Achieving for Children is a Community Interest Company that has a public sector ethos, combined with the freedom to innovate enabling us to do things differently. As a not-for-profit social enterprise owned by three local authorities (Windsor & Maidenhead, Kingston and Richmond), we offer the freedoms of a social enterprise with the employment benefits of local government. To find out more about us . Personal Adviser We are proud to share that children's services in Kingston have achieved an OUTSTANDING rating from Ofsted in December 2024, receiving the highest judgement rating in all five assessment areas. This marks Kingston's second consecutive OUTSTANDING rating, a true reflection of the commitment to ensuring children and young people across the borough have a fairer start in life, and providing the support and services they and their families need to live happy, healthy and successful lives. To find out more click . If you would like to be part of our success story, take a look at the below opportunity to see if it's the right fit for you. The Leaving Care/Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children (UASC) Team sit within our Permanency Service, this service is made up of the Leaving Care/UASC Team, Permanency Team, Fostering Team and the Adoption Team. The Leaving Care service operates across Kingston and Richmond and supports young people from the age of 16 who are looked after,have recently left care (up to the age of 25) or who are unaccompanied asylum seeking children,to become independent and inspire them to set ambitious goals for themselves. These goals include them acquiring the skills, knowledge and confidence to live independently, including how to manage their money, have appropriate accommodation options , access education, training and employment, live a healthy lifestyle and access health support when they need and develop and maintain social networks that will sustain them throughout their lives. Operational area Kingston and Richmond Primary place of work 91 Queen's Rd, TW1 Appointment type Permanent Business area Children's Social Care Full time/Part time Full-time Salary from £39,855 (SCP27) Salary to £42,324 (SCP30) Hours 36 Estimated Interview date/s 20/08/2025 Closing Date 15/08/2025 Ref No 2092 Documents (PDF, 346.74kb) About the role Personal advisors in the Leaving Care service provide practical help and direct support to young people and young adults using the service from age 18. They are required to manage an agreed caseload of young people in compliance with casework objectives, departmental policy and procedural requirements, consistently maintaining the highest level of professional standards. The Personal Advisor will safeguard and promote the welfare of young people, giving due consideration to their race, culture, religion and linguistic background. They will use agreed assessment frameworks in collaboration with the individual to robustly assess their needs and to develop corresponding Pathway Plans setting out clear goals and who is going to provide assistance. They will ensure the mental, physical and sexual health needs of young people are assessed and met and to assist them in accessing health services, local leisure facilities, social networks and other community facilities and links. They will identify accommodation needs and assist young people in securing appropriate accommodation options, whilst ensuring the educational, training and employment needs of young people are assessed and met. The Personal Advisor will also ensure that young people who are seeking asylum, or who have an unresolved immigration status, have good quality legal representation to help them with their applications and to maintain contact with the immigration authorities. They will help young people with the resettlement process and transition to benefits after they are granted leave to remain in the UK. For further information about this role, please contact Shaira Makorie by email for an informal discussion. About you The right candidate will need to be: Qualification in Youth Work or a related field eg. NVQ4 Guidance, Youth and Community Work Knowledge of relevant theory that informs practice delivery. Experience of direct work with young people in formal and informal settings, including needs assessment, care planning and providing advice, counselling and support. Experience of building strong partnerships, maintaining relationships and co-producing solutions to challenges across a diverse set of stakeholders, including children, young people and their families. Advocating the voices of those we are working with. Knowledge of statutory legislation (for example Children’s Act) and national policy drivers that will affect children’s services and your role. A passion for Achieving for Children’s vision, mission and values (trust, value. respect) to support children and young people to live safe, happy, healthy and successful lives. Able to use a range of digital hardware or software to support your work effectively i.e. microsoft or Google software. Strong organisational abilities including: time management, creative-thinking, problem-solving and multitasking. Able to work flexibly and independently with limited management oversight. Personal determination, drive, energy and ambition to achieve challenging objectives, celebrate success and deliver excellent outcomes for children using a strength based approach. About our benefits We are focused on creating a positive supportive environment, where you will have access to a really wide range of resources, as well as a competitive salary and all the perks to enable hybrid working. In AfC you will also have access to: 29 days annual leave, increasing to 33 days after 2 years and 35 days after 4 years with an additional day off in your birthday month (Or for term-time workers, your leave entitlement consists of the non-working periods in your contract) Tailored induction sessions commencing on the date you start working for AfC Local Government salary and pension scheme (LGPS or Teachers Pension) Flexible working options - helping to keep a good work life balance A comprehensive Employee Assistance Programme A range of staff benefits and discounts An excellent learning and development offer to support your career pathway To find out about all of the breadth of benefits of working for Achieving for Children . For our social work offer . For our Recruitment Journey, Important Information Start dates: Achieving for Children have meaning successful candidates join on a set date in each month. Candidates are advised to prepare for this should a job offer be accepted to ensure eligible continuous service is not affected. Right to work: The UK has introduced a new points-based immigration system affecting EU and Non-EU workers and sponsorship requirements. We advise checking the for right to work guidance. Equality: We particularly welcome applications from sections of the community who are currently underrepresented within our teams. Achieving for Children are committed to making our recruitment practices as inclusive as possible for everyone. We are committed to promoting equality and diversity and developing a culture that values differences, recognising that employees from a variety of backgrounds bring important and positive contributions and can improve the way we deliver services. We are proud to be a Disability Confident employer. Safeguarding: We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. We expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. This post is exempted under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and as such appointment to this post will be conditional upon the receipt of a satisfactory response to a check of police records via Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). For more information about AfC: Drop in and meet Regina on the first Wednesday of every month at Civic Centre, Twickenham. We reserve the right to close this vacancy once a sufficient number of applications has been received. Therefore, it is strongly advised that you complete and return your application as soon as possible to avoid disappointment. Achieving for Children. Location : Kingston upon Thames, United Kingdom