• Permanent Full Time

About the Organisation 

Every day, Life Without Barriers provides support and care to children and young people, as we work collaboratively with families, carers, and communities, to ensure they have the environment they deserve to grow. With a focus on ensuring safety and respect, this is an opportunity to make a positive and meaningful difference in these young lives and help pave a brighter future.

Life Without Barriers is a leading social purpose organisation of 8,000 employees working in more than 500 communities across Australia. We support children, young people and families, people with disability, older people, and people with mental illness. We work with people who are homeless and refugees and asylum seekers. Join a community of people dedicated to breaking down barriers.

We want to employ people who reflect the diversity of our clients to ensure we can support each client's individual needs and wants. We encourage people of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander background and people with disability to apply.

About the role 

This is an exciting opportunity for an experienced leader with a strong passion for supporting the permanency goals of children and young people within the child protection sector. With a focus positive outcome for the children and young people, you will lead our operational teams in Wollongong, Illawarra Southern NSW to deliver quality care and support under the frameworks of CARE and Therapeutic Crisis Intervention (TCI) models, ensuring that we appropriately respond to the changing needs and goals of Children & Young People within our care.

This Permanent Full-Time role is based in Wollongong with flexible working arrangements available. Regular travel to our home locations throughout the Wollongong, Illawarra and Southern NSW regions will be a requirement of this role, and an annualised vehicle allowance will be provided.

Key Responsibilities  

• Lead and support teams, modelling a culture of excellence and accountability that supports positive outcomes aligned to aspirations of children & young people, Life Without Barriers’ values and our contractual requirements.
• Manage the delivery of multidisciplinary client services teams and ensure the local area complies with corporate policies & processes, the Strategic Plan, business plan and the relevant statutory regulations, funding agreements and accreditation standards.
• Maintain and develop positive and professional working relationships with key stakeholders and partners to contribute to achieving key outcomes for children and young people.
• Manage programs within approved budget
• Ensure a consistent standard of quality in accordance with regulations prescribed in relevant legislation and funding agency standards.
• Act as a senior escalation point to ensure the appropriate management and prevention of risks and issues arising in the course of service management in accordance with policies and procedures.
• Carry out delegated duties for authorising and reviewing business decisions, resolving complex issues, managing risks and relationship maintenance and building.
• Participate in an on-call roster as required. 

Skills & Experience 

• Relevant bachelor’s degree within Human Services or a related discipline
• Current drivers’ licence 
• Significant experience in the leadership and management of multi-site, multi-disciplinary programs, and services for vulnerable people within a budget
• Demonstrated experience working in Out of Home Care preferably with Intensive Therapeutic Care or other residential experience.
• Working knowledge of the NSW Permanency Support Program
• Demonstrated experience working with people from diverse cultural backgrounds with specific reference to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
• Ability to manage competing priorities and to deliver high quality outcomes within agreed timeframes.

Successful candidates will be required to clear probity checks including National Criminal History Record Check, NSW Working with Children Check and NSW Residential Care Worker Register check.

To be considered for and appointed to a position at Life Without Barriers, you must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 with a minimum of two (2) doses or hold a valid medical exemption certificate, in accordance with Life Without Barriers Employee COVID-19 Vaccination Policy. You will be required to provide evidence of your vaccination status during the recruitment process.

Benefits

• Do Work that Matters at one of Australia's largest social purpose organisations
• Generous Salary Packaging Benefits – claim up to $15,900 per year, tax free!
• $17,500 Annual Vehicle Allowance + Monthly RDO

How to Apply

Include your resume and covering letter in one document, click ‘Apply now’ and follow the prompts. For any enquiries including persons with disability that require adjustments, contact Kristy Crowe at [email protected] using the subject line: Operations Manager, Intensive Therapeutic Care - Wollongong enquiry via EthicalJobs.

Applicants are encouraged to apply as soon as possible as applications are continuously reviewed prior to the closing date; and as such the closing date is subject to change without notice.

We are dedicated to playing our part to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and bring continuity of care and support to our clients. With this in mind, if you are successful, we will discuss with you an alternative to a face to face interview. 

 Life Without Barriers supports the Royal Commission into violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation of people with disability. We believe people with disability need to be heard and for these experiences to influence how support services like ours are delivered. View our statement here https://bit.ly/2GzZGWA