Organisation Overview:

Ruby Gaea Darwin Centre Against Sexual Violence provides community based sexual assault counselling, education, and advocacy in the Northern Territory.  We are seeking a person with well-developed knowledge and expertise in working therapeutically within children and women who have experienced sexual violence.  The ability to deeply listen, build relationships, and communicate sensitively with people from diverse backgrounds and life experience is essential.  We also conduct community education for schools, universities, and professional organisations.

This is a flexible role, and our goal is to offer staff a well-supported workplace with weekly team meetings, one-on-one meetings with the manager, regular professional development and training, and end-of week team reflection.  Ruby Gaea offers six weeks annual leave (inclusive of our Christmas shut-down period) to all staff.    

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women are strongly encouraged to apply.

Position Summary:

• Level: SCHADS award Level 7.1 ($56.13/hr)
• Employment Status: Part-Time - .6FTE
• Reports directly to: General Manager

Minimum qualifications: Possession of a degree in the Social or Behavioral Sciences, with at least two-years' experience in a counselling role; registration with a relevant professional body.  Experience in counselling children and adults who have been impacted by sexual violence is highly desirable. 

Position Role:

The role of Counsellor/Educator is to provide crisis counselling, ongoing counselling, and advocacy for people who have experienced sexual violence at any time in their lives. This position of trust demands the highest levels of professionalism, ethical behaviour and an awareness of multiple factors which will influence individual client’s responses to both the trauma and the counselling provided. Ruby Gaea’s counselling methodology includes counselling from evidence-based best practice, client-centred, strengths-based and trauma-informed frameworks.  

This role also has an education component that includes development and delivery of community education in schools and for professional bodies where required by the service. Essential to this role will be the ability to create, develop, and expand excellent working relationships with a wide variety of stakeholders, and to develop and deliver presentations in line with our aims and with an understanding of the audience. This is a flexible position where the balance between counsellor and educator will be determined by the needs of the service as we grow.

Key Responsibilities:

The Counsellor/Educator will provide the following services:

• Provide effective, evidence-based and culturally sensitive trauma informed counselling to women, and to children (aged 4 to 17 years) who have experienced sexual violence either recently or in the past
• Ensure work practices are ethical; in line with evidence based, trauma informed therapeutic practices; Ruby Gaea policies and procedures; the code of conduct, and practices of the relevant professional registration body.
• Provide individual and group counselling for women and children survivors of sexual violence.
• Comply with information collection, quality improvement, risk management, record keeping and administrative procedures and practices in line with legal requirements and Ruby Gaea policy
• Collaborate in the development and delivery of group work programs
• Participate in the development of relevant resources and materials for survivors of sexual violence
• Record counselling case notes and client statistics in a timely manner consistent with confidentiality and professional standards 
• Work as part of a cohesive and energised team, have the capacity to work as the sole counsellor in the agency and, work with limited supervision on relevant projects.
• Develop and deliver community education to schools and professional bodies as required by the general manager.

The successful candidate must have a current NT driving license.

Safeguarding Children and Young People:

Our organisation takes child protections seriously, and as an employee of Ruby Gaea, you are required to:

• Provide a welcoming and safe environment for children and young people;
• Promote the safety and wellbeing of children and young people to whom we provide services;
• Ensure that your interactions with children and young people are positive and safe;
• Provide adequate care and supervision of children and young people in your charge;
• Act as a positive role model for children and young people;
• Report any suspicions, concerns, allegations or disclosures of alleged abuse to management;
• Maintain valid Working With Children documentation;
• Undergo periodic national criminal history record checks;
• Report to management any criminal charges or convictions you receive during the course of your employment/volunteering that may indicate a possible risk to children and young people.

Conditions of Employment:

The successful applicant will be subject to a Working with Children Check and Criminal History Records Check. Our organisation undertakes several screening processes to ensure the appropriate protection of children in its care.  This includes reference checks and professional registration checks.

Other documentation required:

• Working with Children’s Card
• National Criminal History Records Check
• Current Drivers Licence
• Evidence of your Qualification
• Registration to a professional body