An exciting opportunity has arisen to join Sheffield's Children's Involvement Service as a Children & Young People's Advocate.
We are looking for two passionate, creative and child-centred advocates to join our team. This is an exciting opportunity to be part of a growing advocacy service, as Sheffield expands its advocacy offer through the Families First Partnership Programme. You will play a key role in developing new advocacy pathways and ensuring that children and young people are heard, supported and able to influence decisions about their lives.
Our advocates work alongside children and young people to ensure their voices are heard, understood and acted upon. You will support children involved in child protection processes, children in care, care leavers and disabled children, helping them understand their rights, express their views, and influence the decisions that matter most to them.
Alongside this established work, you will have the opportunity to contribute to the development of new advocacy pathways through the Families First Partnership Programme. This includes providing specialist advocacy support for some of Sheffield's most vulnerable children and young people, including adolescents facing complex challenges, such as 16- and 17-year-olds presenting as homeless, children and young people with SEND, children from marginalised communities, young people affected by parental imprisonment, and other children who may experience barriers to having their voices heard.
You will be joining an experienced and supportive team that is passionate about children's rights and committed to ensuring that children's voices influence the decisions that affect their lives. The team works collaboratively, sharing knowledge and expertise to achieve the best outcomes for children and young people.
Excellent interpersonal skills are essential as you will work closely with children, families and professionals to uphold children's rights and ensure their voices are central to decision-making. You will need to be proactive, adaptable and confident in working with a wide range of people and services.
The role will include:
- Providing advocacy support to children and young people involved in child protection processes.
- Delivering issue-based advocacy for children in care and care leavers.
- Providing advocacy, including non-instructed advocacy, for disabled children and young people.
- Building relationships with children and young people living in residential settings and supporting them to access advocacy.
- Supporting the development and delivery of new advocacy pathways through the Families First Partnership Programme.
This role would suit someone who believes strongly in children's rights, enjoys building trusted relationships, and is motivated by making a real difference to the lives of children and young people. You must have either Level 4 NVQ/QCF in children and young people’s advocacy, including non-instructed advocacy module, or an equivalent professional qualification in a relevant vocation andevidence of recent and relevant professional development.
If you are committed to ensuring children's voices are heard and want to be part of an ambitious service that is developing new ways of supporting children and young people across Sheffield, we would love to hear from you.
For an informal discussion about the role, please contact Clare Humberstone, Children's Involvement Service Manager, on 0114 2288553 or email [email protected]
Interviews will be held face to face on 30th September.
We are investing in our workforce and are promoting opportunities to our under-represented groups. We value equality, diversity and inclusion and are focused on increasing the diversity of our workforce, particularly the number of Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic, Disabled and LGBTQ+ people, so that our teams reflect the communities in the city we serve. We are also supporting staff with unpaid caring responsibilities to work flexibly.
It is a great time to join us and we welcome your application.
Under the Guaranteed Interview scheme, applicants who are disabled, care leavers, or armed forces veterans will be guaranteed an interview if they meet the essential criteria and indicate their eligibility on the application form. Sometimes, if lots of people apply, we might not be able to interview everyone who qualifies for the Guarantee. In these cases, we’ll interview the candidates who best meet the essential criteria for the job.
Full-time employees work 37 hours for 52 weeks of the year and we offer a generous holiday entitlement. We are open to discussions about a wide range of flexible working opportunities which benefit you and the Council, including reduced hour contracts, working part time or as a job share.
If you are appointed to this role, your starting salary will be at the bottom of the grade. If you provide payslip evidence that your basic pay is greater than the bottom of the grade, we will consider starting you at the point of minimum advantage within the grade.
Equality of pay is extremely important to us. All roles at Sheffield City Council are going through an evaluation process which may result in changes to some pay arrangements from 2026. Find out more on our Sheff news page.
We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all individuals, ensuring a safe and supportive environment for everyone and where appropriate to the role the successful applicant will be required to undertake relevant safeguarding checks.
