Social Worker

**KINSHIP CARE SOCIAL WORKER**
**Permanent, Full-Time**

**(ʔaq’am) Cranbrook, BC**

**Who We Are**:Ktunaxa Kinbasket Child & Family Services (KKCFSS) is a non-profit Delegated Aboriginal
Agency governed by the Ktunaxa Nation Council Social Sector Board. KKCFSS is available to Ktunaxa citizens, First Nations, Métis and Inuit living on and off-reserve in the Ktunaxa Traditional Territory.

KKCFSS believes in a holistic approach to providing services with some fundamental beliefs:

- Healthy communities make healthy children.
- Children are the future of our, and all, nations.
- Children have the right to a safe, secure and culturally appropriate family and community experience.
- Children have the right to grow up connected to their family, community and culture.
- Families have the right to culturally relevant services.

**The Opportunity**: The Kinship Care Social Worker functions as part of a multi-disciplinary team of professional specialists who are dedicated to the empowerment and well-being of Aboriginal peoples.
Specifically, the Kinship Care Social Worker is entrusted to:

- Assist caregivers (family, extended family, community, kinship care, and foster care) through the provision of supports and monitoring of care provided to ensure children not living with their parents are safe, with the goal of reuniting children with their parents and/or guardians.
- Assess suitability and capacity of caregivers for children at risk.
- Enter into agreements with caregivers for the provision of alternate care for children at risk.
- Secure out-of-care or in-care living options when a social worker requests placement for children where there are no other means to ensure the safety of children.
- Where safety cannot be ensured, assess and approve alternate care arrangements for children.
- Provide support to and monitor alternate care homes (kinship care homes, foster homes, etc.).

**In the Role As Kinship Care Social Worker, You Will**:

- Recruit, train, support, and oversee Kinship (Foster) and Alternate Care homes.
- Complete comprehensive assessments of prospective Caregivers (training provided).
- Support and monitor temporary and permanent placements of children in care.
- Support Kinship (foster) parents to access resources, training, professional services, and cultural information to ensure high quality of care to children placed in the home.
- Support Kinship parents in navigating the stresses and challenges of caregiving.
- Conduct regular home visits to ensure children in the care of the Director are safe and thriving.
- Work collaboratively with other KKCFS teams to achieve desired goals of each child’s care plan.
- Use a variety of approaches/strategies to achieve desired outcomes gained through extensive knowledge of approaches to working with families.
- Support Kinship parents in maintaining cultural connections for children in their care and be a link between caregivers and the Indigenous communities we serve.
- Stay current on legislation, standards, and processes that impact Kinship Care homes and children in out-of-home care.
- Coordinate meetings with the caregiver and child’s team, including community resources working with the child, to help support the caregiver to meet the goals in the child’s care plan.
- Participate in joint meetings between community, leadership, Métis and other Aboriginal organization staff and KKCFSS staff.

**What You Will Bring to the Role**:

- Undergraduate degree in Social Work or related field.
- Eligible for full delegation under the Child, Family and Community Service Act.
- 2+ years of experience working with families at risk (equivalency and other positions that work with child protection).
- 2+ years of experience working with Aboriginal communities.
- Extensive knowledge of aboriginal issues both historical and current in British Columbia.
- Knowledge of ethics and professional approaches in resolving ethical dilemmas.
- Be a positive community role model.
- Work in ways which empower and build capacity among individuals and communities.
- Ability to work collaboratively and effectively with other staff as well as other inter-disciplinary partners in both the aboriginal and non-aboriginal communities.
- Commitment to the capacity of individuals and communities to promote their own health and well-being.
- Excellent communication skills, including written, oral and computer skills.
- Maintain confidentiality.
- Ability to ensure client(s) and personal safety.
- Ability to deal effectively with disclosures of physical, sexual and emotional abuse.
- Problem solving skills and strategies - ability to engage individuals presenting strong emotions and at times resistance to the involvement of social workers.
- Willingness to analyze approaches used with caregivers, to learn from mistakes, and to explore alternative strategies to working with caregivers.
- Valid driver’s license and a reliable vehicle.
- Proof of COVID-19 Vaccination.

**Our Commit