Meet Jane
Assistant Unit Manager, Nottingham City
My name is Jane. I am one of the Assistant Unit Managers at the City Council’s short breaks home within Nottingham City. We support children and young people who have complex needs and disabilities, and we work closely with families, educational providers and health professionals.
My career at Crocus Fields began ten and a half years ago; I was looking to increase my skills and knowledge whilst teaching Early Years/Health & Social Care at a local college. I felt my CPD was all course based and my skill set was no longer current; therefore, I applied to be a casual worker. I worked a couple of shifts a month at weekends in term time and more in college holidays. I loved it and found my lessons were also enhanced by my increased knowledge. After working as a casual for six years, I was lucky enough to be interviewed and successful for an Assistant Manager post. This was four and a half years ago.
I love my job. There are similarities and differences to teaching (I have previously taught a few of the staff I now work with; it is an absolute joy to see how college gave the foundation for their interest and learning, which has continued to blossom and develop as a Children’s Residential Social Care workers). Working within a proactive and pragmatic team, we look at what can we do to support this child/young person/their family, which means we see results of our input on a very regular basis. Advocating for families during times of transition means we work with many different professionals across education, health, charities and the voluntary sector. We pride ourselves on offering experiences for children and young people which many neuro-typical children find easier to access. We absolutely love a day trip, whatever the weather. All staff attend mandatory training, based around meeting children and young people’s holistic needs. Safeguarding is an integral part of our role, as is administering medication and completing running records.
Our staff team work well together; many of our staff have been at the home for years, and they consistently go above and beyond to support our children and families. Parents and carers will often describe us as “just like family”. When children and young people arrive for their short break, parents and carers will often say it’s like dropping them off at their grandparents’/auntie and uncle’s house. New staff are supported in understanding their role, and there is always someone around to ask if anyone is seeking clarification. The Managers On Call rota ensures staff have a professional available should they require clarification during evenings, overnights and weekends.
Managers are incredibly hands on. We start each day with a breakfast meeting, revisiting the previous day, what activities the young people did/discussing any issues – with medication or transport for example, any reviews/meetings that are happening. This is a very proactive way of sharing relevant information and nipping any issues in the bud. We also have twice-monthly staff meetings where staff have the opportunity to share changes for their key child and become aware of updates to our service. All staff receive monthly supervisions. Support from our Service Manager is excellent. She knows us personally; she pops in regularly and is always very welcome. CRSCW’s will ask for her opinion as well as that of our Registered Managers and Assistant Managers.
To those thinking of working within Children’s Residential, I’d say try it if you like variety in your working day, to have no two days the same and to be empowered to make choices which support and enrich children’s, young people’s and their families’ lives. A big plus for those considering the move from teaching is that you have annual leave and can go on holiday in January and September rather than the expensive summer holidays!