Job Description

Therapeutic Residential Worker

Salary: up to £28,400 per annum (depending on experience)

Location: Gateshead, Tyne & Wear

Contract/Hours: Permanent/Full Time – 37 hours per week and casual hours - This role requires flexibility to work across a range of shift patterns, including early mornings, late evenings, waking nights and sleeping in shifts. Sleeping in shifts attract an additional £50, This shift pattern allows for two weekends off per month.

Closing date for applications is midnight of 7th October

Benefits:

Over 7 weeks inclusive paid leave and the option to buy or sell leave
Excellent training and the opportunity to undertake professional training for some roles
Flexible maternity, paternity and adoption packages
Up to 5% employer contribution and life assurance cover
Blue Light Card eligibility with discounts at 15,000 national retailers
As part of our commitment to staff wellbeing, you’ll receive a paid annual Wellbeing Day to use however you choose, supporting a healthy balance between work and life.

At Action for Children, we offer more than just a job. Join us and you’ll be part of a team dedicated to giving children safe and happy childhoods. See how your skills can make a real difference, helping solve the problems children and young people face every day.

A bit about the role

We’re looking for a compassionate and committed Therapeutic Residential Worker to join our team, supporting young children who’ve been through significant challenges. In this role, you’ll help create a safe, nurturing and predictable home where children can experience what every child deserves — a happy childhood, meaningful relationships, and the chance to heal, grow and thrive.

You’ll work closely with each child’s individual plan, putting therapeutic approaches into practice, keeping essential records, and supporting meaningful activities that encourage emotional, social and developmental progress. Collaboration is at the heart of this role, and you’ll be part of a highly experienced multidisciplinary team who work together to meet each child’s unique needs, building stability, trust and positive relationships.

As a Therapeutic Residential Worker, you’ll champion Action for Children’s values and play a key role in supporting the Registered Manager and wider team to achieve positive outcomes for our young people. Your warmth, consistency and commitment will help create the foundations for brighter futures.

About the service

Ayton Villa is a trauma‑informed residential home dedicated to providing a safe, stable and nurturing environment for children who have experienced early adversity or trauma. Our approach is rooted in understanding how these experiences can shape a child’s emotions, behaviours and development, and ensuring that every interaction supports healing, trust and positive attachment.

The home itself is warm, welcoming and truly centred around the children who live there. Recently rated Ofsted Outstanding, Ayton Villa is recognised for its exceptional commitment to putting children first. The team consistently goes above and beyond to create a sense of belonging, predictability and emotional safety, tailoring care to each child’s needs and working at their pace.

Being a trauma‑informed home means we prioritise relationships, empathy and consistency. We focus on helping children feel understood and valued, supporting them to build self‑confidence, develop emotional regulation and lay the foundations for a brighter, more hopeful future.

How you'll help to create brighter futures

Bringing a positive, proactive approach to supporting children.
Taking responsibility for each child’s personal care and daily needs.
Showing resilience and calm when supporting children through challenging situations.
Ensuring the safeguarding and wellbeing of young people at all times.
Keeping clear, accurate daily records to support consistent, high‑quality care.

Let's talk about you.

Are you resilient and have a positive approach to change and challenge? We are looking for someone with a ‘can do’ attitude to join our team. Ideally you will have:

Experience working in a care setting and building positive, trusting relationships.
Able to use a range of approaches to communicate and coordinate effectively with children, young people and their families.
A calm, solution‑focused approach to problem‑solving, both independently and as part of a team.
Emotional resilience and confidence when responding to the more challenging aspects of the role.
A Level 3 Diploma in Residential Childcare (or recognised equivalent), or a willingness to complete this within two years — with full support provided.

Why Action for Children?

Every child should have a loving home, food, warmth, the chance to grow and learn - the support to cope with life’s challenges. But too many children don’t. By bringing your passion and unique skills and experience, you’ll help us change that where it really matters.

We've been driven by love to take action for children for over 150 years, giving them the protection and practical help they need. A lot’s changed since 1869. But what children really need, hasn’t. So as long as children need us, we’ll be here.

Will you join us?

Contact: Please submit an application via our careers page. If you have any further questions, you can contact Laura McCarthy at recruitmentservice@actionforchildren.org.uk quoting reference 13762

Our Commitment to Equity, Inclusion and Anti-Racism

At Action for Children, we are committed to creating a workplace where everyone feels respected, valued, and able to thrive. We know that racism and discrimination create barriers, and we are taking active steps to challenge these inequalities in our organisation and in the communities we serve.

We strongly welcome applications from people who are Black, Asian, or from other racialised and ethnically marginalised communities, as well as disabled people, who are currently under-represented in our workforce. We are committed to removing barriers in our recruitment processes and ensuring fair access to opportunities.

We also encourage applications from men, who are under-represented in our Children’s Services roles. We recognise that people hold multiple identities, and we value the richness this brings to our team.

Want to get to know Action for Children better?

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Find out more about Action for Children here: Action for Children and on LinkedIn, Facebook or YouTube to get to know us better.