The Exodus Foundation is one of Sydney's largest frontline charities and has been operating for 35 years.

Our mission is to provide assistance to address the cause and effect of homelessness and poverty, as well as unemployment, faced by marginalised individuals. We succeed in achieving this through a combination of caring services like food provision, medical and social welfare, and education.

Our Social Health and Wellbeing team are the first point of contact for people facing multiple complex challenges in their lives. They offer a range of support from crisis support, case management, essential needs assistance including bills assistance, medical, dental and complimentary medical services.

THE ROLE

The Community Engagement Peer Worker is responsible for ensuring that guests with underlying needs, risks and vulnerabilities are identified early when they visit our iconic Loaves & Fishes Free Restaurant and AOD Hub in Ashfield. Our Peer Support Worker play a crucial role within the team, utilising their personal journey of recovery from Alcohol and Other Drug (AOD) challenges. You will leverage your lived experience to inspire confidence and hope in others regarding the AOD recovery process.

Prospective candidates should possess a firsthand understanding of their own AOD recovery journey and be open to purposefully sharing their story to assist others in enhancing their comprehension of the recovery path.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE ROLE

• Greet and engage with guests in a non-judgmental manner, fostering, and creating positive relationships while at the same time assessing their individual support needs
• Provide information, referral and advocacy to guests using trauma informed care and practices
• Provide support to guests who are in times of crisis and advocate on their behalf where required
• Provide emotional support to guests by constructively applying lessons learned through your own lived experience, i.e., be a bearer of hope that recovery can and does occur
• Collaborate and liaise with BCF Intake Workers, Case Managers, and Medical and Allied Health team
• Build and develop guests’ knowledge, experience, and connections to internal available support, programs and activities
• Assist and link guests to support options available internal to organisation or external
• Provide emergency material aid support such as food parcels, clothing, toiletries, showers, personal care and after hour meals
• Ensure all client information and provision of services are correctly entered into the client database and other reporting mechanisms where required

WE NEED YOU TO HAVE

• Tertiary qualification in social work, social science, welfare, or a related discipline
• the willingness to identify or be identified by others as a professional with lived experience of recovery
• Experience working with individuals who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, rough sleepers, living with mental health, alcohol and other drug issues and referring out
• Knowledge and understanding of the impact of psychosocial issues related to mental health, individuals living with a disability and the aged
• Experience in case management (desirable)
• Experience in working with individuals with multiple complex needs (desirable)
• Experience supporting individuals to navigate complex external service providers (desirable)
• Working knowledge and experience maintaining client information on a relevant client information management system i.e. Penelope, Salesforce etc (desirable)

Bill Crews Charitable Trust and the Exodus Foundation are separate but co-operating entities. Both collaborate to meet the services and programs delivered under the Rev. Bill Crews Foundation brand name.

All Bill Crews Foundation employees are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and to comply with relevant booster vaccinations approved by the Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration. Proof of COVID-19 vaccination status will be required prior to commencing this role.

Applicants must hold work rights for Australia, and the successful candidate will be required to complete a Working With Children Check and Police Check as part of their employment.