Education Welfare Officer

Salary: £33,699.00 - £37,280.00 per annum, pro rata term time

We are currently looking to recruit an Education Welfare Officer to join our busy team, to assist our drive to increase and sustain school attendance for all our pupils, by identifying barriers to engagement with learning and being proactive in referrals for early help support where applicable, and supporting effective partnership working.

* Please note this is a term time working position where salary will be pro rata based on percentage of weeks worked per year (40 plus one week).

Attendance at school is a legal requirement, regular attendance at school has many essential benefits, which help enable a young person to achieve their potential. Working as part of a wider team of Education Welfare Officers and Attendance Support Officers, you will provide support, advice and guidance to schools, governors, other professionals, pupils and parent/carers to ensure the regular attendance of all pupils, within your allocation is achieved.

As an officer of the Local Authority your role is to assist schools to improve pupil attendance, reducing general absenteeism and persistent absences in the schools allocated to you. On occasions where improvement is not successful and there are no acceptable reasons for the level of absence, enforcement through fixed penalty notices or Court action may be necessary.

To be successful in this role you must have previous experience of working in a busy, challenging environment and vast experience of partnership working and able to demonstrate positive support to children, young people and their families gaining improved outcomes. Experience of working in the area of promoting school attendance would be advantageous.

Although employed by the Local Authority, Education Welfare Officers are based within individual schools. Experience of working with schools and improving the outcomes of children is essential; along with a solid understand of the use of management information systems such as SIMS/EMS/Capita One or other similar systems.

You must have a full driving licence and the ability to travel expensively around the County Borough. Occasionally you will be required to travel to meetings outside of the immediate area. Alternatively, should you not possess a driving licence or vehicle; you should have the ability to travel for business purposes without unreasonable disruption to the requirements of the post.

Training will be provided and you will have the opportunity to work with many different departments across the directorate as well as wider council services, schools and external agencies.

As an Education Welfare Officer, you will have strong communication and interpersonal skills. You will work to identify the cause of the absences and provide early intervention support; ensuring pupil voice is captured at all times.

• Effective tracking of young people moving out of county and following CME processes.
• Supporting the Local Authority, schools and Governors.
• Undertaking register consultations.
• Early identification of irregular attendance.
• One to one person centred approaches to help Identify barriers to engagement
• House visits.
• Attending meetings.
• Pupil Voice.
• Attend safeguarding/CP Meetings linked to your allocated caseload.
• Attend ALN meetings linked to your allocated caseload.
• Ensure a high standard of excellent attendance for all pupils.
• Attendance at court where required.
• Referrals to social services and early help support.
• Provide advice and guidance where difficulties and/or barriers to engagement with learning has been established.
• Make phone calls and send letters to parent/carers where applicable to offer support and guidance.

Do you have experience of partnership working and be able to demonstrate positive support to children, young people and their families gaining improved outcomes?

Experience of working with schools and improving the outcomes of children is essential; along with a solid understand of the use of management information systems such as SIMS/EMS/Capita One.

Ideally you will have a minimum education qualification of 4 GCSE's at grade C or above, one of which must be…