Department of Corrections Looking for Social Worker Mental Health – Auckland Prison at Auckland City, Auckland Full Time

About the Job

• Based at Auckland Prison – Albany
• Full time, permanent position, start date on/after 1st July, 2022
• Join a values-based agency committed to advancing health equity for Māori
• Contribute to enhancing the oranga of tangata in our management

‘Kotahi anō te kaupapa, ko te oranga o te iwi’ – ‘There is only one purpose to our work: the wellness and wellbeing of our people.

Ara Poutama Aotearoa (Corrections) Health Services lead the delivery of patient-focused health care services to tangata within corrections facilities across Aotearoa. Hōkai Rangi, our over-arching strategic direction, places the focus on health at the heart of our business. Building our frameworks from a Matauranga Māori basis is our focus to drive and support equity for Māori, which in turn will contribute to achieving our outcomes of reducing reoffending.

Mō te tūnga | About the role

We are seeking a Social Worker to join our established and growing hauora hinengaro (mental health) team based at Auckland Prison. You’ll be working as part of our Intervention & Support Practice Team, dedicated to providing high quality mental health support and treatment to the most vulnerable people in our care. Your role as part of the wider multi-disciplinary team is to provide quality assessment and interventions to enhance the mental health and wellbeing of people in our care that are aligned to best practice mental health service provision. We value the principle of whanaungatanga in all aspects of our work – you’ll also work in close partnership with our corrections officers, case managers, and wider programmes and health staff.

This opportunity will suit a Social Worker who demonstrates a strong commitment to culturally safe practice and partnership. Our teams strive to model expert clinical practice and ensure a strong focus on Humanising and Healing – respecting the human dignity and inherent mana of all people in our care, and their whānau. You’ll be motivated to promote the delivery of holistic and recovery-oriented health services across the prison environment, including kaupapa Māori practices that align to Hokāi Rangi.

The position may require you to travel to other prison sites across the country.

Ngā pūkenga me ngā wheako | Skills and experience

We invite applications from suitably qualified candidates who can demonstrate strong alignment to our kaupapa and our organisation values. The panel will look for evidence within your cover letter as to how you meet the following lead requirements:

• A Social Work qualification recognised by the Aotearoa NZ Association for Social Workers Registration Board;
• Strong clinical practice in social work, counselling, or other psychological therapies and approaches;
• Experience in triaging, assessment, clinical co-ordination and service co-ordination;
• Experience with quality improvement and outcomes;
• Experience working with Kaupapa Māori services, and commitment to ongoing personal development in this area;
• Can operate effectively in a Māori cultural setting and has an understanding of the Treaty of Waitangi and how it relates to health and wellbeing;
• Ability to make sound professional judgements tailoring solutions to individual circumstances; and
• Strong people engagement, relationship-building and collaboration skills.

Our Social Workers enjoy genuine work-life balance, a competitive salary, professional developmental opportunities, clinical and cultural supervision, and an environment with a vibrant and supportive team culture.

Kano ārai mate KOWHEORI-19 | COVID-19 vaccinations

As part of our COVID-19 response, all people working at Ara Poutama Aotearoa are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 in order to access our workplaces. This is to ensure we continue to do all we can to keep everyone safe from the impacts of COVID-19, now and into the future.

Ko wai mātou | About us

Ara Poutama Aotearoa is a name that has been gifted to us and is our commitment to improving the oranga and safety of the people, whānau, and that of the communities we serve across the motu.

As a values-led organisation, we use the principles of rangatira (leadership), manaaki (respect), wairua (spirituality), kaitiaki (guardianship) and whānau (relationships) to shape how we work and deliver the outcomes in our strategy – Hōkai Rangi (https://arapoutama.nz/hokairangi).

Tono ināianei | Apply Now – Applications close Sunday 1st May 2022

To apply, please submit a tailored CV and a cover letter describing your motivation for joining the department highlighting relevant skills and experience. Alignment to our kaupapa is critical to our success – we ask that you provide examples which reflect and demonstrate our organisation values.

It is an exciting time to join us and we continue to seek out talented individuals who are committed to an inclusive, vibrant workplace. We recognise and celebrate the uniqueness of individuals, and that of the collective talent in our whānau. All applications must be submitted through our careers site to ensure transparency. Applications received via email will not be considered.

If you want to find out more about a career with us, visit careers.corrections.govt.nz or email our team at [email protected].