Queensland Program of Assistance to Survivors of Torture and Trauma
Group Facilitator and Community Based Practitioner (Young People and Adults)
Role Title: Group Facilitator and Community Based Practitioner (Young People and Adults)
Team: Toowoomba (Regional Team)
Location: Toowoomba (occasional travel to Brisbane will be required).
Level: Level 5 Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Industry Award $93,860 – $98,108 (depending on experience), plus leave loading and superannuation. Salary sacrificing is available.
Reports to: Team Leader, Toowoomba.
Contract: Full-time, Fixed-Term to 30 June 2024. Part-time will be considered. Occasional out of hours work will be required.
OUR VISION
Healing the past, nurturing the future.
Our vision is for refugee survivors of persecution to live lives liberated from the harms of torture, trauma and human rights injustice. We exist to nurture meaningful futures by assisting refugee survivors to heal, belong and thrive in our community.
OUR VALUES
KINDNESS
We care.
In all our work, survivors of torture and trauma come first.
OPTIMISM
We believe in meaningful futures.
We are committed to healing being a journey of growth across mind, body and spirit.
PERSEVERANCE
We don’t give up.
We understand that healing requires time, patience and courage for individuals, families and communities.
JUSTICE
We believe that to heal and belong are human rights
We collaborate to build opportunities so that survivors of torture and trauma can belong and thrive in our community.
ROLE PURPOSE
Our Regional Toowoomba Team supports individuals, families, and communities from refugee backgrounds to heal, belong, thrive, and restore their sense of justice in our community. The primary purpose of this role is to strengthen the engagement and build the capacity of young people and adults from refugee backgrounds to contribute to the creation and delivery of groups and initiatives to enable meaningful trauma recovery outcomes. In addition, you will work across the age span with communities, to co-design and deliver community-based healing activities focussing on trauma recovery across mind, body and spirit and incorporate connection to family, culture, community and place.
CHARACTER
We are looking for an engaging Group Facilitator and Community-Based Practitioner who is passionate about supporting refugees and asylum seekers recovery from trauma, healing and thriving.
We are looking for someone who has the ability to create a welcoming, culturally safe and engaging atmosphere to be able to build rapport and appropriately engage with young people and adults to understand their recovery needs. You will be compassionate, adaptable and courageous in providing group and community-based interventions that support safety, healing and thriving for youth, adults and families from refugee backgrounds.
You will build strong, trusting relationships with young people and adults to understand their vision for a better future. You will identify natural leaders amongst refugee youth and young adults and support their leadership skill development. You will be compassionate and patient, understanding the challenges of young people, their families and communities.
We value creativity, flexibility and the ability to keep up to date with fast changing social trends and intervention opportunities in the context of a busy team. The successful candidate will also be committed to human rights and believe in social justice irrespective of differences related to gender, age, culture, religion, sexuality, disability, socio-economic status or political opinion.
RESPONSIBILITIES
- Co-develop and facilitate community-based activities (including group work programs and events) that achieve outcomes related to healing, belonging, thriving and justice. Delivery includes: planning and implementation of group sessions and programs as well as facilitating the participation of clients (invitation, welcome, coordination of transport if required and in-between follow-up);
- Alongside young people and adults, co-design, deliver and evaluate group interventions which support trauma recovery and strengthen the confidence and capacity of the community in which they belong;
- Identify group participants with additional needs and vulnerability and undertake time limited case work to support program participants, including facilitated referral to more intensive support when appropriate;
- Develop and maintain collaborative relationships with young people and adults from refugee backgrounds and other community members to ensure effective group work delivery which suits the needs and preferences of participants;
- Provide occasional, time limited one-on-one support to young people when required, including internal and external referrals, identifying and managing risks (including risk of self-harm and suicide ideation);
- Build and maintain collaborative relationships with QPASTT team members and partnerships with stakeholders, including community leaders (established, emerging, formal and informal), to enable effective co-facilitation of group work interventions;
- Povide support to interpreters and bicultural peer workers who are casually engaged to support the delivery of group work and other community-based activities;
- Ensure quality service delivery, including accountability with contractual requirements. This includes the writing of case notes and documentation of interventions delivered;
- Abide by the vision and values of QPASTT, including our Code of Conduct as well as the policies and procedures of the organisation;
- Support research and evaluation initiatives of the organisation.
REQUIREMENTS
- Ability to apply QPASTT’s healing, belonging, thriving and justice framework to group and community initiatives;
- Degree level qualifications and experience in a relevant human service area related to community or youth development (overseas experience will be assessed), such as social work, psychology, community development, occupational therapy, youth work, human services etc.;
- Demonstrated understanding of the refugee experience, including settlement, trauma recovery frameworks and the impact on wellbeing;
- Experience in and ability to lead planning, implementation/delivery and evaluation of group work programs, such as psycho-education programs and workshops, with young people, younger adults and/or adults;
- Ability to work in partnership with communities and other service providers to develop innovative strategies for group work and community engagement;
- Ability to undertake time limited case work/youth work with program participants using a trauma-informed lens to address the barriers to health, education, employment and well-being;
- Sound stakeholder relationship and liaison skills, particularly with referral agencies and community members;
- High level of communication and interpersonal skills, including written and oral, consultation, negotiation, advocacy, presentation and liaison;
- Demonstrated professionalism within the workplace, including ethical decision making; exhibiting reliability and initiative; and contributing to a diverse workplace culture of respect and flexibility;
- Desirable – lived refugee experience;
- Desirable – Experience working with individuals and families from refugee and/or multicultural backgrounds.
CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT
- Current Positive Notice Blue Card and provision of an annual federal police check;
- Current Queensland C Class driver’s license;
- Proof of COVID-19 Vaccination or an exemption certificate from Queensland Health authorized personnel;
- Flexibility to work out of standard hours;
- Travel to other office locations in Queensland;
- Eligibility to work in Australia;
- The period of probation will be six months.
SELECTION PROCESS
TO APPLY, PLEASE SUBMIT THE FOLLOWING DOCUMENTS:
- A cover letter detailing why you would like to work with QPASTT and how you meet the requirements of the role.
- Your resume detailing professional experience and education.
- A brief response (no more than 2 pages) to the responsibilities and requirements of the role.
The final date to apply is by 5pm on Tuesday 03 October 2023. Please email your application to [email protected].
Should you wish to talk with someone about this position, please contact Prathiba Subramaniam on 0410 450 371 or email [email protected].