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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 - between 4th April 2022 and 31st March 2023, our Support Workers will receive a rate equivalent to £9.90 per hour for all worked hours. This will be made up of the National Living Wage rate of £9.50, plus for any worked hours an addition top-up in your hourly rate of £0.40 to take total hourly equivalent for all worked hours to £9.90. On top of this, any colleagues who work above an average of 39 hours per week in any pay period will receive an additional 10p per hour for worked hours above this level taking hourly earnings up to £10.00 per hour for those shifts (this additional top-up will apply between 4th April 2022 and 31st March 2023).

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 Macclesfield.

Who do you support?
4 gentlemen, all of which have a learning disability with varying needs such as mobility, personal care, daily living skills, finance and medication. Everyone enjoys going out, accessing the community or keeping busy with in house activities.

Where do they live?
4-bedroom bungalow, with 2 bathrooms, a large kitchen with front and back garden. We have a bus stop right outside, with buses running to the town center on a regular basis

What would a typical shift be like?
Start the day as you mean to go on... busy! we check the diary to see if there are any health appointments or fun pre planned activities then organise the shift around that, communicating with the other staff on duty.

All of the people we support require a little help to get ready for the day, this can range from full support to have a bath to prompting someone to make sure all corners of that piece of toast is buttered.

Once everyone has had their medication and completed their morning routines then its up to the people we support to decide what they do with their day.

The pandemic has limited some as they no longer go to day centers but there are still endless opportunities or just a visit with family to facilitate.

The people we support all have many health needs and this is a key point to our support, we have to observe, monitor and document changes. We then liaise with other health care professionals to guarantee all health needs are met on a daily basis.

Evenings can be a meal out or local disco, equally it can be the "Im a celebrity" sweepstake. All individuals have a different evening routine that can vary depending on what they choose.

What activities do the people that we support at this property like to do?
Music, Football, cinema, arts and crafts, baking, cooking, classic sitcoms or movies, shopping, farming/tractors, cleaning and organizing (believe it or not), Gardening, growing food, any opportunity to decorate the house, visiting places of interest. Anything industrial/engineering, Aerospace, plane spotting.

Are there any skills or interests that a candidate could have that would be great to use to support this service?
Ideally id want a driver as we have 3 mobility vehicles. Patience, calmness and the ability to de-escalate verbal confutation. Not squeamish when it comes to personal care, as there is alot! Fun and jovial when delivering support. A basic understanding of learning disabilities and health needs including epilepsy.

What is the team here or is it lone-working?
We have a very experienced but small staff team. There are 6 of us who work amazingly together, problem solving and helping one other reach our shared goal. the people we support come first. Are they happy and safe? how else can we improve their lives. What do they want to achieve and how can we support this.

What are your shift patterns?
08:00-21:00 10:00-22:00 + Sleep + 07:30-10:00 (10-10 Sleep) 09:00 - 15:30

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.