Why join Launch Housing

Our mission is to end homelessness. We aim to get people housed, keep them housed, and be an influential voice on ending homelessness.

We are a secular, independent provider of choice for clients and we're striving to be the go-to organisation on homelessness for government, media, philanthropy, private donors and the community.Our people are the backbone of our organisation and supporting their wellbeing and professional development is critical to our ability to help our clients and the community. We value lived experience and diversity in our staff, and actively work to ensure everyone is able to make their career with Launch Housing fulfilling.

Launch Housing is working to become more trauma informed and as a leading employer in the homelessness sector, it is important to let you know that you will hear stories of distress, hardship, trauma, or violence when working with us. We encourage you to reflect on how this may impact you when considering applying for the role. Sustaining the Health & Well-being of our staff is our priority. We provide high-quality training & supervision, Wellbeing Days, and access to Employee Assistance Program.

Our permanent and fixed-term employee benefits include:

• Contributing to useful and rewarding work and giving something back to the community• Wellbeing days, ceremonial leave, carers leave and study leave
• Flexible working arrangements
• Purchased leave
• 17.5% leave loading
• 8 weeks’ gender neutral paid parental leave after 12 months of service for both the primary and secondary carer
• Training and career growth opportunities across Launch Housing
• A portion of your income can be tax-free by salary packaging your personal expenses
• Additional tax-free salary packaging on dining and accommodation expenses
• Positive, supportive and progressive work environment

About the opportunity

The Education Pathways Program (EPP) is the key area of the Launch Housing business aiming to foster both education and aspirations of kinder and primary school-aged children from high-risk backgrounds, such as those experiencing homelessness or family violence. The key purpose of the role is to work with children, their parents/caregivers, schools and wider support networks to minimise lost learning time for primary school-aged children and to strengthen the capacity of both parents and schools to support high-needs children in returning to, remaining at, and navigating the school system.

The EPP Facilitator will develop ongoing relationships with external stakeholders such as schools, community services and government organisations to build capacity and enhance understanding of the needs of children and young people who have experienced homelessness. The EPP promotes educational engagement through child-centred education-focused case management, educational assessments, capacity building with caregivers and school teams, and practical supports, such as a walking school bus and a breakfast and lunch program. The role provides support and arranges referrals where necessary to bridge the gaps in learning for children and young people who have experienced homelessness and/or family violence. The role also provides specialised advice and assistance to other business areas regarding children and their educational needs.

The program is delivered across two locations: Launch Housing South Melbourne Crisis Accommodation Site and Viv’s Place, located in the Dandenong area.

This is a permanent full-time position based in Dandenong.

What you'll be doing:

• Providing holistic and specialised support and advocacy to children and their caregivers to facilitate their ongoing engagement and attendance at school.
• Developing and maintaining collaborative, effective and integrated working relationships with schools and service providers.
• Supporting parenting and parent needs in relation to child development and education.
• Developing and delivering training programs internally and externally.

• Participate in service review and development and identify and share good practice across Launch Housing program areas.
• Coordinate services required by the client and client's family and monitor their ongoing effectiveness.
• Maintain appropriate casework records and statistics.
• Provide secondary consult, support, debriefing and mentoring to team members and the homelessness / family violence sector in accordance with organisational policies.

What we're looking for (key selection criteria):

• Relevant tertiary qualifications and experience or knowledge of the welfare and education sectors (desired).
• Demonstrated knowledge of the homelessness service system, in particular the needs of and issues affecting families who are at risk of or who are experiencing homelessness and family violence.
• Knowledge of or experience working in the education system.
• Demonstrated knowledge of trauma-informed practices when working with children and their families.
• Demonstrated ability to build positive relationships and communicate with people of diverse backgrounds and abilities.
• Good interpersonal and communication skills, both verbal and written.
• Well-developed organisational and time management skills.
• Demonstrated commitment to the values of Launch Housing and our mission to end homelessness.

For more information, please contact Juliana Tardochi on [email protected] using the subject line: Education Pathways Program Facilitator enquiry via EthicalJobs.

How to Apply

To apply for this opportunity, please click on 'Apply Now' button.

Please submit a cover letter addressing the key selection criteria and your CV.

A position description is attached.

Launch Housing offers a wide range of career opportunities and employs a diverse range of talent. We strongly encourage Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander persons to apply! We acknowledge, respect and celebrate Aboriginal cultures, languages, connections to Country and heritage, customs and practices. We're committed to support Aboriginal peoples to obtain genuine and fulfilling career with us!

Launch Housing is a dog-friendly organisation, which allows dog owners to bring them in some of our sites, please contact the relevant Hiring Manager if you have any questions or concerns prior to your interview.

If you require reasonable adjustments at any stage of the recruitment process, please let us know at [email protected].

Launch Housing is committed to being a child safe organisation and has zero tolerance to child abuse. Our hiring process involves rigorous screening of applicants. All of our people including students, contractors and volunteers must hold a valid Working with Children Check and satisfactory criminal history record check.

Launch Housing is an Equal Opportunity employer and supports accessible working arrangements for all. This includes people with a disability, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, culturally, religiously and linguistically diverse people, young people, older people, women, and people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, gender diverse, intersex or queer. We acknowledge Lived Experience as a unique expertise and encourage people with a Lived Experience of Homelessness to apply. All applicants must have the right to work in Australia.