Young People Participation Officer
Young People Participation Officer
Manx Care – Children & Families Division
- Location – Douglas. Isle of Man
- Contract Type – Permanent | employment through St Christopher’s and seconded into Manx Care Safeguarding and Quality Assurance Unit
- Relocation package available - £3000
- Salary - £31,733
- Hours - 40 hours per week | Evening & weekend work will be required in this role
- Closing Date: 20TH May 2026
Exciting Opportunity
This is an opportunity to support & represent the voice of children in care on the Isle of Man.
About Us
Our vision is for every child and young person to be safe, loved and happy, to achieve their potential and have a bright future.
St Christopher’s is the current organisation working under contract to Manx Care to deliver services to vulnerable children and young people. Please note the contract is due for renewal and so will be transferring to a new organisation appointed by Manx Care July 2026.
Manx Care have confirmed that they are arranging as part of the transition for the new organisation to transfer St Christopher's staff on equivalent terms and conditions, with continuity and fairness.
We are an equal-opportunity employer keen to develop an inclusive workforce where people feel they belong. We hope to attract applications from under- represented groups, including people from different cultures, nationalities, socioeconomic backgrounds, ages, disabilities, religions, faith, sex, orientation, childcare responsibilities, and gender-diverse identities.
About the Role
St Christopher’s and Manx Care (Children and Families Division) have a fantastic opportunity to join their dynamic Participation Team.
We know that:
- Young people are the only ones who can describe issues from their perspective.
- Participation builds young people's self-esteem and confidence.
- Voices in Participation raises public awareness of looked after Children and Young People's needs.
Applicants should have
- Knowledge and understanding of issues faced by children/young people in care
- Experience of group-work models and group dynamics
- Knowledge of safeguarding children and young people
- Strong communication skills including, written, verbal and listening
- Ability to work within a multi-disciplinary environment
- ICT skills – including Microsoft
- Understanding of communication mediums and knowledge of the different ways of communicating
- At least 2 years recent experience of direct work with children and young people
- Full driving license with use of own car
- Flexibility to work weekends, evening and residential work where necessary
What you should expect from us
- £31,733
- Competitive pay and reward structure offering salary progression based on performance.
- A friendly working environment, a fun, open and honest culture.
- 25 days holiday rising to 27 days after 3 years’ service, plus Bank Holidays, pro-rata.
- Industry leading training programme including access to level 3 qualifications, children’s right and participation, CSE, empowerment, mental health and social pedagogy.
- Contributory pension scheme, enhanced maternity and company sick scheme.
- Life Assurance (Death in service) to the value of 3 times your annual salary for all pension members.
- BUPA employee assistance programme, offering counselling, financial advice and legal support.
- Cycle to work scheme.
- Bluelight card; discount shopping scheme at hundreds of retailers across the UK and IOM.
- Discretionary funded training programs.
- Employee awards based on performance and length of service.
- Fantastic opportunities to develop your career within our range of services.
Recruitment Process
At St Christopher’s we are committed to the safeguarding of all children and young people in our care. During the recruitment process you will be expected to complete an online application form (cv’s are not permitted) to ensure we capture essential information to meet legislation, best practice and vetting requirements.
Applicants will ideally already be on the DBS Update Service; if this is not the case St Christopher's will carry out a DBS (police) check prior to starting.
Your online application must include a supporting statement addressing the criteria stated in the Person Specification. For the full Job Description and Person Specification click here. CV’s will not be accepted.
It is against the law to apply for work with Children/Young People if you are barred from working in Regulated Activity and if your name is added to a Children Barred List.
All shortlisted candidates invited to interview will be asked to submit a Self-Declaration and Disclosure form which will need to be returned prior to an interview being booked.
For more information or assistance during the application process, please contact recruitment@stchris.org.uk
Closing date: 20th May 2026
We advise to apply as soon as possible as applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.
Please note this post has a minimum age restriction of 25 for roles working directly with children and young people in our residential and semi-independent Homes in line with the Equality Act ‘occupational requirement’.
