Working for the Durnford Society
The Durnford Society has been established for over 40 years and believe that if staff feel fulfilled and valued in their roles, this will be reflected in the service they provide.
All employees of the Durnford Society receive a full induction and training package to ensure they are fully supported to achieve their maximum potential.
The philosophy of the Durnford Society is that if staff feel fulfilled and valued in their roles, this will be reflected in the service they provide.
Our staff don’t just provide support or care, we provide moments of joy, life changing opportunities, build confidence and self-esteem, building networks and friendships whilst having fun along the way. So, if you’re in the position to want to make a difference, have a little fun, are caring and empathetic, energetic, and willing, we want to hear from you.
In return, we offer some amazing benefits!
- All employment costs are paid for by the Organisation including your DBS.
- Training is provided free of charge and all training time accrued is paid for. We believe that training is important, to enable our staff to undertake their roles successfully.
- Bespoke personal development plans. We understand that it can’t be all about the business! So, we ensure that we help and support you to meet your personal goals as well as those work related.
- Flexible working.
- Competitive salaries.
- Holiday pay and enhanced annual leave pay.
- Employee Assistance Programme accessible 24 hours a day 7 days a week.
- Pension contributions.
- Paid mileage at 45p a mile if travelling to different locations. This includes paid travel time too!
- Career Development.
- Unlimited support! We want you to succeed!
Frequently Asked Questions
A support worker is an individual that looks after the wellbeing of a vulnerable
person, helping them to live an independent life. The individual may need additional
support for several reasons, usually because of health, age or disability. No two days
are ever the same, and it is well suited to flexible working.
This can be a demanding role that involves both practical and emotional support. As
such, its best suited to candidates who are compassionate, understanding, patient
and have good people skills. Caring is a core part of this all-encompassing role.
Please refer to the Careers section of the website for details of hourly rates of pay.
The role of the support worker can vary depending on the person that is being
supported. Depending on the complexity of the individual being supported, tasks can
vary from welfare checks to personal care and medication administration. Supported
individuals may need support in cooking meals, personal care, grocery shopping,
paying bills and arranging medical appointments. There is no definitive list! It also
calls upon good observational skills, a support worker will need to monitor the health
of their client, reporting any issues to family and support teams, and liaising with
healthcare providers and therapists.
Qualifications are not essential in this role as it most of it can be learnt on the job.
However, The Durnford Society promotes that support staff do get qualified and offer
a robust induction to those who are not experienced or have no qualifications. For
those with no experience or qualifications, they will need to undertake the Care
Certificate as a minimum standard of induction.
Being a support worker requires good interpersonal skills such as (but not
exhaustive), excellent listening skills, effective communication skills, proficient writing
and articulation skills, organisational skills, team working skills, people skills,
emotional resilience and intelligence and compassion.
Not necessarily, this will depend on the Service you work within. The Organisation
has, residential care and supported living with domiciliary care all of which are
located no further than 10 miles from the city centre. Areas include, Southway, Lipson, Plympton, Plymstock and Crownhill. If you are required to travel between
support, your travel time is included within your working hours and mileage is paid.
The Organisation will support anyone to grow and progress who wishes to. The
grow can be linear or vertical depending on your ambitions, however, whichever is
the most preferred route you can be assured you will be supported all the way.
Current Vacancies
Parkstone Lane is a registered care home providing specialist complex care support for individuals with Learning disabilities. The home is small and provides care and support for up to four people. There is one bedroom that can accommodate physical needs.
Oaklands is a registered care home providing specialist complex care support for individuals with Learning disabilities. The home has capacity to support up to nine people. Based within a bungalow, Oaklands has provision to deal with all physical needs.
Supported Living & Domiciliary Care: Providing home care and support, the service can support with personal care needs, through to daily tasks such as shopping. The Service is registered with CQC and is regulated, is a contracted and approved provider with Plymouth City Council and is an accredited End of Life provider from St Luke’s.
This service is for individuals who require support who choose to live in their own home
This service is for individuals who require 24 hour support and care
