Settlement Worker

Gordon Neighbourhood House began in 1942 as a place for residents in Vancouver’s Downtown West End neighbourhoods to drop by for a cup of coffee/tea. Today, we run dozens of programs, services, and initiatives that respond to the needs, growth, and aspirations of our neighbourhood.

This position is responsible for connecting and assisting newcomer individuals and families, focusing on temporary residents who have settled in the Downtown area.

This individual will support with immediate settlement needs by providing assessment, enhanced information, information and referral, advocacy, orientation, workshops and community inclusion to temporary residents.

The Settlement Worker will also plan, organize, implement, facilitate and evaluate community-based settlement services and integration plans for temporary residents and their families. In consultation with team members, including volunteers, the Settlement Worker will reach out into the community and identify individuals and families who will benefit from services.

**Duties and Responsibilities**

Provision of BCSIS Services:

- Work collaboratively with GNH programs, the community and partner settlement service agencies to design, plan, develop and evaluate programs for temporary residents.
- Provide settlement support, include intake, needs assessment, referral and one-to-one supports to temporary residents.
- Conduct outreach to connect to temporary residents and their families in need of essential information.
- Develop and implement strategies for refugee participants to develop connections within intercultural settings, as well as identify ways for temporary resident participants to develop leadership capacity within the community.
- Organize transportation, facilities, equipment, materials, food and other logistics related to programming. Maintain a safe, clean and well-organized program space.
- Respond to emergencies in accordance with established policies and guidelines.
- Recruit, orient, train, supervise and evaluate volunteers and/or mentors.

Community:

- Facilitate partnerships with other organizations, community agencies, businesses and informal community groups to offer immigrant programs (including arts, culture and civic engagement as well as off-site programming).
- Conduct outreach to and network with refugees, newcomers, community organizations, cultural groups etc. to connect newcomers to programs, community organizations, and local neighbourhood groups and activities.
- Promote the program through distribution of materials, presentations in the community, ongoing outreach at the school, and social media strategies.
- Promote the development of inclusive communities as a reciprocal process with rights and responsibilities for both newcomers and the communities that receive them.
- Maintain relationships with other community service providers, and maintain up-to-date knowledge of community resources.
- Work collaboratively as part of the Gordon House team, including by participating in House and Community level events that provide opportunity for connection, including celebrations, festivals and fundraisers;
- Perform other related duties as required.

Administration:

- Maintain program and participant records and statistics, and is accountable for inputting accurate data in databases and maintaining GNH record keeping systems;
- Provide narrative and statistical reports to supervisor;
- Comply with privacy legislation and all relevant regulations/policies.

**Qualifications**:

- Knowledge and applied skills in program development and implementation, including: immigration and settlement topics, parenting courses, issues in aging, family dynamics, group facilitation, and community engagement.
- Diploma in a related human/social service field and 1 to 2 years recent related experience or an equivalent combination of education, training and experience
- Oral and written proficiency in English
- Fluency in a second language, in particular, Spanish, Farsi and/or Ukrainian a significant asset
- Demonstrate an ability to work in a multicultural environment, and with individuals and communities suffering from discrimination, racism and culture shock
- Understand intercultural family dynamics, family violence and cross-cultural parenting issues
- Broad knowledge of community resources available for refugees / newcomer families and working relationships with other service providers
- Proven ability to facilitate groups or organize activities / events
- Experience working with other service providers in an integrated service model.
- Excellent time management skills and demonstrated ability to be highly organized, keep excellent records, and meet deadlines while managing a busy workload;
- Excellent interpersonal, leadership, communication, decision-making and assessment skills
- Broad knowledge of community resources and best practices available for refugees and immigrants. Demonstrated ability to comply with policies and procedures reg