Children's Residential Worker

Surrey County Council • Permanent • Guildford, Surrey, England, United Kingdom • £31.66k - £33.95k / year • 1d ago

This role has a salary range of £31,659- £33,952 per annum based on a 36-hour week plus enhanced rates of pay for weekends, bank holidays and sleep in duties.

We are excited to be hiring Children's Residential Workers to join our fantastic team, based at our home in Guildford!

As a 24/7 service operating all year round, our roles work on a rota basis. Shifts are usually between 10 and 12 hours to ensure consistent care for our children and young people, though this may vary slightly depending on staffing arrangements and the needs of our children and young people.

We'll talk through shift patterns and rotas during the Teams call so you're clear on what to expect.

Our Offer to You

26 days' holiday, rising to 28 days after 2 years' service and 31 days after 5 years' service
Option to buy up to 10 days of additional annual leave
A generous local government salary related pension
Up to 5 days of carer's leave and 2 paid volunteering days per year
Paternity, adoption and dependents leave
An Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support health and wellbeing
Learning and development hub where you can access a wealth of resources
Wellbeing and lifestyle discounts including gym, travel, and shopping
A chance to make a real difference to the lives of our residents
Refer a friend payment of £750 as a thank you for finding the right residential worker

Our Residential Workers turn our Residential Houses into Homes!

Residential Support Workers are the backbone of our children's homes, working directly with our children to provide them with a safe, nurturing, and supportive home environment. They proactively engage our children in activities that promote positive physical, emotional, and social development, helping them recognise the benefits and sense of purpose these can provide.

Our home in Guildford supports children who experience social and emotional difficulties, and we are looking for motivated and engaged individuals to join the team to work directly with our children. No two days in our home are the same, so be prepared to expect the unexpected!

About the Role

We want our homes to be nurturing, fun and inspirational places where our young people feel safe to be themselves and can rely on us to guide, care, and support them to grow and thrive whatever their challenges.

Building effective relationships, co-ordinating activities and holidays, creating meaningful care plans, working together with partner organisations, writing reports and ensuring records are kept clear and up to date are some of the ways our Residential Workers support our children.

Like all supportive, caring, and compassionate home environments; no two days are the same, they throw up complex and challenging situations and are on 24/7 - 365 days of the year. So, let's be honest, if you are looking for a 9-5 job which is straight forward and predictable, you might want to sit this one out.

While the role can be challenging, the rewards can be profound. Watching a child grow in confidence, develop new skills, and begin to believe in their future is an experience like no other.

Supporting You

We are dedicated to providing consistent care and building effective relationships, not just with our children and young people, but with each other and with our partner organisations and colleagues who we collaborate with.

We will support and invest in you to achieve the mandatory, nationally recognised, Level 3 Diploma in Residential Childcare (within two years of starting) if you do not already have this. We have a proven track record of supporting staff to pass their qualification and are proud of the achievements of all staff we invest in.

Gaining this qualification will unlock opportunities for you to progress to a Senior Residential Worker (starting at £34,660 per annum) and will help you grow the skills and confidence needed to be an effective Residential Worker.

Working in children's residential services is a great opportunity and gateway to developing a career within care. We offer a clearly defined career pathway and progression opportunities with our expanding children's residential service as we continue our journey to open further homes this year and beyond. You will have access to a wealth of personal development and resources to ensure you feel confident to succeed and progress in your role, working as part of a wider network with support from professionals such as Psychologists and our Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) service to enrich your practice.

Shortlisting Criteria

This opportunity would suit someone with a calm, proactive, and solution-focused outlook, who can build meaningful relationships based on trust and mutual respect. Experience in residential care, mental health, youth work, probation, or family services is valuable, but we also welcome transferable experience from education, sports coaching, or other people-focused roles. What matters most is your motivation and ability to connect with children, understanding how you can encourage and engage them to make healthy, meaningful and positive choices.

To apply you will need to upload your CV and answer the following 4 questions, considering our behaviours:

Looking at our advert please tell us what it is about the role that has motivated you to apply?
Please tell us about the relevant experience or transferable skills you have in relation to this role?
What three qualities do you have that would make you a good Support Worker and why will these be important?
Please tell us how you would you handle a situation where challenging behaviour was present? Please offer a relevant example if you can.

Our Requirements

Due to our legal obligations, we can only accept applications from people 22 years old and above.

This role requires a Level 3 Diploma in Residential Childcare or an equivalent qualification. If you do not currently hold this qualification (or equivalent) but are successful in the interview and meet the enrolment criteria (including English and Maths skills), you will be enrolled in a Level 3 Diploma in Residential Childcare, subject to funding.

In addition to the above, to meet the criteria of the Level 3 Diploma, you must have lived in the UK/EEA for the last 3 years and you must also have the right to remain and work in the United Kingdom for the duration of the study programme. Failure to achieve the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare or losing your right to remain and work in the United Kingdom may result in the termination of your employment.

We are unfortunately not able to offer sponsorship at this time.

Our residential workers will be expected to have a valid driving licence to drive in the UK and to use home cars located on site to support our young people to attend a wide range of places including appointments, activities or trips as agreed.

An enhanced DBS 'Disclosure and Barring Service' check for regulated activity (formerly known as CRB) and the Children's and Adults' Barred List checks will be required for this role.

This role involves supporting children and young people who may present with behaviours of concern. In certain circumstances, and only as a last resort, this may require the use of restrictive physical intervention (restraint) to ensure the safety of our children, young people, yourself, or others in the home.

Restrictive physical interventions are not a routine part of the role, and every effort should be made to manage situations through de escalation and preventative strategies. However, it is an important safeguarding measure that staff must be willing and able to use when there is no safer alternative.

Full training will be provided to ensure any intervention taught is from an accredited provider and authorised and approved by the local authority. Encouraging staff to support children and young people proportionately and appropriately to minimise harm and maximise safety to all.

What Next?

This advert has a rolling closing date meaning we will be reviewing applications on an ongoing basis so feel free to submit an application as soon as you wish, and we will come back to you as quickly as possible.

If your application is shortlisted, you will be invited to a short first round virtual interview to explore your answers to the above questions (lasting approx. 10-15 min), and if successful following this, invited to meet us at one of our homes for an interview.

Local Government Reorganisation

Surrey County Council is undergoing Local Government Reorganisation, moving from a two-tier system to two new unitary councils in April 2027. If you are employed by Surrey on 1st April 2027, your role will transfer with current terms and conditions to one of the new organisations, supporting local devolution and greater powers for our communities.

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