Youth Worker, Connections Emergency Housing

360°kids is a vitally important community agency serving all of York Region. We have been a leader in the delivery of innovative support services for more than 35 years as we work to improve the lives of unhoused and marginalized youth and families in York Region. At 360°kids, we provide a unique continuum of care approach with programs and services that are essential to the health and well-being of youth. These proven strategies help to keep youth safe by providing stable housing options with 360° wraparound supports.
Youth Worker will provide youth with supervision and basic needs (food, bedding, and hygiene) while they emerge from crisis. The Child and Youth Worker will work with the youth to assess their immediate needs, provide support to the residents, maintain order and to assist the residents achieve success in transitioning to securing housing.
Key Responsibility
- Follow up with youth regarding their case plan, goals, and activities, and make referrals or do warm transfers as required. Youth worker will be a prime worker to up to 4 youth at a time that are residing in the connections program.
- Work with youth to assess their housing needs and help them look for housing. (Youth with higher needs will be referred to the Housing Support Worker.)
- Make appropriate referrals to Housing Workers, ATS, Individual and Family Counsellors, Employment, Education, Specialized Support Workers such as Mental Health or Addictions, and others as required.
- Provide youth with encouragement and help connect them to supports that will help them address challenges in their lives and, once re-housed, will provide supports that help them to maintain their housing. Provide ongoing daily support, assistance and encouragement to break the cycles of poverty and homelessness.
- Facilitate weekly resident meetings to communicate programs available to residents and receive feedback and address program/client concerns. Workers receive and record concerns from residents and follow up until resolution is achieved. A meeting is held each week on a designated day and time.
- Provide support, crisis intervention and conflict resolution as required. Conduct Exit Interview with client and enter discharge information into HIFIS. Clean out room of discharged client. In the event of a crisis or critical incident, immediately reports to appropriate level.
- Provide youth with a safe place to stay and basic needs (food, bedding and hygiene) while they emerge from crisis.
- Within 72 hours of admission, conduct the full Intake process with clients, using the VISPDAT needs assessment tool, the Rapid Re-Housing, Triage, and Intervention program, and the HIFIS case management goal-setting tool.
- Responsible for nightly room checks; to ensure safety of the residents and facility. Medication administration, monitoring, storage, and disposal (as required).
- Liaison with participants, parents, community partners, agencies, donors, coworkers, and volunteers. Develops positive relations with the communities being served by the program and with the general public.

**Education and Skills Required**:

- Post-Secondary degree/diploma in a Child/youth related field (e.g. Child and Youth, Social Service Worker, Social Worker, Psychology, Sociology) or the equivalent combination of education and experience working with youth.
- Minimum of three years’ experience working with “at-risk” or street involved youth.
- Must possess excellent communication skills and have the ability to be adaptable with a flexible approach taking into consideration the unique qualities of each client.
- Exceptional interpersonal skills that promote positive team building, negotiation, and conflict resolution.
- Will possess a broad knowledge of community resources and the ability to strongly advocate for clients and professional referrals.
- Experience using a case management system or HIFIS and VI-SPDAT an asset.
- Therapeutic Crisis Intervention (TCI), Suicide Prevention training an asset.
- Current First Aid/CPR certification an asset. Current vulnerable sector screening (criminal background check).

360°kids is an equal opportunity employer committed to creating an inclusive, diverse, equitable and accessible organization. We are dedicated to having a workforce that reflects the diversity of York Region with a variety of perspectives and lived experiences. We welcome and encourage applicants from equity-deserving groups, including Indigenous, Black and racialized people, 2SLGBTQ+ communities, people with disabilities and individuals with lived experience of homelessness.
Accommodation will be provided throughout the hiring process in accordance with the Ontario Human Rights Code and Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA). Applicants that require accommodation during the recruitment process are encouraged to notify the People and Culture Department when contacted for an interview. We will work with you to meet your access needs in an equitable