• Providing practical support to students facing personal challenges, such as housing instability, navigating government services, and managing formal paperwork.
• Developing and implementing creative programs that empower students to overcome barriers and develop problem-solving skills.
• Assisting students in becoming more self-sufficient and resilient by providing guidance and resources tailored to their individual needs.
• Promoting student success and overall wellbeing by fostering a supportive and positive school environment.

BACKGROUND

The River Nile School (RNS) is a specialist, independent, inclusive, senior-secondary school, delivering Applied Learning curriculum to young refugee and asylum seeker women, who have had disrupted schooling or are struggling to cope with mainstream school. We are also a registered charitable organisation that delivers everything we do with our students for free.

RNS provides a high-challenge, high-support learning environment with a strengths-based approach. It offers small class sizes and teachers, and student support staff work collaboratively to achieve the best possible outcomes for each student with individualised learning and wellbeing programs for all students.

RNS adopts a holistic model for supporting the unique educational and support needs of each student, so developing strong student-staff relationships is essential. As our students come from backgrounds where they may have experienced significant trauma and torture, we adopt a trauma-informed approach to our practice.

School website: rivernileschool.vic.edu.au.

POSITION DESCRIPTION

Support Students to Navigate Challenges Independently:  

The student support worker at River Nile School plays a critical role in assisting students to overcome personal and academic challenges, ensuring their success and overall wellbeing. This role involves providing practical support to students facing difficulties such as housing instability, navigating government services, and managing formal paperwork. The position also includes developing and implementing creative programs that help students become more self-sufficient and resilient in problem-solving.

Position reports to: Wellbeing Coordinator

Case Management:   

• Offer dedicated support to two classroom groups, providing case management and actively participating in class care team meetings.   
• Guide students through case management practices that encourage and empower them to develop problem-solving skills and take an active role in managing their own lives. 
• Include families and communities in case management processes to create a comprehensive support network that enhances student wellbeing and fosters stronger connections between school, home, and the wider community. 
• Collaborate with colleagues to develop individualised learning plans in the wellbeing space for personal development, ensuring the holistic wellbeing of all students in the class.   
• Develop Wellbeing Plans with each student in the classroom group allocated, working with teacher and learning support. Be part of ILP’s 
• Collaborate with teachers and learning support staff to create and document tailored Wellbeing Plans for each student, ensuring they are included in ILPs and maintained in Student Records for accessibility. 
• Support students in applying wellbeing strategies to enhance classroom engagement, recording their implementation and progress in ILPs and Student Records. 
• Engage with external stakeholders, such as community organisations, healthcare providers, and social services, to provide comprehensive case management support. 
• Maintain accurate records of interventions and supports for each class group in Compass, Student Records, and NCAPP. 

Student Engagement:   

• Proactively address student absences and disengagement by identifying underlying issues and developing strategies to support re-engagement in school activities.  
• Organise and facilitate group sessions that promote student engagement, leadership skills, and peer support.  
• Assist leadership in the onboarding process of new students including developing Individual Education Plans and Wellbeing Plans for each student. 

Safety and Wellbeing:   

• Respond promptly and sensitively to any concerns or incidents that may impact student wellbeing.  
• Take appropriate action, including reporting and collaboration with key colleagues, to ensure the safety of students.  

Cross-Team Collaboration and School-wide Contributions: 

• Contribute to the development and delivery of curriculum through class projects or whole school events which support applied learning practices or wellbeing education. 
• Contribute to the planning and participate in extra-curricular activities, events, excursions and overnight camps.  
• Actively promote RNS at network meetings, forums and amongst key stakeholders 

Referral and Advocacy:   

• Facilitate student access to external specialist agencies, guiding them through the referral process while fostering active participation and self-advocacy. Ensure these efforts, along with any NCAPP disability adjustments, are documented in ILPs and Student Records to support their Wellbeing Plans. 
• Actively engage in student support group meetings within River Nile School and with external agencies. Use these meetings to integrate collaborative insights, NCAPP disability adjustments, and updates into students’ Wellbeing Plans and ILPs for a comprehensive approach. 
• Synthesise internal and external support efforts to create a cohesive strategy. Incorporate NCAPP disability adjustments to ensure that students’ wellbeing and progress are managed holistically and tracked in Student Records, building a sustainable and robust support system. 

Program Coordination:   

• Organise and promote student engagement in enriching programs and activities, fostering a sense of belonging and purpose beyond the classroom.   
• Utilise creativity and enthusiasm to make learning enjoyable and motivating for students.  
• Provide educational sessions on legal rights and responsibilities to empower students with knowledge and advocacy skills.  

Outreach for students:  

• Implement proactive outreach strategies to identify and engage with students who may be disengaged or facing social or emotional challenges. 
• Conduct home visits and personalised check-ins to understand the specific needs and challenges of disengaged students, providing them with tailored support and encouragement to re-engage with their education. 

Professional Development and Self Care:   

• Reflect on interactions and experiences to continuously improve practice.   
• Stay informed about best practices in trauma-informed care, youth work, and education to enhance effectiveness in supporting student wellbeing.  
• Engage in regular supervision, peer consultation, and self-reflection to maintain competence and address the personal and professional challenges of the role. 
• Access the Mandala Employee Assistance Program through River Nile School when required.  

Child Protection and School-wide Safety Measures: 

• Compliance with all RNS policies, procedures and codes of conduct, especially for staff and child safety. Adherence and commitment to the professional code of ethics and practice for working with young people https://www.yacvic.org.au/training-and-resources/code-of-ethical-practice 
• Perform other duties and responsibilities, as directed by Executive Leadership Team of River Nile School 

KEY SELECTION CRITERIA

1. Referral and Advocacy: Demonstrated ability to facilitate student access to external services or specialist agencies, providing comprehensive support while ensuring students' active participation throughout the process.
2. Support Students to Navigate Challenges Independently: Proven experience in assisting students with complex challenges such as housing issues, accessing government services, or managing formal paperwork, with a focus on practical support and empowering students through available resources.
3. Safety and Wellbeing: Strong collaboration skills with colleagues and external partners to uphold and enhance the safety and wellbeing of students.
4. Child Protection and School-wide Safety Measures: Thorough understanding of child protection policies and the importance of maintaining a safe environment for students, with consistent adherence and compliance in everyday practice.

Your Mindset

• You believe every young person deserves a thriving future.
• You respect and value the perspectives of Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) young people and are interested in working with those with complex needs to help them achieve their potential.
• You are extremely comfortable working in a flexible, evolving, changing work environment, staying focused on outcomes and adapting your approach as needed.
• You are collaborative, valuing and respecting relationships within and across our entire team and with our external partners.
• You take the initiative, solve problems and have close attention to detail.

Qualifications, Experience, Credentials and Checks

1. Desired qualifications in youth work, social work or other related to community services, however, not a requirement.
2. Working with Children Check.
3. Agree to undergo Police Check.
4. 100-point Proof of Identity.
5. Recent experience in a school or similar environment.

Employment Conditions

Competitive salary, access to tax-effective salary packaging, training and development opportunities and an Employee Assistance Program (EAP).

Appointment of the successful candidate will be subject to:

• Reference checks
• A satisfactory Pre-Employment Disclosure Declaration; and
• evidence that the applicant has completed training in aspects of Child Safety (a DET link to on-line training for Non-Government schools will be provided).
• A 6-month probationary period will apply, and induction and professional support will be provided.

Hours of Work, Annual Leave and Non-Term Weeks (or ‘School Holidays’)

Our standard working day (usual minimum staff on-site hours) is 8.30 am to 4.30 pm, however by mutual agreement, we are open to having later start and/or earlier finish.

As a school there are ~40 terms weeks and 12 non-term (or ‘school holiday’) weeks each year.  Four weeks annual leave must be taken during non-term weeks and there are ~8 days paid public holidays within term breaks. We ask full time staff to be available for up to 10 days during non-term weeks across the year, with days to be mutually agreed (the 10 days is adjusted down pro rata for people on lower time fractions).  Staff are then effectively asked to take 4-weeks leave without pay during non-term weeks, which is averaged over wages across each year.   This provides staff with significant time off during non-term weeks (or ‘school holidays’) which many staff value for personal or family reasons.

APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS

Applications including a cover letter, resume and response to the key selection criteria, should be submitted via the instruction of the Apply Now link.

Please reach out to [email protected] for further information, using the subject line: Student Support Worker enquiry via EthicalJobs.