developmental psychology jobs

If you enjoy working with children and have the resilience to deal with challenging behaviours while still being able to offer a caring and supportive therapeutic approach, then we would love to hear from you!

Pebbles Care has an incredible opportunity for you to work in partnership with our established team and become an essential part of our children’s lives. This will include every aspect of home life, from driving our children to and from school, appointments, and visits (a full UK manual driving licence is required) to food preparation, household chores, and making lasting memories through fun-filled activities, outings, and holidays.

Your role as a Residential Child Care Worker

You will be employed full-time as a dedicated team member, averaging 56.4 hours per week, including sleep hours. Working collaboratively with your team on shift, you will provide support tailored to the young person's needs, either one-to-one or two-to-one.

During your induction, you will learn about our therapeutic care model in training with our Learning and Development team. Our Psychology, Education, and Senior Management Team will also help you with expert support and guidance.

You will be based within one home on a full-time basis. However, you may occasionally be required to support other homes within the same geographical area.

What we offer you

• A starting salary of £34,719.00 to £36,248.00 per annum, pro rata, depending on experience.
• Full-time roles operate on a rota pattern of one day on (24 hours, including sleepover) and two days off (48 hours).
• Your average weekly working hours, including sleepovers, are 56.4. If you require flexibility, we may have part-time and zero-hour contracts available.
• You will receive 5.6 weeks annual leave per annum (this will be pro-rata for part-time contracts)
• Our Learning and Development team can support you to receive 100% funding for your Level 3 SVQ /NVQ qualification in Residential Child Care.
• Upon completing your induction, training, and minimum qualifications, you will receive a career review.
• Auto-enrolment into our salary sacrifice pension scheme (Scottish Widows)
• A cash-back health care plan via Medicash allows you to claim for dental and optical treatments, discounted gym memberships, 24/7 access to a GP, free access to counselling and much more.
• Blue Light Card – for store discounts
• Meals are provided while on shift, depending on the home's daily menu choice.

What sets Pebbles apart from other care providers?

• We strive to be the best and lead the way in providing personalised therapeutic care and education.
• We provide a clearly defined developmental pathway and recently integrated a leadership development plan for those who wish to progress.
• Pebbles has fifty six beautiful homes and three established schools for children and young people in North England and Scotland.
• We specialise in providing residential child care and education for young people between ages 8 and 18.
• Ambitious growth initiatives are planned for 2025, starting in January and continuing throughout the year.
• With nearly 22 years of experience, we have the skills and knowledge to guide young people toward brighter futures.

Essential qualities that we look for include:

• Dedication to safeguarding our children and young individuals.
• A strong desire to obtain qualifications and continue your personal development.
• Confident and resilient nature.
• A valid, full UK manual driver's license is required (all homes possess their own manual vehicles).
• A kind and supportive nature
• Patience and the ability to cultivate non-judgmental relationships.
• An engaged and attentive listener
• A creative ability to have fun and learn new skills.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Proficient IT skills and experience in using Microsoft packages.

Desirable Qualities include:

• Up to 12 months experience working with children or young adults. (If you have more than 12 months experience, then our grade two and three level salaries may apply)
• Working towards, or a desire to obtain, SCQF Level 7 or Level 3 Diploma relevant to Children and Young People's Residential workforce (funding may be available)
• Familiar with the Codes of Practice set out by regulatory bodies.
• An existing PVG / DBS certificate

Are you ready to join our family?

Please complete our online application form. If you would like to discuss the role further with our team, please email recruitment@pebblescare.com and ask a member of our team to contact you.

Please note that shortlisting will be ongoing due to the fast-paced nature of our recruitment process, and we may choose to end the recruitment campaign if a suitable candidate is identified before the end date.