to support people to achieve their goals and aspirations through group work by providing opportunities to enhance their knowledge and skills. You will be responsible for recruiting, training and supporting the programme participants. You will support the achievement of high standards and provide monitoring information in relation to the project’s outcomes.

You will ensure that opportunities are provided to people equipping them with the skills to make a valuable contribution to the service and their wider community. You will support people into a positive destination whether that be re-engagement with education, training or employment. The Project Worker will provide support and offer guidance to programme participants, develop relationships with other agencies and services and actively promote LinkLiving’s programmes and services.

About You

in order to be considered for this role it is essential that you can demonstrate a good standard of education, e.g. standard grade passes (or equivalent) in core subjects such as English and Maths and also hold an SQA Assessor qualification or be willing to work towards it.

Experience of co-ordinating, developing and delivering training programmes is essential for this role.

As you will be working with people with complex needs/backgrounds you must have previous experience in this field.

Additionally, you must have the ability to drive and be able to travel between services, as required.

For a comprehensive list of the essential and desirable criteria required for this post, please refer to the Job Specification in the Job information Pack above.

What’s in it for you?

The benefits of being a LinkLiving employee (subject to the policies and benefit terms and conditions) include:

• Competitive salary, reviewed annually, and opportunity for annual performance related salary increases and discretionary non-consolidated pay awards, subject to terms of the scheme
• 35 days’ holiday per year (inclusive of public holidays) pro rata plus additional 3 days pro rata after 3 years’ service, with an opportunity to buy and sell holiday
• temporary enhanced business travel mileage allowance to support employees with increased fuel costs
• access to paid SVQ qualifications and a wide range of learning and development opportunities and funded Disclosure Scotland and Scottish Social Services Council memberships
• defined contribution pension scheme with generous employer contributions plus salary exchange and additional voluntary contribution options
• life assurance scheme providing death in service benefits to named beneficiaries
• healthcare cash plan for employees (and dependents) to support health and wellbeing plus discounts on shopping, restaurants, and other services
• employee assistance programme for employees and their immediate household dependants to support health, mental and financial well-being
• discounted travel schemes including cycle to work scheme, monthly bus pass scheme and travel ticket loan and much more!

For a full list of benefits available to employees, please see the following link - https://www.linkliving.org.uk/work-with-us

This post is subject to Protection of Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme registration. Link will meet the cost of any new PVG scheme membership or scheme record update.

Further Information

Interested? If you have any questions about the role, please email jobs@linkhaltd.co.uk and we can arrange for someone from the service to call you for an informal chat.

To find out more about what LinkLiving do and to view the generous pay and benefits package, please visit our website at https://www.linkliving.org.uk

If you’re thinking about working in adult social care, download the Guide to adult social care jobs in Scotland for in-depth information on everything you need to know to get started. In addition, you can enrol on a free, online 6 week part-time tutor-supported ‘Introduction to a Career in Social Care’ course. The course introduces the area of social care and can be a stepping-stone to employment or further training.

Closing Date: midnight on Tuesday 16 April 2024

Interview Date: Interviews are being held on Wednesday 24 April 2024 at our office in Edinburgh

How to Apply

To complete an application form, please click on the “Apply online” button below. Instructions on how to complete the form are at the top of the page.

We can offer suitable alternative methods to apply if requested including although not exclusively; hard copy, Braille and audio. You can request these by emailing our Resourcing Team at jobs@linkhaltd.co.uk and detailing which format you would require.

Please note should an internal applicant be successful in applying for this position on either a seconded or permanent basis, they will move to the terms and conditions associated with the role for the duration of the time they are in post. The terms and conditions are outlined in the job information pack.

We aim at all times to recruit the person who is most suited to the job and welcome applications from people of all backgrounds and from anyone who shares our commitment to inclusion. Our offices are fully accessible to wheelchair users and, as a Disability Confident Leader, we will interview all disabled candidates who meet the essential criteria.