Horticultural Job Coach

Location:Share Garden - Springfield Hospital, Glenburnie Road, SW17 7DT

Hours:26hours per week, 10am – 4pm, 9am start on a Monday. You’ll receive a 1 hour unpaid lunch break.

Days:Monday - Friday

Contract:Permanent

Salary:£22,230 - £27,330 pro rata depending on experience, plus 3% pension contribution

Annual Leave:25 days per year pro-rata (increasing by one day per year until you reach a maximum of 30)

Closing date: Tuesday 24th April 2018

Interview date:Tuesday 1st May 2018

Line Manager:Horticulture Training Manager

The role

We are looking for a hands-on job coach to join our diverse garden team. You will help to prepare disabled adults, studying horticulture, to move into workboth within our social enterprise and into open employment. You should be a keen and enthusiastic horticulturalist. The role requires working with students who have a range of learning, physical and mental health needs. You will be delivering sessions to get people ready for the world of work and to help them to gain industrial work experience. This will improve their journey into employment giving them more options. You will monitor and support their work practices, and provide guidance about how to be in the workplace.

You will also be key to ensuring effective communication between employers, customers, and Share. We have 5 social enterprise areas that students can gain experience in within different areas of horticultural industry. We are a working garden, open for sales to the public, and all students are encouraged to gain experience in the nursery and sales area.

Working as part of the gardening team, you will also be guiding a group of students in everyday gardening skills including weeding, planting, watering, potting on, mulching, etc and the appropriate use of garden machinery.

All vocational skills are set out by the City and Guilds training body. We use the qualification structure and units to help prepare students for achieving horticultural qualifications. Your work will support students to achieve their qualifications in horticulture, customer service, and getting ready for work.

Who we are looking for

Our ideal candidate would have experience of guiding, assessing and helping people with learning disabilities and autismto develop their skills so they are able to achieve and maintain employment or voluntary work. You'll need to have a strong commitment to the inclusion of disabled people, be a people person, with strong problem solving skills. You’ll need to have occupational competency in gardening and a keen enthusiasm for working in a garden. You shouldhave alot of energy, be able to follow instructions whilst being able to use your initiative and think on your feet.

About us

At Share, we’re passionate about supporting disabled people to set their own goals for learning and life, and then helping them to achieve their aspirations. Most of our students are people with learning disabilities and/or autism. We offer a range of training, employment, personal development, and leisure opportunities. Enabling people to be more independent and self-directed, able to make informed choices, healthier and more resilient, and fully socially included is at the heart of our work. Our programmes reflect modern needs and focus on digital skills, health and wellbeing, and developing robust pathways into independent living and employment. Most of our training programmes lead to nationally recognised qualifications. We use the Outcomes Star to help people to set goals for learning and life, and to track their achievements.

We believe that everyone has something of value to offer others, and we focus and build on people’s abilities and interests. Our students thrive in a positive and affirming environment. We support and encourage people to speak up about what’s important to them, make connections with other services and organisations, increase understanding of the world, get more involved in community life, and understand their responsibilities.

Job description

  • To work closely with adults with learning, physical and mental health needs to help guide them into paid or voluntary employment outside of Share.
  • To support the work of our social enterprise, helping Share students to gain the confidence and skills required to join and succeed as part of the enterprise.
  • To encourage and supervise students in activities which will assist the development of skills as well as experience in the horticultural industry, leading to employment.
  • Working with Share’s generic job coach, to identify job placements and opportunities to liaise with employers, providing appropriate support to both employers and students. This support will continue into students’work placements, trials, and inductions, ensuring that there is compliance with health and safety requirements.
  • Using a solutions-focused approach, to deliver workshops and coaching both in groups and one to one.
  • To support students to develop a career plan, action plan, CV, and support strategy.
  • To support students to understand their individual preferences, strengths, and limitations, and to identify support needs and solutions.
  • To work with students, their tutor(s), parents/carers, and other key people in their lives to help them to achieve their potential and move into employment.
  • To complete all administration tasks required to manage and record students’ progress. This includes updating students’ records using Share’s management information system and correspondence with external agencies.
  • To work at all times in a spirit of positivity and encouragement and in a way that values diversity.
  • To attend internal and external meetings and events as required.
  • To present regular progress reports to the management team and to produce data as required for funding reports.

Essential skills and experience

  1. Experience in guiding, assessing and helping to develop the skills of people with learning disabilities who may also have autism. Tosupport their needs into work, and to help them to maintain employment.
  2. Proven history in achieving paid employment outcomes for disabled people.
  3. Excellent problem-solving skills.
  4. Ability to assist clients to discover and overcome their personal barriers and set achievable goals.
  5. Occupational competency in gardening and a keen enthusiasm for working in the garden.
  6. Ability to follow guidelines of activities set out by City and Guilds, and to make the activities accessible for students with diverse needs.
  7. Understanding of Access to Work, benefits, Job Centre support re: permitted, supported work.
  8. Understanding what is required in the horticultural industry, including health and safety and initial work requirements.
  9. Good administration and record-keeping skills and the ability to prepare appropriate reports on students work and progression.
  10. Experience of working as part of a team focused on student wellbeing and achievement of diverse goals.
  11. Enjoyment of working outside in all weathers.

Personal qualities

  1. Good networker – excellent communication skills oral and written.
  2. Great interpersonal skills - ability to make presentations to varied audiences, and to identify local employment needs from employers.
  3. Excellent time management andability to prioritise tasks.
  4. The ability to inspire and motivate.
  5. Clean driving license.

Desirable qualities

  1. Experience of working with adults in a horticulture enterprise would be beneficial.
  2. An open attitude to working in different ways.
  3. Understanding of the challenges associated with supporting adults with some learning and behavioural support and what may berequired to gain employment.

How to apply

Please complete ourapplication formandequal opportunitiesform which can be downloaded from our website Please return both .

We will endeavour to acknowledge receipt of your application form by email; however only candidates selected for interview will be contacted. You will be required to provide proof of qualifications and ID at the interview.

We welcome applications from everyone. We focus on ability and believe peoplework best when they feel valued, safe and happy. We do all that we can to make sure that Share is friendly and welcoming to everyone.

This job is subject to two satisfactory references, evidence of qualifications, an enhanced Disclosure and Barring check and providing evidence of right to work in the UK.

If you have a disability and would like to discuss other ways of submitting your application, please call Leanne on 0207 801 9825.

We are very much looking forward to receiving your application.