Family Support Practitioner (School-based)

Location: Birmingham

Salary: £22,274 - £24,796 per annum (This role is term-time only, the salary is in line with working weeks)

Vacancy Type: This is a fixed term position until 12 April 2027

5 days per week term time only - 35 hours per week plus inset days

Closing date: Monday 3 August 2026

Our mission at School-Home Support is simple. We get children and young people back in school ready to learn, whatever it takes. Is this a mission for you? Yes? Then read on. We are looking for a Family Support Practitioner to join our team and to make a difference in children’s lives every single day. As the Family Support Practitioner, you will be based at the setting and work in close partnership with school staff to deliver a programme of casework to promote and improve educational outcomes for the children and their families we support. You will also focus your support to help improve attendance, punctuality and engagement in learning.

Purpose of role

To work with families, parents, carers, young people and the school to improve school attendance and enable children and young people to have full access to educational opportunities and overcome the barriers to learning. This may include working with the wider family and community.

Based at Ark Boulton Secondary school, the family support practitioner will work from a child centred approach and primarily be concerned with developing and maintaining good working relationships with parents/carers, children and young people, teachers, head teachers and various educational support staff and other agencies. The workload is varied and is negotiated with the schools prior to the appointment of the SHS Practitioner.

Level of contact with children and young people

The responsibilities of the post require the post-holder to have substantial, unsupervised and daily contact with children, young people and their families and is subject to an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check. SHS will organise and pay for this certificate.

Colleagues of School-Home Support (UK) to share tasks, information and good practice, colleagues throughout the organisation who may be in a position to assist with, or require help from the SHS Practitioner in the fulfilment of the role. This includes colleagues in both schools and the Central Office. This is not a definitive list.

Main responsibilities and tasks

Work with families

To provide targeted work with children and young people who are currently or are at risk of becoming persistently absent, supporting them to improve their school attendance and engagement in learning.
Work with parents/carers in a school context, supporting them and building their engagement with their child’s learning.
To design and/or facilitate a flexible range of programmes of intervention to support parents/carers of children identified as vulnerable.
To undertake outreach work which may include home visits, to offer a flexible support service in accordance with the SHS lone worker policy, in order to improve parental engagement with the school and with the child’s learning.
To act as advocate, mediator and negotiator in confrontational situations, maintaining communication with young people, parents/carers, schools and other agencies. This will include initiating and participating in meetings to discuss and develop ways of resolving problems.
To provide targeted support on a one to one basis or for small groups with parents/carers, children and young people through either self-referral or school staff referral.
To advise and inform parents/carers about relevant local services and where appropriate to make referrals to other agencies.
To support parents/carers to engage with local agencies and support services identified to remove barriers in school engagement and improve school attendance

As an employer, we offer:

Employee Assistance Programme, providing confidential support for you and your family
Life assurance for added financial security
Pension scheme
A structured induction programme with training throughout your first 6 months to help you feel confident and supported in your role
Regular supervision and reflective practice to support your wellbeing and professional development
The opportunity to make a meaningful difference to the lives of children, young people and families
A supportive and collaborative team environment where your experience and ideas are valued
Opportunities to build strong relationships with schools and communities through varied and rewarding work

School-Home Support takes very seriously the duty of care to safeguard and promote the welfare of children. We are committed to ensuring our safeguarding procedures reflect statutory responsibilities, government guidance and comply with best practice. Our policy recognises that the welfare and interests of children are paramount in all circumstances and we therefore take all necessary steps to protect them

Interview dates: 1st Stage Interview: 5-12 August 2026 (online interview) 2nd Stage interviews: September 2026

To Apply

If you feel you are a suitable candidate and would like to work for School-Home Support, please click apply to be redirected to our website to complete your application.

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Family Support Practitioner (School-based)