About the Illawarra Women’s Trauma Recovery Centre 

The Illawarra Women’s Trauma Recovery Centre (the ‘Centre’) is an Australian first community-led initiative, codesigned with women with lived expertise, professional experts and service providers to offer comprehensive and long-term support to women recovering from the trauma of domestic, family and sexual violence (DFSV). Strongly aligned with local, state and national priorities, including The National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children 2022-2032, the Centre will support women to heal from trauma arising from domestic, family and sexual violence, and to improve the long-term health and psychosocial outcomes for women and families. The Commonwealth Government has fully funded the Centre for an initial period of five years with the expectation that the outcomes will demonstrate this is a cost-effective and therapeutically efficacious model that can be replicated nationally. The Centre’s operational framework can be found here. 

The Centre is a project of the Illawarra Women’s Health Centre. Established in 1986, we are nationally accredited and provide a safe place for women to access specialised high-quality women’s medical and health care services. We also offer various health and well-being workshops, programs, community-based group activities, and support groups. Our services evolve in response to the needs of women and girls in the region, shaped by evidence of effective practice and local, state, and national policy contexts. Our services and programs are provided at little or no cost to all women in the Illawarra. 

Position Summary 

Reporting to Director of Therapeutic Programs, Wellbeing and Self-determination, the Therapeutic Team Leader is responsible for the provision of specialist domestic family and sexual violence therapeutic intervention, to support the recovery and healing of women from DFSV. This role will provide team leadership, clinical oversight, operational line management and service implementation at the Centre. Contributing to the planning, establishment and delivery of services under the Therapeutic team’s portfolio, the position will provide mentoring and clinical supervision to the clinicians, manage client intake and case allocation processes, maintain a proportionate caseload and provide therapeutic intervention to clients of the Centre using evidenced based interventions and practices. The Therapeutic team leader will draw upon their experience and knowledge to effectively partner with victim survivors of DFSV in the planning and delivery of care, establish referral pathways and contribute to the Centre’s collection of data. The position is required to carry out all duties within a holistic and feminist framework, as a member of the broader Centre team. This position may require some outreach to other services/places and may include some group work as negotiated/planned, as time and circumstance permits. 

Essential Criteria

1. Appropriate tertiary qualifications including Psychology, Social Work, or Counselling and eligibility or membership of the relevant professional association and/or registration through the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency. 
2. Direct experience leading an allied health team, including operational planning and managing staff workload, training and performance 
3. Extensive direct clinical experience providing therapeutic counselling, conducting psychosocial assessments, risk assessment and safety planning, advocacy, psychoeducation, report writing, group work and court support with people who have experienced domestic family and sexual violence. 
4. Demonstrated ability to provide leadership and high-level clinical support and supervision within a multidisciplinary team  
5. Demonstrated understanding of the legislation, Government policies, including Illawarra Women’s Trauma recovery centre’s policies and legal issues surrounding domestic family violence and sexual violence 
6. A commitment to ongoing cultural learning and critical self-reflection in relation to race, privilege and power. 
7. Knowledge of and experience using a trauma and violence informed approach. 
8. Demonstrated expertise in leading the development and implementation of therapeutic practices, including quality assurance, monitoring and reporting clinical outcomes.  
9. Demonstrated ability to work with women of diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds. 
10. Experience in supporting women, including those who have experienced domestic, family violence and sexual violence, child abuse, use of alcohol and other drugs, depression, grief and loss, intergenerational trauma. 
11. Capacity to develop effective working relationships and collaborative partnerships with internal and external stakeholders. 
12. Commitment to feminist and social justice principles and the Centre’s values.  
13. Driver’s license and access to a vehicle. 

     

Desirable 

1. Training or experience in delivering somatic based therapeutic interventions. 
2.  Experience working with diverse communities or lived experience of diversity including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, LGBTQIA+, migrant, culturally and linguistically diverse, neurodivergent and people with a disability.  
3. Fluency in a community language other than English 

Incentives include

• Salary packaging
• Additional week of leave at Christmas
• External supervision and four paid mental health days included
• Financial assistance with relocation costs will be considered 
   

Salary range

SCHADS Award $120,000
 

How to Apply

Please ensure you include your CV and a cover letter responding to the essential criteria.

If you have any questions, please email Katy Blackley at [email protected] or Sam Ivancsik at [email protected]
 

Closing date for applications

Friday 8 December 2023 (5pm)

Please note that applications will be viewed and considered throughout the advertisement period