Residential Project Worker

Barnardo's sets very high standards for the work we do with the children, young people and families we support.  We demonstrate every day through our work that we believe in children and we want people to work with us who share our belief, and are willing to strive for excellence in all aspects of their work:

We have a very exciting opportunity for 2 Residential Project Workers within our Supported Accommodation Service for Unaccompanied Young People (SASUYP) based in South Belfast.

The service works to provide residential support to young people aged 16-21 years of age who are fleeing from states affected by war or human rights abuses.  It aims to prepare young people for independent living by providing a ‘place of safety'.

We use a strength-based approach to build resilience and facilitate better outcomes for children and young people. Our practice is guided by attachment and trauma-based models of intervention.  

Further Service detail can be found in the attached Additional Information sheet. 

By operating on a set rota pattern, this allows colleagues and young people to experience consistency and stability each week.

Role 1 (12.5 hours):

Thursday Sleepover: 7.5 hours

Saturday Shift: 9 hours every other Saturday  

Role 2 (20.5 hours): 

Friday Sleepover: 11.5 hours (until 1pm on Saturday)

Sunday day shift: 9 hours

*Exact hours of work found within Additional information sheet

Those recruited to these posts will be provided with a suite of training to support them in undertaking their role within the project.  

Please ensure that you outline in your application how you meet the essential criteria detailed in the Additional Information Sheet.

Hours: Post 1 12.5 hours, Post 2 20.5 hours

Contract: This service receives funding, with current funding until 31 March 2027.

Salary: £26,142.40 - £29,463.72 FTE

Closing Date: Midnight, 26 February 2026

Interviews: TBC

Contact details: recruitment.support@barnardos.org.uk

Successful candidates will be required to undertake an Enhanced Access NI with Child and Adult Barred List Check and register with NISCC.

A waiting list will be held in the event that similar vacancies arise for a period of up to 12 months

Please note due to the high volume of applications for some posts, this advert might close before the displayed closing date. We recommend that you apply for this role as soon as possible

We know that our colleagues go above and beyond in delivering our vital work, driven by their passion and commitment to Barnardo's values.  We also know that we can only realise our ambitions and achieve better outcomes for more children, thanks to the talent, hard work and creativity of our people. 

For all these reasons, we are committed to a new approach to pay and reward, to ensure it is fair, attractive and progressive, which was rolled out in April 2023. This is a positive change for the charity, and a part of our People & Culture Strategy. It will assist us in supporting colleagues to belong, thrive and grow in their colleague journey at Barnardo's and in time will offer clear routes of progression for colleagues in both their career and their pay. 

Whilst the full pay band and salary range is advertised, our approach to starting salaries is to appoint between the minimum to mid-point of the pay band – this ensures that pay steps are available to reward our colleagues annually based on their contribution to excellence and alignment to our values and behaviours.  More details on Barnardo's pay framework can be found upon application. 

Workplace Offer: What it means for you

Our hybrid working initiative is based on trust, flexibility and empowerment. We understand our workplace offer means different things to different people, and we encourage those conversations. This may mean working at one of our stores, services, working at home, in the community, at one of our Collaboration Hubs or depending on the role any combination of these. Please read through the advert carefully to understand the remits of hybrid working that will be specific to the role.

• Barnardo's believe in creating equality of opportunity in the workplace and supporting people to manage their work-life balance; we are therefore open to offering flexible working arrangements.
• Annual Leave entitlement for full-time colleagues is 26 days per annum, increasing to 27 days per annum, after 3 years Barnardo's service, 29 days per annum, after 5 years Barnardo's service and 30 days per annum, after 7 years Barnardo's service. Those working less than full time are entitled to the same level of holiday pro rata
• The ability to buy up to another 5 days annual leave via our Buy Your Leave scheme
• A host of family friendly leave options including company Maternity Paternity and Adoption pay; together with all family additional leave options
• Service related sick pay from day 1
• Access to a Group Personal Pension with a matched 4% or 6% contribution from Barnardo's. Ability to pay via salary sacrifice to garner both tax and NI savings on your own contribution
• Death in service cover of 4x annual earnings for all staff contributing to our Group Personal Pension
• Cycle2work scheme
• Interest free season ticket loans
• Discounts and cashback from at high street shops including major supermarkets, cinemas, gyms, leisure/theme parks, holidays and much more via our Benefit Portal
• 20% discount at Barnardo's stores
• Opportunity to purchase a health cash plan to claim towards dental, glasses, therapy etc
• Free access to round the clock employee assistance program for advice and support
• Access to Barnardo's Learning and Development offer

*T&C's apply based on contract

We are committed to being an inclusive employer and cultivating a culture where everyone can belong and thrive through inclusion and connectivity. We want our workforce to be reflective of the communities we work with, and for equality, diversity and inclusion to be embedded in everything we do. We are a Disability Confident Leader, are progressing our ambition to be an anti-racist organisation with Anti-Racism Commitments and actions in place and have networks for colleagues who are disabled, LGBT+, Black and Minoritised Ethnic and Women. We particularly encourage applications from Black and Minoritised Ethnic and/or disabled candidates who are currently underrepresented in our workforce. For disabled applicants, we offer reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process.  

Our basis and values