Welfare Officer – Secondary School – Gloucester

Start Date: As soon as possible
Contract: Full-time, Permanent
Salary: Paid to scale

A well-established secondary school in Gloucester is looking to appoint a caring, dependable and highly professional Welfare Officer to join its student support team on a full-time, permanent basis.

This is a rewarding position for an individual who wants to make a genuine difference to students’ day-to-day experience at school. The Welfare Officer will provide practical and pastoral support to students, respond appropriately to welfare concerns and work closely with teaching and support staff to ensure students receive the help they need.

The successful candidate will be approachable and compassionate while also being confident enough to deal with situations calmly and professionally. You will need to understand the importance of confidentiality and know when concerns should be referred to a more senior member of staff.

School Information

This is an established secondary school providing education across Key Stages 3 and 4. The school places student wellbeing, safety and positive relationships at the centre of its wider pastoral provision.

The school recognises that students may experience a range of challenges that can affect their ability to engage successfully with education. The Welfare Officer will therefore play an important role in helping students access appropriate support and ensuring concerns are dealt with promptly.

The successful candidate will work alongside pastoral leaders, safeguarding staff, teachers and the wider administration team.

Welfare Team

The Welfare Officer will provide a visible and approachable presence within the school. You will support students who require assistance during the school day and help staff respond to welfare-related concerns.

The role will require excellent judgement and communication skills. You will need to know when a situation can be managed directly and when it needs to be escalated.

Key Responsibilities

• Provide day-to-day welfare support to students.

• Act as a trusted and approachable member of the student support team.

• Respond appropriately to student welfare concerns.

• Provide first-line support to students who become unwell or distressed during the school day.

• Maintain accurate welfare records.

• Communicate relevant information to appropriate members of staff.

• Work closely with pastoral and safeguarding colleagues.

• Support students returning to lessons following welfare incidents.

• Contact parents and carers when appropriate and authorised.

• Assist with managing student welfare appointments.

• Monitor students who require additional welfare support.

• Ensure concerns are recorded accurately and confidentially.

• Follow school procedures relating to safeguarding and student welfare.

• Escalate safeguarding concerns promptly through the correct channels.

• Support students who may be struggling emotionally or socially.

• Liaise with relevant staff regarding individual students.

• Assist with supervision and student movement around the school when required.

• Maintain a calm and reassuring environment.

• Contribute to wider pastoral initiatives.

• Support attendance and engagement where welfare concerns are contributing to absence.

• Work professionally with parents and carers.

• Maintain confidentiality at all times.

• Assist the school in promoting positive student wellbeing.

Experience and Requirements

Previous experience working with children or young people is desirable. Experience within a school, college, youth service, healthcare, community or family-support environment would be particularly relevant.

The school is looking for someone who can communicate sensitively while remaining professional and appropriately boundaried.

The successful applicant should be:

• Caring and approachable.

• Calm under pressure.

• Confident communicating with young people.

• Able to handle sensitive information appropriately.

• Organised and reliable.

• A strong team player.

• Comfortable working independently when required.

• Able to recognise when a concern needs escalation.

• Professional when communicating with parents and staff.

• Patient and understanding.

• Resilient and emotionally mature.

• Committed to safeguarding and student welfare.

Experience dealing with challenging or sensitive situations would be advantageous, as would an understanding of the wider factors that can affect a young person's engagement with school.

Safeguarding

Safeguarding is central to the role. The successful candidate will be expected to follow all school safeguarding procedures and report concerns through the appropriate channels. All relevant pre-employment and safeguarding checks will be completed.

Application

If you are passionate about supporting young people and want to work in a role where your contribution can have a direct impact on students’ wellbeing and school experience, this could be an excellent opportunity.

Please submit an up-to-date CV highlighting your relevant experience and suitability for the position.