JOB DESCRIPTION

Job Title:Project Worker–Direct Engagement & Support

Reports To:Team Leader

Grade /Salary:£21,268

Project details:Drink Wise Age Well

Rethink Good Health, an initiative funded by the Big Lottery Fund (BLF), will aim to influence and inform UK-wide policy and practice in preventing alcohol misuse amongst adults aged 50 and over.

Rethink Good Health will be brought about through developing a portfolio of individual projects which can be used to gather evidence of what works and forms a comprehensive communication and influencing plan to inform policy and practice UK wide. The programme will be delivered over a five year period and its impact evaluated over 7 years. Rethink Good Health will bring about the following outcomes:

•Better informed policy and practice about preventing alcohol dependency in later life

•Improved health and well-being for people age 50 and over who are at risk of developing alcohol dependency

•The delivery of more effective services to prevent alcohol dependency amongst the ageing population.

Addaction has established a UK wide consortium comprising of a number of partners ;Royal Voluntary Service, Addiction Northern Ireland, Drug and Alcohol Charities Wales, International Longevity Centre-UK and University of Bedfordshire’s Substance Misuse and Ageing Research Team. Together we have successfully secured the £25 million fund which we have named the Drink Wise, Age Well Programme. Five demonstration areas have been identified across the four UK nations to deliver the programme via an integrated, community-based intervention programme.

Key areas of programme delivery in each demonstration area will be

-prevention and campaigning

-skills development and training

-building resilience

-direct engagement and support

The Direct Engagement and Supportwork stream will provide direct support to adults over 50 and their families affected by alcohol use. Outreach support will be delivered in communities, within service users homes and other suitable locations. We will support both long term drinkers with complex needs, and late on set drinkers through as a number of evidenced based interventions and in partnership with other agencies. We will also support peer support and mutual aid in recovery

Role Purpose:

•To provide support, information and advice to individuals and their families in relations to substance misuse.

•To improve access to appropriate services for people Over 50 and their families with substance misuse issues

•To assist in the delivery of a community-based, integrated programme through the provision of assessment, action planning, group work and appropriate referral

•To communicate the Drink Wise, Age Well programme vision and deliver its mission, strategy and outcomes

Key Duties and Responsibilities:

  1. To assess people over 50, carrying out triage and comprehensive assessment as required and make onward referrals to specialist agencies, where necessary.
  1. To devise, monitor, review and update recovery plans to ensure that service userneeds and goals are met in an appropriate manner.
  1. To assist in the day-to-day operation of the service through the delivery of appropriate treatment interventions including assessing risk and ensuring a safe and appropriate environment for all.
  1. To offer brief interventions, motivational interviewing, cognitive behavioural techniques and harm minimisation strategies to service users and their families, depending on individual need
  1. To develop and maintain effective and efficient satellite services to key areas in the locality as identified by the management, and to deliver interventions in the service users home
  1. To contribute to the provision of effective group work using mutual aid/peer recovery approaches with service users and their families
  1. To record service userdata and outcomes in accordance with Drink Wise, Age Well policy to ensure the integrity of information included in Quarterly and Annual Reports to funders.
  1. To support and where appropriate supervise colleagues, peer mentors, volunteers and sessional workers providing advice and guidance to ensure that care standards are maintained and that service users receive the most appropriate care.
  1. Ensure good working relationships are established and maintained with service users, their families, service partners and Drink Wise, Age Well team and management.
  1. To develop your own knowledge and practice, attend supervision and team meetings so as to fulfil your role as an effective member of the team.
  1. Carry out any reasonable and lawful duties and responsibilities as required by your line managers

Further information and General Responsibilities

Confidentiality

Ensure confidentiality at all times, only releasing confidential information obtained during the course of employment to those acting in an official capacity.

Data Protection Act

To comply with the requirements of the Data Protection Act.

Conflict of duties

All applicants to any post within Addaction are required to declare any involvement either directly or indirectly with any firm, company or organisation that has a contract with Addaction. Failure to do so may result in an application being rejected or dismissal after appointment.

Equal Opportunities and Diversity –

To ensure that all service users, their partners, families, colleagues both in Addaction and other partner organisations are treated as individuals within Addaction’s Diversity and Equality framework

Health and Safety –

You are required to comply at all times with the requirements of the Health and Safety regulations and Addaction’s Health and Safety Policy and Procedures.

You are responsible for taking reasonable care with regard to yourself as well as any colleague, service user or visitor who might be affected by an act or failure to act by yourself.

Quality Assurance

To ensure all activities are managed in a way that supports Addaction's Quality Assurance Strategy.

Person Specification: Project Worker

Essential / Desirable
Qualifications & Training /
  • QCF Level 3 in health & social care (or equivalent)Professional qualification
/
  • Educated to degree level

Skills & Abilities /
  • Knowledge and Experience of Group work
  • Experience of assessment, recovery planning and key working
  • Knowledge and experience of the issues affecting people with drug/alcohol problems.
  • Ability to work effectively as a team player in a collaborative and supportive manner.
  • Excellent written and oral communication skills
  • IT skills & awareness linked to Windows 2000 driven software
/
  • Knowledge and experience of solution focused Brief Therapy, motivational interviewing and Cognitive Behavioural Approaches.
  • Knowledge of ageing and related health issues
  • Ability to design and deliver training materials

Experience& Knowledge /
  • Experience of working in the substance misuse field
  • Demonstrable knowledge and experience of partnership working with the health, social care and/or older adult setting
  • Knowledge of health and safety, including assessing high-risk situations for self, colleagues and services users and their families.
/
  • Lone working experience
  • Knowledge of ageing and alcohol in a policy context
  • Knowledge of co-production models and Community Systems Approach

Personal Effectiveness /
  • Confident
  • Organised with excellent time management skills.
/
  • Driving License

Circumstances /
  • Commitment to support organisation’s values and mission.
  • Value base that supports recovery
  • Flexibility of working times and travel

Diversity /
  • Demonstrate the ability to effectively work with people from a range of ethnic, cultural, social, gender, age, religious orientation.
/
  • Understanding of alcohol issues as they particularly affect marginalised individuals, minority groups and communities