Support and Employment Worker

The Support and Employment Worker will provide a high quality and responsive mentoring and advocacy service. 

This creatively addresses the needs and risks of our students and graduates to enable them to avoid further offending and to obtain and maintain employment upon release.

Our students and graduates will come from multiple prison sites across the London and the South East region, so careful diary management, logistical planning and travel are key components of the role.

This is a flexible role, mostly based at HMP Brixton, but will also include travelling between

HMP Downview and HMP Send multiple prisons and our Clink Training Café site in Herne Hill, with some working from home and managing a community caseload of graduates who have been released.

The Support and Employment Worker will develop action plans with each student in prison to support them in obtaining employment upon release and also in developing independent living skills to work towards their long-term goals and aspirations.

About The Clink Charity

The Clink Charity, founded in 2009, aims to prevent and reduce reoffending through training, rehabilitation, and support. 

We deliver hospitality and horticulture training behind the prison walls and in the community by creating an environment where our students are supported to gain the skills, confidence and qualifications they need to rebuild their lives.

Since that time, we have trained approximately 5,000 people in prison and delivered 2,600 City & Guilds qualifications in a variety of hospitality and food courses.
 

What makes The Clink so unique is our post-release support and mentoring programme that rehabilitates an offender back into society through assistance with health and mental health issues, housing, employment, family connections and friendships.

The charity operates an award-winning fine-dining restaurant open to the public inside HMP Brixton, training kitchens in the prison estate, horticulture projects at HMP Send and HMP Erlestoke, a commercial bakery in Brixton, and a bespoke delivery service, Catered by Clink.

Additionally, Clink Events is our social enterprise catering business with food produced by the women in HMP Downview and also in an additional kitchen at Herne Hill and then served by alumni on front of house at some of the best venues in London including: the Guildhall, the Science Museum, Cutty Sark, Kew Gardens and the Camden Roundhouse. In 2024, across 218 events, The Clink fed 36,000 people.

Duties and Responsibilities

As a Support and Employment Worker at The Clink, you are responsible for:

•     Mentoring, supporting and being the point of contact for students and graduates as they transition from our hospitality and horticulture training programmes in prison and in the community for up to 12 months.

•     Working with and supporting people in prison and students prior to and after release from prison, or from graduation in our community café, to empower them in finding and maintaining accommodation, employment and a drug-free, offence-free lifestyle.

•     Building relationships with Clink Chef Trainers, HMPPS Resettlement and Employment Teams, HMPPS Officers and Governing Teams in the prison and all parties invested in the training, support and employment of our learners.

•  Working with students and graduates to identify their needs and risks, and to identify short and long-term goals.

•     Motivating and engaging students and graduates and to provide practical and emotional support.

•     Liaising with employers to secure opportunities for our students and for continuity of employment for graduates upon release.

•     Supporting people dealing with drug and alcohol problems and to make referrals to other services as required.

•     Undertaking risk assessments for each student, to recognise changes in risk level and take appropriate action.

•     Maintaining case records and report on students' progress to external agencies and for our own Clink records on Clink Connect, our CRM system.

•     Working in partnership with the team to enhance overall delivery of the service.

•     Maintaining a professional approach that enhances the reputation of the charity.

Desirable Skills, Knowledge and Experience

• Experience of prisons and/or the criminal justice system. This can be lived experience.
• Experience of working with a variety of client groups both in custody and in the community, including men, women and 16-25-year-olds.
• Experience of working with young people in gangs and/or at risk of exploitation and county lines.
• Experience of working with neurodivergent people and those with disabilities and additional needs.
• Experience and skill in using a trauma informed approach with vulnerable people who present a risk of harm, including knowledge of mental health issues, drug and alcohol use and offending behaviour.
• Experience in setting up a strong employer network and using this to support our graduates into employment post-release.
• Experience referring to other services and using a multi-agency approach.
• A level of numeracy sufficient to carry out tasks such as budgeting with clients, calculating benefit entitlements and understanding rent arrears.
• An understanding of safeguarding issues and PREVENT Duty and the ability to assess risk in consultation with line manager.
• Some knowledge of the benefits system and ability to deal with housing agencies and landlords
• Driver with clean licence.
• IT literate - will need to maintain records about our students on our in-house CRM system and complete assessments for HMPPS.
• Able to adopt a supportive, confident and motivating approach to the client group.
• Willing to engage in training and development of your own knowledge and skills.
• Able to pass a prison security clearance.

Person Specification

• Confident and resilient personality, with the strength of character to work in complex prison settings and with highly vulnerable people.
• Perseverance and tenacity — a desire to see our students be successful and to advocate strongly on their behalf which often requires a relentless optimism.
• Highly organised and efficient person - able to juggle multiple responsibilities, manage your own time and schedule, and be a consistent source of support for our beneficiaries.
• A strong networker - your key responsibility will be to manage stakeholders in the prison, in probation, in other third sector support groups, and with employers to advocate for our students to have the chance of quality employment outcomes.
• An assertive communicator - you will need to be patient, kind and compassionate and to communicate with our students with sensitivity and clear expectations.

Reporting Lines and Management Expectations

You will report directly to the Support Lead for London and the SE, the Executive Leadership Team, but also work closely with the Operations team in the prisons and related Clink project leads in the community.

General Clink Charity information

All staff are expected to:

• Comply with all current legislation
• Comply with all prison operational policies
• Comply with The Clink Staff Handbook
• Undertake such other duties within the scope of the post as may be requested by your Manager

Special Requirements

• Must be able to pass prison security vetting process to be able to draw keys.
• Must have a valid driving licence .

Benefits

• 28 days holiday plus bank holidays
• Company pension scheme
• Free meals on duty when based in a restaurant or visiting for business