Support Worker

Job title: Support worker 

Accountable to: Local management team 

Work area: Designated locality or neighbourhood

Hours of work As agreed

The main objectives of the post 

1. To provide high-quality person-centred support to individuals, both within their homes

and in the community, in accordance with the Key’s aims and principles and the Codes of Conduct and  Practice issued by the Scottish Social Services Council. 

2. To help individuals plan their support, accessing both formal and informal support networks, and  to promote the rights and choices of the people you support.  

3. To constantly monitor the quality and appropriateness of support, and to ensure good ‘team work’ is developed and maintained between all people involved in a person’s support. 

Responsibilities with people who are supported 

1. To build warm, caring, and positive relationships with people receiving support, and to keep the  individual’s best interests in mind at all times. 

2. To provide direct practical help, advice and guidance to individuals in all areas of their life as  required. This support should at all times respect the person’s rights and personal dignity and  value, and should be provided in a manner that is entirely non-discriminatory, sensitive (to needs  and wants), image enhancing, and empowering. 

3. Areas of support activity may include; personal care (including intimate areas of self-care such  as washing, dressing or using the toilet), domestic home care, financial matters (including  maximising income and managing expenditure), emotional and physical wellbeing, education or  employment, and general social or leisure areas (including making and maintaining  friendships/relationships). 

4. To work creatively to help individuals recognise achievements, celebrate successes, assist  informed decision making, identify problems and find ways of resolving them, and to take  advantage of opportunities, gain new experiences, and develop life-skills and confidence. 

5. To use person-centred planning tools to help individuals (along with other important people in  their lives) identify future aspirations, and current support needs and preferences, and consider  how these can best be met.  

6. To support individuals to co-ordinate their own formal and informal support (families, friends  and other interested people), or where necessary or desired to co-ordinate this support on their  behalf.

Content revised 2011 

7. To liaise with other agencies with and on behalf of individuals to enable access to appropriate  resources and services (including specialist services). 

8. Where individuals share accommodation to help them live together positively, share  responsibilities (including running their home), identify common issues and concerns and find  solutions to problems. 

9. To support advocacy (whether it be self-advocacy, citizen or group advocacy), and to promote  active participation within Key.  

General 

1. To communicate effectively, and to work positively and co-operatively with managers, other  employees, workers from other agencies and members of the public (including family and friends  of individuals who are supported) – and to keep supported individuals as the main focus of your  efforts. 

2. To take your personal and professional development seriously, at work this will include your  active involvement in supervision, and also (where identified as appropriate) taking part in  meetings, forums, and training. 

3. To maintain records in a wide range of areas (including using non-writing based methods such  as graphics/photos, audio/visual tapes, computers etc…). 

4. To understand issues of confidentiality in relation to your work and individuals who are  supported and to ensure this is maintained. 

5. To provide support, or be available to provide support, in line with agreed practice/local  arrangements; which is likely to include participating in a rota, sleep-over cover, and a range of  fixed time or flexible time arrangements, including on-call arrangements. 

6. To help ensure that people’s homes are safe, secure and comfortable by offering support,  undertaking tasks directly, and where appropriate arranging servicing/repairs, and/or advising  line manager of concerns or reporting direct to relevant others.  

7. To be aware of the Health and Safety Policy of Key and understand your own responsibilities  within this, and to actively use risk assessment practices (to avoid or minimise risk) in all areas of  your work and support. 

8. To be aware of and follow all procedures and practices of Key (as laid out in the Procedures  Handbook). 

9. To conduct yourself in a manner consistent with the expectations of other bodies (eg, Service  Level Agreements/Contracts with funding agencies, the Care Inspectorate, and Scottish Social  Services Council). 

10. To undertake other duties within the main objectives of the post as requested by people you  support, colleagues, or by your line manager.