As Australia's first Women’s Trauma Recovery Centre (the 'Centre') offering long term support to women who have experienced domestic family and sexual violence, we intend to continually refine and improve our services to ensure we are supporting women to live independent, secure lives with hope and optimism. We are seeking an experienced and compassionate Therapeutic Lead to join our growing team.

As a Therapeutic Lead, you will have the chance to make a meaningful impact on the lives of individuals who have experienced trauma, by designing and leading therapeutic programs that align with our Centre’s mission of empowerment, healing, and recovery.

About us:

The Centre is a community-led initiative, codesigned with women with lived expertise, professional experts and service providers to offer free comprehensive and long-term support to women recovering and healing from the trauma of domestic, family and sexual violence.

The Centre is a project of the Illawarra Women's Health Centre. Established in 1986, we are nationally accredited and provide a safe place for women to access specialised high-quality women's medical and health care services.

Where you will channel your energy:

• Create and implement therapeutic initiatives that are grounded in our trauma recovery framework, tailored to the unique needs of our clients.
• Oversee the delivery of high-quality therapeutic services, ensuring a responsive and adaptable approach that supports each client’s journey toward healing.
• Provide continuous professional development and training to your therapeutic team, fostering a culture of excellence in trauma-informed care.
• Use client feedback and outcome measures to monitor program success, providing key insights and drive continuous improvement.
• Cultivate meaningful relationships with external stakeholders, including healthcare providers and community organisations, to enhance our clients’ support network and resources.
• Guide and mentor the therapeutic team in alignment with the Centre’s feminist philosophy, ensuring that services are always client-centered and empowering.
• Offer therapeutic counselling, conduct psychosocial and risk assessments, create safety plans, advocate for clients, facilitate psychoeducation, lead group work, and provide court support to individuals affected by domestic, family, and sexual violence.
• Oversee risk management and safety planning for women accessing the Centre, ensuring their immediate and long-term needs are met.
• Lead the intake process and case management functions to ensure clients receive timely and effective support.
• Develop and oversee a robust evaluation framework that tracks client progress and outcomes, ensuring continuous support and growth.
• Play an active role in shaping, delivering, and evaluating our programs and initiatives, ensuring that they are innovative, effective, and reflective of best practices in trauma care.
• Provide trauma-informed counselling services to women who have experienced family violence, sexual assault, and domestic abuse, supporting a caseload of clients.

About YOU:

• A genuine interest in, and commitment to Illawarra Women’s Health Centre's vision, mission, and values.
• Tertiary qualifications in Psychology, Social Work, Counselling, or a related field, with eligibility or membership in the relevant professional association or registration with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA).
• Proven experience in leading an allied health team, including overseeing operational planning, managing staff workload, providing training, and ensuring high-performance standards.
• A strong background in providing therapeutic counselling, conducting psychosocial assessments, developing safety plans, and offering advocacy, psychoeducation, group work, and court support, particularly with women who have experienced domestic, family, and sexual violence.
• Demonstrated ability to lead and provide high-level clinical support and supervision within a multidisciplinary team, ensuring effective service delivery and team development.
• In-depth understanding of relevant legislation and policies, including those related to domestic and family violence and sexual violence, as well as the legal issues impacting clients.
• Extensive experience using a trauma and violence-informed approach in therapeutic practice, with a focus on client empowerment and healing.
• A strong commitment to ongoing cultural learning, self-reflection, and a critical understanding of race, privilege, and power in relation to the work we do.
• Expertise in leading the development and implementation of therapeutic practices, with a focus on quality assurance, clinical monitoring, and outcomes reporting.
• Strong ability to build effective relationships and collaborate with internal teams and external stakeholders to enhance service delivery and client outcomes.
• A passionate advocate for feminist principles and social justice, with a strong alignment to the Centre’s values of empowerment, equality, and respect.

The nice to haves (desirable knowledge and experience):

• Training or experience in delivering somatic based therapeutic interventions.
• Experience working with diverse communities or lived experience of diversity including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, LQBTQIA+, migrant, culturally and linguistically diverse, neurodivergent and people with a disability.
• Fluency in a community language other than English.

What we do for you:

• Work with Purpose: Be part of a passionate and highly regarded not-for-profit organisation dedicated to making a real difference in the community.
• Flexible Salary Packaging: Take advantage of our flexible salary packaging options to maximise your take-home pay.
• Extra Leave: Enjoy additional leave during the festive season, on top of standard leave entitlements, giving you more time to relax and recharge.
• Wellness Leave: Prioritise your physical and mental well-being with four days of dedicated wellness leave each year.
• Professional Development: Access a wealth of ongoing learning opportunities and career development programs to help you grow and excel in your role.

At the Centre we truly value our people. We are committed to offering more than just a job; we offer benefits to enhance your career, help you grow, and celebrate your achievements.

The Centre welcomes all women to come exactly as they are. As a women's only organisation under Section 30 of the Sex Discrimination Act 1984, being female is a genuine occupational requirement for this position. Specifically, The Centre encourages and supports women living with a disability to apply and welcomes discussions about any reasonable adjustments that may be needed. Although this is an open recruitment process, The Centre strongly encourages, supports, and welcomes applications from woman who identify as First Nations people/Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander.

* Please note that having a criminal record will not automatically exclude your application. We recognise that women can have experiences with the criminal justice system that are discriminatory and unjust. We know, for example, that women can, and often are, misidentified as a primary offender in domestic and family violence situations. We will require, a Working with Children Check and adherence to The Centre’s workplace policies, including our Covid Policy.

To submit your application, please click ‘Apply Now'.

Illawarra Women's Trauma Recovery Centre is an equal opportunity employer. Applications from diverse backgrounds are encouraged.

For further information about The Centre please visit Illawarra Women's Health Centre (womenshealthcentre.com.au).