Youth Care Specialist

**Youth Care Specialist**

Personalized Community Care (PCC) Program

**About Us**: Closer to Home Community Services (CTH) is a charitable organization located in Calgary, AB since 1995. CTH provides a wide range of services designed to meet the unique needs of children, youth and families.

**About the Position**:This permanent full-time position works closely with a team of professionals to support youth in a Community Residential Program. CTH follows the Teaching Family Model which is a therapeutic and trauma informed model. This model focuses on building life skills through proactive teaching, preventative and corrective teaching just to name a few. Utilizing the Teaching Family Model, the Youth Care Specialist’s primary responsibility is to facilitate success for youth with complex mental health needs by assisting with day to day activities and routines. This includes supporting youth with their daily routine such as going to school, attending appointments or visiting family, care plans, safety plans and helping co-regulate youth when escalated and/or distressed. Typical youth behaviors may include aggression, running away, self-harm or suicide attempts. The safety of our staff and youth is our number one priority so it is important to work as a collaborative team and to lean on the support and knowledge from the team around you. The Youth Care Specialist will participate in individual supervision and team meetings, in-service training, and will work collaboratively with a transdisciplinary team to ensure treatment strategies are effectively implemented.

**Why Join Us**
- CTH is committed to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging for all; including different cultural backgrounds, spiritual beliefs, and sexual and gender diversities. We strive to be an employer of choice with a focus on wellness and connection._
- Disability, Life and AD&D Insurance
- Extended Health & Dental Coverage
- Additional Health Spending Account
- Employee Assistance Program
- Wellness Days
- RRSP Matching
- Company Events
- Training and Professional Development

**Responsibilities**:

- Responsible for youth’s acquisition of relevant skills which will support them to live safely and thrive in the community.
- Supporting a therapeutic based approach to treatment.
- Maintaining a structured setting, fostering skill development, managing crisis, ensuring high levels of supervision to promote safety, assisting with school and providing relief coverage.
- Eager to learn and carry out the principles and philosophy of Closer to Home and the Teaching Family Model.
- Responsible, diligent and dependable. You possess exceptional verbal and written communication skills.
- Extremely detail oriented, organized and can manage multiple priorities at one time.
- Compassionate individual with a positive, strength-based and empathetic approach.
- Exceptional role model. Willing to work an unstructured work week, including days, evenings, awake overnight shifts, weekends and holidays.
- Conduct assessments, collect client information for report writing purposes.
- Participate in the formation and implementation of treatment plans alongside other practitioners.

**Qualifications**:

- Experience working in residential and community care setting - Group Homes (preferred). Experience working with children and youth with complex needs and multiple diagnosis (ADD, ADHD, Trauma, FASD, ODD, addictions, mental health, etc.), asset.
- Previous experience working with vulnerable youth and families is an asset (combination of education and experience will be considered).
- A Diploma or Degree in a related field is preferred
- Knowledge and experience supporting children and youth exhibiting challenging behaviors.

**Job Requirements**:

- A valid Alberta Driver’s License, reliable vehicle for work purposes, adequate and current insurance and be willing to provide a Driver’s Abstract upon hire.
- A Police Information Check with a Vulnerable Sector Search and an Intervention Record Check must be completed prior to commencement.
- Ability to manage a crisis situation in a therapeutic manner, and, if necessary, intervene physically in a manner that reduces the risk of harm to children and staff.

**Required Competencies**: All positions at Closer to Home Community Services require (5) competencies: _Instills Trust, Consumer Focus, Communicates Effectively, Situational Adaptability and Ensures Accountability._Other titles for this role: Child & Youth Counselor, Community service worker, Group home worker, Youth worker, Residential counselor.
- In the spirit of respect, reciprocity and truth, we honour and acknowledge that we are gathered on the ancestral lands of the Siksikaitsitapi (Blackfoot Confederacy), which is comprised of the Siksika, Kainai, Piikani and Amskapi Piikani Nations, and the shared territories of the Tsuut’ina Nation and Iyarhe Nakoda Nations, all of whom are the original signatories of the Blackfoot Treaty #7 in Southern Albe