Child & Family Practitioner, Reunification. Full-time, Max-term - Adelaide

• Competitive base salary (equivalent to an AHP2 in SA Government)
• Car provided for business and personal use with fuel card
• Up to $15,900 annual salary sacrifice
• $2600 annual meal & entertainment card
• Flexible working hours, including work from home possibilities

About the Organisation

Every day, Life Without Barriers provides support and care to children and young people, as we work collaboratively with families, carers, and communities, to ensure they have the environment they deserve to grow. With a focus on ensuring safety and respect, this is an opportunity to make a positive and meaningful difference in these young lives and help pave a brighter future.

Life Without Barriers is a leading social purpose, not for profit organisation of 8,000 employees working in more than 500 communities across Australia. We support children, young people and families, people with disability, older people and people with mental illness. We work with people who are homeless and refugees and asylum seekers.   
 
We want to employ people who reflect the diversity of our clients to ensure we can support each client's individual needs and wants. We encourage people of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander background and people with disability to apply.

About the Role

The purpose of Child & Family Practitioner - Reunification is to work alongside a child/young person, their family members, and key internal and external stakeholders to safely reunify children with their families.

In partnership with families and the department of Child protection, they will develop and implement Care Plans which will support safe reunification. The position will work within the CARE model and ensure case plan strategies and goals are congruent with CARE.

This position is being offered as a Full-Time, Max-term (until 24/3/2026) position and based at Unley, with options for both office and home-based work arrangements, accommodating a balanced work-life integration while contributing to a vital cause. A Tool of Trade vehicle (including fuel card) will also be allocated to the successful candidate.

Key Responsibilities

• Apply discrete assessment instruments including those used as part of the Parenting Under Pressure program and the LWB reunification inventory.
• In partnership with relevant stakeholders, develop and implement high quality reunification case plans for families with the safety of the child at the centre.
• Develop and maintain functional and supportive relationships with children and young people and their parents/caregivers in order to promote positive outcomes of reunification
• Ensure high level of case work, reporting and other administrative tasks are completed within specified timeframes
• Support and monitor family environment and ensure all family members can participate in case planning process and assist them to implement strategies outlined in the reunification plan
• Help families to put needs and interest of their children first by ensuring case plans have realistic and agreed goals, high expectations and are strength based – consistent with the CARE model.
• Develop child focused and trauma informed relationships with parents and families by applying the CARE principles and provide opportunities to support children and their families to strengthen relationships
• Undertake Relationship based social casework in partnership with family to develop SMART Case Plan goals that target reasons for the child removal and help families make positive changes.
• Deliver targeted and intensive therapeutic interventions that build family functioning and parenting skills, improve parent-child attachment, and create the conditions for children to be safe and do well developmentally and relationally. Implement relationship-based practice consistent with CARE framework and apply evidence-based assessment and other tools.
• Hold therapeutic family meetings, offer CARE based practical skill development, connect families with specialist services and link parents to material and community supports to reduce barriers to reunification.

Skills and Experience

• Recognised Social Work qualifications with eligibility for membership of the AASW and/or a Bachelor of Psychology or other relevant qualification.
• Significant experience in the child protection and out of home care sector
• Demonstrated experience in working with children and young people and families who are subject to child protection intervention and an understanding of current casework practice.
• Demonstrated experience working with individuals, families and communities from a strength-based, culturally appropriate perspective that are part of the out of home care sector
• Demonstrated understanding of impact of trauma and attachment on children and young people and complex behaviours.
• Current Drivers Licence.

Successful candidates will be required to clear probity checks including National Criminal History Record Check and Working with Children Check (where relevant to the role).

Benefits

• CARE and TCI Training for all new employees 
• Life Without Barriers offers ongoing training, support and career advancement opportunities
• Tool of trade vehicle available for personal use

How to Apply

Include your resume and covering letter in one document, click ‘Apply’ and follow the prompts. For any enquiries including persons with disability that require adjustments, contact Recruitment at recruitment@lwb.org.au.  

Applicants are encouraged to apply as soon as possible as applications are continuously reviewed prior to the closing date; and as such the closing date is subject to change without notice. Current application closing date is midnight 20th March. 

Life Without Barriers supports the Royal Commission into violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation of people with disability. We believe people with disability need to be heard and for these experiences to influence how support services like ours are delivered. View our statement here (https://bit.ly/2GzZGWA)

Please note: To be considered for and appointed to a position at Life Without Barriers, you must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or hold a valid medical exemption certificate.  You will be required to provide evidence of your vaccination status during the recruitment process.