Family Support Worker

Victim Support Scotland – Empowering People Affected by Crime

Who We Are

Victim Support Scotland (VSS) provides support and information to people affected by crime and campaigns for victim and witness rights. Regardless of whether a crime has been reported, or when it happened, our services are free, confidential, and tailored to individuals’ needs.

Our vision is that people affected by crime – victims, witnesses, and their families – are treated with dignity and respect and are at the heart of the justice in Scotland. We put victims and witnesses at the heart of everything we do so they are heard, have improved health and well-being, feel safer, more secure, and informed and that we are an effective organisation, that makes a lasting difference.

Our mission at Victim Support Scotland is to ensure that those affected by crime receive high quality support that will help them recover from their experiences. We aim to do this by adhering to our own organisational values:

Organisational Values

• Victims Are at the Heart of Everything We Do
• We Care
• We Work with Intent
• We Are Ambitious
• We Persevere

Everything we do is driven by our dedication to supporting and empowering victims and witnesses, so they have improved health and well-being, feel safer, more secure, and informed. We are an effective organisation that makes a lasting difference to the people we support, and these values are reflected in the behaviours expected of all staff and volunteers.

VSS is committed to the safeguarding and welfare of all of our service users and has a thorough and rigorous recruitment and selection process including PVG scheme checks in place to ensure this commitment is met.

What is the role?

This is an exciting opportunity to join our team as a Whole Family Support Worker, 21 hours per week, fixed-term for a period of 12 months.

Reporting directly to the Locality Manager, you will take responsibility for overseeing this project. The Family Support Worker will lead the development and pilot of a Trauma-Informed Family Support Service across North Lanarkshire, designed to test a preventative approach to supporting families impacted by crime, including domestic abuse, assault, theft, fraud, and severe or persistent antisocial behaviour.

Through a coordinated, whole-family approach, the postholder will provide early intervention and tailored support to strengthen family wellbeing, build resilience, and prevent issues from escalating into crisis. This innovative model aims to move beyond traditional individual victim support, delivering a more holistic and effective response to the needs of families affected by crime.

During the pilot year, the role will provide direct support to up to 20 families affected by crime or antisocial behaviour. Beneficiaries will include adults, children, and young people, with a particular focus on families living in areas of deprivation and those experiencing hidden or under reported harms.

The Family Support Worker will undertake comprehensive assessments of need and risk, develop and review tailored support plans, and work collaboratively with partner agencies to coordinate effective, person-centred support. Operating within the Victim Support Scotland framework, the postholder will uphold victims' rights, maintain accurate and confidential case records, and contribute to the development of peer support opportunities where appropriate.

Families will receive a bespoke, trauma-informed support plan focused on early intervention, stabilisation, resilience-building, and improved wellbeing, helping to prevent issues from escalating into crisis.

In addition to delivering one-to-one and family-based support, the postholder will work closely with the Locality Manager and wider team to develop and strengthen local and national partnerships, establish effective referral pathways, and raise awareness of Victim Support Scotland's services to ensure families can access the support they need at the earliest opportunity.

Key Accountabilities:

Service Delivery

• Deliver trauma-informed support to victims and families.
• Manage a caseload of up to 20 families and review regularly
• Develop and use support tools, ensure effective…