Are you passionate about helping people to live a better life? Do you want to work for a charity where your health and wellbeing matter just as much as the people you support? Do you want to be part of a trauma-informed team where you will be supported to develop creative and flexible ways of working?

At LinkLiving, our values and people are at the heart of everything we do including how we recruit our staff. It is important for us to find people who share our values, which are:

• Empathy (listen to and understand an individual’s needs and circumstances)
• Respect (treat others the way they wish to be treated)
• Integrity (be honest and have strong moral principles)
• Caring (show kindness and concern for others)

LinkLiving is a Scottish health and wellbeing charity that supports people to manage or overcome the effects of negative life experiences (including trauma, mental health challenges, poverty and inequality) so that they can build on their strengths and aspirations in order to live their best possible lives. We support people through a range of models including:

• Personal development and employability programmes
• Self-help coaching
• Supported accommodation
• Care at home
• Housing support
• Befriending
• Social cafes

The Service

Fife Visiting Support Service comprises three distinct visiting support teams, each of which is headed up by a Team Leader who holds operational responsibility for day-to-day delivery.

• Short Term Housing Support: This outcomes-based service is commissioned by Fife Council and provides visiting housing support to people living across all Fife localities. The service is available for up to 6 months and is delivered flexibly to meet the changing needs of the people we support.
• Care at Home / Supported Living: This service is commissioned by Fife Health and Social Care Partnership and provides individually-tailored visiting support to people living across Fife. This is a longer-term service with individual support packages funded through social work spot contracts. As well as enabling people to live as independently as possible in their own homes, we also work with people to reduce social isolation through encouraging engagement with opportunities available in local communities. Where required, we provide personal care.
• Resettlement: This service supports people who have come to Fife through the UK resettlement scheme. Primarily based in Leuchars, the staff team provide flexible support to help people settle within their new communities and to access all services for which they are eligible.

Across these three teams, we currently provide visiting support to over 200 people aged 16+ in Fife, helping them to sustain their homes through the development of independent living skills. We also support people to engage with opportunities available within their local communities, reducing isolation and supporting the achievement of individual outcomes. All service provision is underpinned by our trauma-informed approach.

We support people from a diverse range of backgrounds and with a wide range of support needs, including but not limited to:

• mental health issues
• homelessness
• substance misuse issues
• physical disabilities
• sensory impairments
• lack of experience in managing a tenancy due to young age

The Job

As a key member of the LinkLiving leadership team, the Service Manager will lead, develop and direct our Fife Visiting Support Services in line with LinkLiving’s vision, strategic objectives and values and achieve positive outcomes for the people who we support.

The Service Manager will use their knowledge of trauma-informed approaches to social care practice to lead, motivate, develop and supervise a team of support staff who provide professional person-centred services to vulnerable and excluded people.

The Service Manager will participate in a range of external networks for the benefit of service users, acting as an ambassador for the whole organisation internally and externally, and will negotiate effectively with external funding partners to secure funding for service consolidation and development.

The Service Manager will manage a complex budget of Local Authority funding streams along with grant making trust income and will manage a complex and extensive range of stakeholders.

Leading by example, the Service Manager will respond to a review of needs, gaps and best practice, maximise service user involvement and choice, and oversee support services to service users in line with service delivery and regulatory standards requirements. The Service Manager will be required to be the (Care Inspectorate) Registered Manager for the services and, as a member of the LinkLiving Management team will be required to participate in an out of hours on-call rota for LinkLiving.

About You

You are a dedicated professional who holds a SSSC-recognised practice qualification at SCQF Level 9. You either possess or are committed to achieving a Management qualification (e.g. SVQ4 Care Services Leadership and Management at SCQF Level 10) within required timescales.

Your leadership abilities shine through your experience of leading or contributing to management teams within the care/support service sector. You possess a comprehensive understanding of the Social Care/Housing Support Sector and are well-versed in the issues affecting service users, including legislative matters.

Your expertise extends to at least one specialised area of care/support, such as mental health, trauma, or child protection. With a non-judgmental attitude and a commitment to diversity, you excel in managing resources, setting clear objectives, and driving performance.

Your analytical mindset allows you to review situations adeptly, recommending appropriate actions to address challenges. You are adept at fostering effective relationships and partnerships with voluntary and statutory agencies, coordinating and prioritising resources effectively.

Your written communication skills are of a quality that ensures clear and concise reports and funding applications. You embrace a proactive approach to your own learning and development, reflecting our organisation's commitment to continuous improvement.

Your dedication to service user involvement is evident through your proactive approach, ensuring their voices are heard and valued. Flexibility is second nature to you, as evidenced by your willingness to work flexibly to meet the needs of the service which may include evenings, weekends, and public holidays, you embody reliability and practicality, bringing a flexible and resilient approach to your work each day. Ideally you will have a current driver's license and access to a car and the ability to travel between services as required.

For a comprehensive list of the essential and desirable criteria required for this post, please refer to the Job Specification in the Job information Pack below.

What’s in it for you?

The benefits of being a LinkLiving employee (subject to the policies and benefit terms and conditions) include:

• Competitive salary, reviewed annually, and opportunity for annual performance related salary increases and discretionary non-consolidated pay awards, subject to terms of the scheme
• 35 days’ holiday per year (inclusive of public holidays) pro rata plus additional 3 days pro rata after 3 years’ service
• opportunity to buy and sell holiday
• enhanced company sick and family friendly pay
• access to paid SVQ qualifications and a wide range of learning and development opportunities
• funded Disclosure Scotland and Scottish Social Services Council memberships
• defined contribution pension scheme with generous employer contributions plus salary exchange and additional voluntary contribution options
• access to an Electric vehicle leasing scheme, subject to the terms of the scheme
• life assurance scheme providing death in service benefits to named beneficiaries
• healthcare cash plan for employees (and dependents) to support health and wellbeing plus discounts on shopping, restaurants, and other services
• employee assistance programme for employees and their immediate household dependants to support health, mental and financial well-being
• annual flu vaccination
• access to a savings and borrowing scheme
• cycle to work scheme
• monthly bus pass scheme
• season/travel ticket loan and much more!

For a full list of benefits available to employees, please see the following link - linkliving.org.uk/work-with-us

Successful applicants will be required to apply for registration with SSSC within 3 months of their start date and be registered within 6 months.

This post is subject to Protection of Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme registration. Link will meet the cost of any new PVG scheme membership or scheme record update.

To deliver a visiting housing support service to enable people to live as independently as possible in their own homes.

To provide emotional and practical support, as well as assisting people to take part in activities that matter to them and help them engage with their community to reduce social isolation.

To develop effective relationships with people affected by a range of challenges, support them to cope in difficult times and enable them to live a good life. In doing so, to provide emotional, practical and social support to help people to live as independently as possible and make informed choices in all aspects of their lives.

To develop positive relationships with a range of partners, including the NHS (in the community and in hospitals), social work and voluntary organisations to extend the breadth and quality of support available to the people we work with.

To be part of a team while managing own caseload and being a key worker for some of the people we support. to take part in regular team meetings and receive regular support and supervision.

To participate in a range of learning and development opportunities to enhance experience and skills and improve the quality of our service.

To utilise technology effectively to help deliver the best possible service to the people we support including to create support plans and risk assessments, record support, monitor outcomes and gather feedback from the people we work with.