PLS Job Description

 

Position Title: Young Person's Mentor 

Goal Of The Position: To develop positive, constructive, professional, and meaningful relationships with young people to help them move forward in life.

Role: The Mentor's role is to support their mentees by -

• Empowering them to resolve current issues and to develop coping strategies for the future.
• Provide a model for a healthy, trusting relationship through clear communication and setting appropriate boundaries.
• Acknowledging their strengths, talents and gifts and encouraging them to find ways to use them.
• Be an active listener and offer support and encouragement where appropriate.
• Engage in activities of interest.
• Support, making positive choices in life and to become more reflective. (This list is not exhaustive, and you are expected to be flexible and understanding, always prioritising the needs of the mentees).
• Support young people in classroom environments.

Responsibilities:

• Safeguarding the young person.
• Maintaining confidentiality.
• Provide clear communication and/or reports with the family, caseworker and other professionals in the young person's network.

Stages of Application: 

• Complete online application form.
• Confirm / Provide proof of Right To Work in the UK Status.
• Provide 2 professional references. One must be your last employer.
• Arrange and complete interview.
• Give consent for background checks.
• Evidence successful completion of basic Safeguarding and First Aid training as well as required documentation.

Required Documentation:

• Enhanced DBS registered on the Update Service.
• Full UK Driver's Licence.
• Car Insurance with Business Cover.
• Valid MOT.
• Breakdown Cover.

Contract Type and Time Commitment: This is a 39-week term time position. It is for 40 hours per week; Minimum 30 hours face-to-face mentoring plus travel time (as you will be travelling between sites during the workday), allocated time for report writing and weekly supervision. You must be able to work between the hours of 08:00 and 22:00 Monday - Friday. Overtime may be available.

Salary: £32,000 pa (pro rata) + Mileage Allowance of 45p per mile + overtime at £20 ph

Where will the work be?: 

• Predominantly Hertfordshire / Bedfordshire based but will be required to travel nationally.
• On our Reachout farm project
• In the community.
• In a young person's home environment.
• School sites.
• Residential children's homes.
• Hospitals.
• Sports environments.
• Alternative provision sites.

Benefits of being a Mentor:

• Make a difference in the life of a young person.
• Learn about yourself, personal development.
• Contribute and give back to the community
• Have fun! 

 

Acceptable Standards

 

At Paul Lavery Support (PLS) we aim to support and mentor some of the country’s most vulnerable and challenging young people in a way that not just meets expectations but surpasses them. We want young people to be the absolute best version of themselves and by supporting them to grow we can affect positive change in the world as well as the specific young person we are working with. This is to be used as a guide for all employed staff.

All employed mentors must have:

• An Enhanced DBS on the Update Service.
• An up to date and appropriate Safeguard certificate.
• An up to date and appropriate First Aid certificate.
• An up to date and appropriate Health & Safety certificate.
• Willingness to complete appropriate training courses in accordance with the needs of our young people.

 All employed mentors should:

• Not smoke in front of or around our young people and their families and should not buy or give items of this nature to them.
• Not buy or consume energy drinks or alcohol around young people and their families.
• Not engage in any activities or actions that are deemed inappropriate as laid out in safeguard / child protection training.
• Not use inappropriate or rude / sexual / aggressive language in or around young people and their families.
• Not allow public access to their social media platforms and should remember to keep any posts or engagements appropriate and within the laws of the land.
• Not use a mobile phone for personal use whilst engaged in a session.
• Not engage in any activities or behaviours that may seem inappropriate or illegal.
• Not force or coerce any young person or their families into any actions, behaviours, or belief changes.
• Not carry young people or their family members in a vehicle that is not legal or safe as per legal minimum standards.
• Not discuss young people’s situations with anyone outside of the specific professional network.
• Keep physical touch to a bare minimum and always appropriate. If restraint is used (always as a last resort) minimum force must always be used and fully documented immediately after everyone is safe and communicated to PLS and relevant professionals as soon as possible.
• Inform parents / carers and professional team if phone numbers are exchanged with our young people. This is something that can be appropriate but must be respected. Contact should be via text ideally for evidence purposes and strictly about appropriate matters. Any safeguard concerns to be reported immediately in the correct ways to the Social Worker or referring professional and to your Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) at PLS. Outside of working hours are to be reported to the out of hours teams.
• Never hide or cover up any actions / situations or behaviours. Any matters / behaviours that are seen to be illegal must be reported to the correct people immediately. This includes the carrying or hiding / storing of weapons and to your DSL at PLS as soon as possible.

If you feel that you are either out of your depth or that you are unable to meet the needs of the young person, then please communicate this to PLS. The mental health of everyone is the responsibility of everyone and we need to work / talk together to keep a healthy mind, emotional state, body and soul.
Your everyday actions have consequences, please bare this in mind as you go about your daily lives.

 

 

I (Paul) would like to share a scenario as I feel it is appropriate:

A teacher took a PSHE session and spoke to his group about alcohol consumption. Mainly the dangers of excess usage. Whilst talking about it and almost preaching to his class a young person stood up and said, ‘Sir I saw your Facebook page and you were on a stag do.’ The teacher tried to stop the young person continuing but he carried on, ‘you posted about how much you drunk and how you ended up doing something very silly.’ The teacher was embarrassed and had the young man removed from the class. The head told the young person off and the young person said ‘I haven’t done anything wrong; I didn’t swear or do anything wrong. He was telling us that we should not drink and get drunk, and he was doing that very thing.’ That teacher left before he was pushed.

 

This story is real, and the message is clear:

To bring real change in our young people’s lives we must first acknowledge where we are in life. We must reflect and strive for growth every day. We cannot effectively change others’ lives if we are living in a state of severe imbalance all the time. Above are a few standards that should be kept, showing our young people that we are a calmness in a world of anxiety.

Now if you feel like this is a role for you, please proceed to the application on the next page. Any questions please email admin@paullaverysupport.co.uk or visit our website here.

 

Application

 

Safe and fair recruitment commitment

At Paul Lavery Support (PLS), we are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of young people at risk and expect all our colleagues to share these values. We are also committed to treating all applicants equally and fairly based on their skills, experience, and ability to fulfil the duties required of the role applied for. This is regardless of any protected characteristics (ethnicity, gender or gender re-assignment, religion or belief, sexual orientation, physical / mental disability, age, pregnancy or maternity, marriage, or civil partnership).

Applicants must share with us all the relevant information that we have requested in this application form, but we would like to reassure applicants that any information provided will be treated in the strictest confidence in a fair and open manner.

 

Post applied for

Young Person's Mentor

 

 

Personal details

Please upload a clear, smiling headshot
This photo will be used for internal records and will not be used as part of the selection process.
Your headshot should be:
– Clear and well-lit
– Just you in the photo
– Facing the camera and smiling
– Head and shoulders only

 

If you're successful, this image may be used to or create your staff ID badge and mentor profile.

 

Contact details

 

Right to work

 

Passport

 

Disclosure & Barring Service

An enhanced DBS registered on the update service is required for this role. This is a service we can provide if needed. 

Due to the nature of this role, enhanced DBS and security checking will be required as part of the application process and will involve disclosure of all spent and unspent criminal convictions. We would therefore encourage you to disclose any such convictions at this stage so they can be discussed in full. 

 

This role involves regulated activity with children. You should not apply if you are on the Childrens’ Barred List.

 

Health concerns

 

If selected for an interview, do you require any reasonable adjustments to attend?

This question is to help us make the application process fair and accessible to all applicants. Your response will not affect how your application is processed.

 

Employment status

 

Education

In chronological order, please include all periods of education or training starting with secondary schooling

Supporting statement

Professional references only

Please provide contact details for two professional referees who are able to comment on your suitability for the role applied for. You are responsible for providing accurate contact details so that referees can be contacted.

• The first referee MUST be your current or most recent employer.
• Professional referees will not be accepted from work colleagues who are not authorised to provide professional references in an official capacity on behalf of the organisation, or from people writing solely in the capacity of friends, or from relatives.

Data Protection Consent

 

Paul Lavery support (PLS) supports and mentors vulnerable and challenging young people and their families. This could happen in the community on a school site or in a young person’s home. PLS must have and hold various information’s about each employee for safety and security purposes. The information that we need to hold for the term you stay with PLS is:

Name / Email Address / Address / CV and/or Application Form / DBS certification number and Date (DBS scanned copy will be destroyed safely after 3 months) / Training certificates / Passport copy / Driving Licence copy / MOT certificate / Car Insurance certificate / Breakdown Policy. This list could be added to as rules and legislation changes. It is also the responsibility of the employee to refresh and send all current documents to PLS.

The reason for holding all the above personal information is for safety and evidence purposes. If a potential new client needs to see that you hold relevant documents and certificates as well as various safeguard check documents, then PLS will need to send them to prove your safe standards as well as ours. PLS will also need to share some of the above details as well as your full name to Hertfordshire County Council / Bedfordshire Council and other educational / social care providers and bodies. We may also need to send your DBS certification number to prove we have made the relevant legal safety checks to show you can work in this field. The Police / HMRC and any other government body that requests the above information PLS will also share with them. By providing PLS with your information, you give us consent to verify all information throughout the recruitment process and ongoing. All above information that PLS holds is in accordance with data protection and current GDPR legislation.

If you have any questions about the above, please feel free to contact us and we can discuss anything that is unclear. If you are happy with the above and by signing this application form you agree to PLS holding and sharing the above information’s solely for the purpose stated:

Thank you for taking the time to read this and remember it is all our responsibility to keep information safe.

 

 

Thank you for completing this application form and remember to upload your up to date First Aid & Safeguarding certificates. Any questions please don't hesitate to contact admin@paullaverysupport.co.uk.

Now when you're ready, press the 'Submit Application' and we will be in touch soon.

Thank you,

 

Paul Lavery Support

 

www.paullaverysupport.co.uk