Assistant Project Worker

Job title: Assistant Project Worker (Older Persons Service)

Location: This post is based at LinkLiving’s Kirkcaldy office. 

Hours of Work: 37.5 per week (Monday to Friday)

Are you passionate about helping people to live a better life?  Do you want to work for a charity where your health and wellbeing matter just as much as the people you support?  Do you want to be part of a trauma-informed team where you will be supported to develop creative and flexible ways of working?

At LinkLiving, our values and people are at the heart of everything we do including how we recruit our staff. It is important for us to find people who share our values, which are:

• Empathy (listen to and understand an individual’s needs and circumstances)
• Respect (treat others the way they wish to be treated)
• Integrity (be honest and have strong moral principles)
• Caring (show kindness and concern for others)

LinkLiving is a Scottish health and wellbeing charity that supports people to manage or overcome the effects of negative life experiences (including trauma, mental health challenges, poverty and inequality) so that they can build on their strengths and aspirations in order to live their best possible lives. We support people through a range of models including: 

• Personal development and employability programmes 
• Self-help coaching 
• Supported accommodation
• Care at home 
• Housing support 
• Befriending 
• Social cafes

The Service

Our Older Persons' Service addresses loneliness and social isolation among older people through volunteer befriending, social cafes, and our Help to Stay at Home service.

The Job

The Older Persons Service promotes social inclusion opportunities for isolated and lonely vulnerable older people by providing 1:1 support in people’s own homes. The regular contact that this service will bring will make a real difference to an older person’s life. Older people will ideally benefit emotionally through shared interests and experiences with their matched staff member and also through practical assistance, such as help with transport to Health Services including GP, dentist and hospital appointments, collection of prescription, support to attend appointments, shopping trips and social outings.

The purpose of the job is to work closely with the project workers and volunteers to support the people who receive our services to become engaged and included within their communities.

About You

You will have good computer skills and the ability to use technology efficiently to maintain and update records, combined with a knowledge and understanding of the issues affecting older people. The successful candidate will be able to work openly and honestly in a team setting and have an ability to prioritise their own caseload.

A valid driver's license and access to a car that can be used daily to travel between services as required is essential for this role.

For a comprehensive list of the essential and desirable criteria required for this post, please refer to the Job Specification in the Job information Pack above.

What’s in it for you?

The benefits of being a LinkLiving employee (subject to the policies and benefit terms and conditions) include:

• Competitive salary, reviewed annually, and opportunity for annual performance related salary increases and discretionary non-consolidated pay awards, subject to terms of the scheme
• 35 days’ holiday per year (inclusive of public holidays) pro rata plus additional 3 days pro rata after 3 years’ service
• opportunity to buy and sell holiday
• enhanced company sick and family friendly pay
• access to paid SVQ qualifications and a wide range of learning and development opportunities
• funded Disclosure Scotland and Scottish Social Services Council memberships
• defined contribution pension scheme with generous employer contributions plus salary exchange and additional voluntary contribution options
• access to an Electric vehicle leasing scheme, subject to the terms of the scheme
• life assurance scheme providing death in service benefits to named beneficiaries
• healthcare cash plan for employees (and dependents) to support health and wellbeing plus discounts on shopping, restaurants, and other services
• employee assistance programme for employees and their immediate household dependants to support health, mental and financial well-being
• annual flu vaccination
• access to a savings and borrowing scheme
• cycle to work scheme
• monthly bus pass scheme
• season/travel ticket loan and much more!

For a full list of benefits available to employees, please see our website.

This post is subject to Protection of Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme registration.  Link will meet the cost of any new PVG scheme membership or scheme record update.

Further Information

Interested?  If you have any questions about the role, please email and we can arrange for someone from the service to call you for an informal chat.

To find out more about what LinkLiving do and to view the generous pay and benefits package, please visit our website

If you’re thinking about working in adult social care, download the Guide to adult social care jobs in Scotland for in-depth information on everything you need to know to get started.  In addition, you can enrol on a free, online 6 week part-time tutor-supported  ‘Introduction to a Career in Social Care’ course.  The course introduces the area of social care and can be a stepping-stone to employment or further training.

Applications will be evaluated as they are received, with candidates meeting the specifications being invited for interview.

How to Apply

To complete an application form, please click on the “Apply online” button below.  Instructions on how to complete the form are at the top of the page.

We can offer suitable alternative methods to apply if requested including although not exclusively; hard copy, Braille and audio. You can request these by emailing our Resourcing Team and detailing which format you would require.

Please note should an internal applicant be successful in applying for this position on either a seconded or permanent basis, they will move to the terms and conditions associated with the role for the duration of the time they are in post. The terms and conditions are outlined in the job information pack.

We aim at all times to recruit the person who is most suited to the job and welcome applications from people of all backgrounds and from anyone who shares our commitment to inclusion. Our offices are fully accessible to wheelchair users and, as a Disability Confident Leader, we will interview all disabled candidates who meet the essential criteria.