Safe Domestic & Sexual Abuse Support Worker

Hours/days: 25 hours Salary: £9087.00 per annum (Short Term Fixed Contract 6-months) Annual Leave: 25 days annual leave plus public holidays pro rata Pension: 4% employee contribution and 8% employer contribution

Location:

Bangor Resource Centre, Bangor Foodbank & Community Support, Refuge & Community

Contract:

6 months Closing Date:
Friday, 2 October 2026
@4pm

Safe Steps Domestic and Sexual Abuse Support Worker in partnership with Bangor Foodbank & Community Support will provide trauma-informed, high-quality, proactive frontline support and services to women, children and young people affected by domestic and sexual abuse in our temporary, crisis accommodation.

This role supports women in our Refuge Accommodation Service who are experiencing homelessness due to domestic and sexual abuse.

As a Safe Steps Domestic and Sexual Abuse Support Worker, you’ll provide needs- and risk-led support with a constant focus on empowering each woman, ensuring she is central to her own journey towards safety and independence. We work within a framework of empowerment, dignity, and self-help.

Key Responsibilities:

• Welcome and integrate women and their children into refuge by assessing their suitability, completing the intake process, and addressing their initial needs.
• Identify and assess the needs and risks of each woman referred to the service using an evidence-based risk identification checklist.
• When the risk level is high, will need to complete an advanced risk assessment using the DASH risk assessment tool.
• Manage a caseload, working with women to reduce risk, improve safety, and build healthier / safer relationships.
• Organise scheduled, weekly one-to-one meetings to develop a mutually agreed-upon support pathway.
• Support the empowerment of women (within the self-help ethos of North Down and Ards Women’s Aid), enabling them to recognise domestic and sexual abuse within their situation and regain control of their lives.
• To deliver trauma-informed and therapeutic interventions to women experiencing domestic abuse.
• Establish and maintain links with key agency partners and participate in multi-agency forums/partnership meetings.
• Advocate on behalf of women with statutory and voluntary agencies, including housing, job & benefits, social services, healthcare, education, police and legal support.
• Consult with women and incorporate their views and experiences within service development.
• Ensure all work is carried out to North Down and Ards Women’s Aid standards and delivered to maximise agreed outcomes.
• Administration – keeping records up to date, including completing occupation forms, NIHE forms, key allocation records, and updating women’s records.
• Room preparation, including cleaning after the woman has vacated the room and ensuring it is cleaned and prepared to a high standard before new intake.
• This post requires evening, weekend and bank holiday work.
• To assist in the provision of the 24-hour refuge On-Call cover through our established rota systems.
• A full driving licence and use of a car or ability to provide their own method of transportation.
• Able to meet enhanced Access NI requirements.

• GCSE (or equivalent) standard of education.
• QCF Level 3 Health & Social Care or equivalent (NVQ Level 3 etc) OR a recognised counselling qualification OR Minimum 3 years’ paid experience in the past 5 years of providing a support service to people at a point of crisis, including crisis intervention, assessment.
• A proven ability to manage the safeguarding of adults and children, in line with NI Safeguarding practices.
• An ability to support women, children, and young people in making their own decisions holding with Women’s Aid ethos of Self Help.
• Strong communication skills – verbal and written…