AddressMental Health Worker – Talent Pool
· Domestic Violence Unit
· Various locations – Sydney Metro, Liverpool & Gosford
· Part-Time, Full-Time, Temporary & Ongoing vacancies
About us
Legal Aid NSW is the largest legal aid agency in Australia, comprising a Central Sydney office and 28 regional offices in metropolitan and regional centres across NSW including the two satellite offices located at Walgett and Bourke and a number of specialist services and advice clinics. It was established under the Legal Aid Commission Act 1979 as an independent authority to assist economically and socially disadvantaged people to understand and protect their rights in the legal system. People with disabilities, people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, women and children, Indigenous people and people with mental illness are some of the groups who may experience difficulties when enforcing and defending their rights.
Working in partnership with private lawyers, Legal Aid NSW provides legal information, legal advice, minor assistance and legal representation to eligible people in many areas of law. Legal Aid NSW also provides alternative dispute resolution services, community legal education programs, and publications on legal issues.
About the Domestic Violence Unit
The Domestic Violence Unit (DVU) was established in 2015 and is a specialist family and domestic violence service at Legal Aid NSW. The DVU is a state-wide interdisciplinary team of lawyers, specialist domestic violence case workers, Mental Health Workers and financial counsellors who work together to provide trauma informed services to clients by helping them with their legal and non-legal needs. The DVU provides advice, duty services, minor assistance, limited complex case work and community legal education in a range of locations.
About the role
Support and assist eligible clients to make, and be involved in, decisions about their Mental Health to minimise the negative impacts and re-traumatisation associated with engaging in family law matters involving family violence. Provide support, referral assistance, risk assessment, safety planning, support in attending Court as well as other services and clinical expertise.
About you
You will be passionate about pursuing a people focused career with a person-centred approach to positively impact the lives of others. You will have demonstrated experience and understanding of Mental Health issues and the challenges individuals face.
You will have the ability to work independently and collaboratively within the team, providing practical support, advocacy and resources when needed. You will have strong verbal and written skills to be able to plan, implement, deliver, and evaluate plans for key stakeholders. You will have demonstrated experience in providing emotional, practical and general support using your interpersonal skills to assist key stakeholders.
We may use this recruitment to create a Talent Pool for similar ongoing or temporary vacancies we have over the next 18 months.
WHY YOU SHOULD JOIN LEGAL AID NSW!
We are committed to diversity and inclusion
We are committed to creating a culturally safe and genuinely inclusive organisation and workplace for everyone who works and interacts with us. We strive to be a place where people from diverse backgrounds want to work, where voices and cultures are valued and where people feel valued, welcomed, respected and heard.
We want a workforce that reflects our clients, so we can deliver a service that meets the needs of the community. We welcome applications from people with diverse backgrounds — including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, people with disability, the LGBTQI+ community, culturally diverse people and other diverse communities.
We acknowledge, support and accommodate the diverse access needs of people with visible and invisible disabilities. If you need an adjustment to participate in the recruitment process, or you’d like information about what we can do to help you, please contact our team at ************@legalaid.nsw.gov.au.
Other benefits of working with us
· You will have access to training, development and mentoring opportunities.
· We are an accredited Flex Ready certified employer and are recognised as leaders in the area of flexible work. Most of our staff work flexibly — for example, from home some of the time or in a way that helps them balance family and work life.
The essential requirements for this role
You must:
· 5 years minimum of relevant experience
· Professional qualification and registration as Occupational Therapist, Social Worker, Registered Nurse or Psychologist or Bachelor of Health Science (Mental Health)
· be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 before you start work with us
· be willing to do a Criminal Record Check and/or Working with Children Check
· hold Australian or NZ citizenship, Australian Permanent Residency (for ongoing vacancies) or a valid visa to work in Australia (for temporary vacancies)
· must hold valid NSW Drivers License
The Family Law Division have a number of roles where it is a statutory obligation for staff to hold a valid Working With Children Check. You will be required to provide your Working With Children Check details prior to commencement in any role requiring the check.
How to apply
You MUST submit your application online through www.iworkfor.nsw.gov.au. If you submit your application late or by email it will NOT be accepted.
Your application must include:
· your resume (no more than 5 pages)
· A cover letter (no more than 2 pages). In your cover letter please respond to these questions:
1. Give a brief example of trauma informed practice and ways it can be applied to working with clients with Mental Health.
- Provide a brief example (1 or 2) of where you worked as part of a multi-disciplinary team or environment (eg. with lawyers, police and/or non-government agencies) to support clients with a Mental Health issue.
Please cover in your example:
· The challenges you encountered and the strengths you brought to the team.
· Your knowledge and the skills you brought in working with clients with Mental Health issues.
Make sure your application is complete and you have answered all questions before you submit it.
Do you need help to apply?
It’s important to properly prepare before you apply for a role. Here is some other information to help you:
· If you have questions about the role, you can contact the Hiring Manager – Amanda Gale on (02) 9213 5*** or email: ***********@legalaid.nsw.gov.au.
· If you are an Australian Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander and are thinking about applying, you can contact the Aboriginal Services Branch to arrange a confidential conversation about any questions you may have.
· The Role Description sets out the responsibilities of the role.
· The focus capabilities and key accountabilities in the role description indicate what is expected at that level. Being familiar with these will help you understand what the panel will be looking for in the successful candidate.
· Applying for a Role
· Working at Legal Aid NSW
Responsibilities
"Not Required"
Key Application Responses
"Not Required"
