Support Worker - 33 hours per week, Permanent, Blackburn

Being a Support Worker at AFG is a hugely rewarding role and could be your first step on a long and happy career in Health & Social Care. 

So, what does a Support Worker do?

We have a vision to create a world where people control their lives.  Here at AFG, we pride ourselves on helping the people we support to design, develop and ‘own’ the support they receive by planning this with them; we support people to make informed choices and increase their own independence; and we support people to maintain their own health, wellbeing and living environment.  These principles are really important to us.

Our Support Workers work in a variety of settings including community-based services (often supporting people in their own homes) to our Treatment & Recovery Centres. 

One thing that is common across all of our services is a focus on personalised support and tailoring our services to the needs and aspirations of the people we support with a diverse range of care needs (including Learning Disabilities, Physical Disabilities, Mental Health Concerns, Complex Care, Substance Misuse issues to name a few). 

We value the people that work with us…

At AFG we recognise the contribution and value that our staff make.  We would not be able to provide the life changing support that we do without people like you!  In return for your contribution we will support you throughout your career and we provide a wide range of employee benefits, career development (including opportunities to undertake vocational qualifications) and lifestyle support services to ensure that you too feel supported, fulfilled and valued from day one of your employment with us.

About you…

There are a few things that we look for in all of our support workers; we would need you to…

• be a good communicator (verbally and in writing)
• be patient, confident and enthusiastic about caring for others
• be able to use your own initiative
• be able to work as part of a team
• have flexibility to work a varied shift pattern to provide 24-hour support
• share our AFG values

We don’t ask for any other relevant training or a previous career in care as full training will be provided – you just need a willingness to learn and develop. 

Your pay - our Support Workers receive a rate of £12.00 per hour for all worked hours. Once you are successful for a role with us, full details of your pay will be included in your written offer. 

As a ‘values based’ employer, the people that work for us genuinely care about the people they support, and we are seeking likeminded people to join our AFG family.  If you are passionate about caring for others and have a real desire to make a positive difference to the lives of the people we support then we would love to hear from you.

More about this vacancy...
We asked the Team Leader to tell us more about this role and the amazing person that we need to work here.

Where is this vacancy based?
This vacancy is based in Blackburn.

Who do you support?
We currently support 5 people within this service, 4 gents and 1 lady. All people supported are verbal and physically able. We provide support with medication, finances, cooking, cleaning, general flat maintenance, emotional support, health appointments and safe access to the community - however this list is not exhaustive and new tasks can crop up daily. The people supported within this service all have a learning difficulty or mental health diagnosis.

Where do they live?
This property is a flat scheme and has 6 self contained units. There are 5 units that are occupied by people supported and the 6th unit is a staff flat. The service is close to Blackburn town centre and local amenities.

What would a typical shift be like?
There is a varied shift pattern in this service and we require some flexibility from our support staff. The shifts included are days, evenings, sleep in support and weekends. The day can start with medication administration and finance checks, handover's and emotional support for the people supported. The days can vary depending on the activity or volunteer positions that the people we support have in place. Activities can range from supporting one of our gents to a local doggy day care placement where we would expect staff to attend with them to weekly banking, food shopping, support to attend a local health group, taking walks, going to the cinema or bowling, bike rides, flat maintenance and cleaning, support with laundry, going to watch or play football with one of our gents who plays for a local team, attending health appointments, making appointments and speaking to other professionals over the phone. The people supported at this service are able to go out independently and in this time, staff will ensure that their training and paperwork is up to date.

What activities do the people that we support at this property like to do?
The people supported have varied interests. Two of the gents have a volunteer day placement, one of these is at a local doggy day care centre and the other is at a local barber shop. There are mutual interests including going to the cinema and bowling, meals out, walking, singing & dancing - in particular 2 of our gents enjoy making TikTok videos and sharing them to the business platform to show off their skills. The lady that lives in this service enjoys bingo and shopping and can often be unpredictable around the times that she wants to go out so support staff must always be ready and prepared. Other interests include Xbox and PlayStation, Marvel, arts and crafts and baking.

There will also be group outings with the people supported and one of the favourites are the Christmas Markets which can be as far as Edinburgh. Another of our gents loves Blackpool Pleasure Beach and loves it when his support staff are willing to go on the rides with him. One of our gents loves trampolining and another enjoys DIY as he finds great satisfaction in this but requires some support. Our last gent at this property has a keen interest in fish and has 4 fish tanks in his flat.


Are there any skills or interests that a candidate could have that would be great to use to support this service?

 Due to all the people supported requiring some support with basic life skills, any successful candidate will be required to have a basic knowledge of how to cook and be willing to learn how to cook recipes from fresh ingredients. We require somebody who is willing to support with cleaning and who is open minded and willing to try new things. No day is ever the same.


What is the team here or is it lone-working?
You will be joining a team of established support workers and good communication is essential. There will be a team of support staff during the day and you will be lone working in the evening and during the sleep in shift but there will be a Team Leader on call at all times. You must be willing to complete the mandatory training that is essential to this role and there will also be a range of other courses that can be completed alongside this to further your knowledge and skills. Good time keeping is essential and we require somebody who is reliable. We require somebody who is flexible and not afraid of new challenges.


What are your shift patterns?
An example of some of the shifts that are available are - 8:00am-22:00pm sleep 7:00am-9:00am. 8:00am-19:00pm 8:00am-20:00pm

We hope this has given you more insight into this role and we hope to see your application soon.

Please note our Support Workers are contracted by area therefore flexibility is essential to work in other services where required.