Do you want to make life better for LGBT+ victims and survivors of abuse?

Galop, the UK’s LGBT+ anti-abuse charity, is seeking a Children & Young Peoples Independent Sexual Violence Advocate. This role will focus on supporting children and young people across the UK, relying mostly on remote forms of contact with clients such as phone, online and text support. This role includes the opportunity to work fully remotely from anywhere in the UK, with occasional visits to London.

Galop works directly with thousands of LGBT+ people who have experienced abuse and violence every year. We specialise in supporting victims and survivors of domestic abuse, sexual violence, hate crime, and other forms of abuse including honour-based abuse, forced marriage, and so-called conversion therapies. We are a service run by LGBT+ people, for LGBT+ people, and the needs of our community are at the centre of what we do.

We run three national support helplines for LGBT+ victims and survivors of domestic abuse, so-called “conversion therapy”, and hate crime. We provide advocacy services, both in London and nationally, for LGBT+ victims who need longer-term support. We are person-centred, empowerment-based, and trauma-informed – meaning our focus is always on helping our clients decide what is best for them, and then supporting them through their journey.

We use what we learn through working on the frontlines with clients to work on national and local policy change, to improve outcomes for LGBT+ victims and survivors of abuse and violence. We build evidence through key pieces of research, like our upcoming report into LGBT+ experiences of sexual violence. We push for legislative change, improved statutory guidance for victims, and better understanding of the needs of LGBT+ people around the country.

You will work directly with young victims/survivors of sexual violence, offering them a space to talk and think through options, helping them plan what they want to do, and offering assistance in getting what they need from services. Your work will focus on needs specifically related experiences of sexual violence, including issues such as wellbeing, support with the criminal and civil justice process, safety and access to other services to enable survivors to cope and recover. You will be empathetic and thoughtful in your approach to understanding your clients’ needs, while remaining boundaried and mindful of self-care.

You will have expertise in delivering needs-led specialist support services. You will need to be solutions-focused and enjoy working collaboratively across a diverse and committed team. You’ll need to have good resilience and self-care, and be prepared to work in an environment where abuse and violence are regularly talked about. You’ll need to understand the impact of trauma and how that affects our team.

This role includes the opportunity to train for a nationally recognised Independent Sexual Violence Advocate qualification. Due to the cost of training, we expect advocates to commit to stay in this post at least 18 months from the date they become qualified.

At Galop, we believe that life should be safe, just and fair for all LGBT+ people, and that includes our staff in the workplace. We believe in equity and understand the importance of inclusion for staff with a wide range of lived experience. No matter your age, race, faith, orientation, gender identity, disability, or class, we want you to feel welcome here. To that end, Galop has a multi-year Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion plan in place, currently focusing on equity and inclusion for trans and BAMER members of staff. We are committed to listening and learning, and to constant improvement. We believe it is our job to make sure that all our staff, particularly those from minoritised backgrounds, feel welcome, safe, and able to thrive at Galop.

 

Location
Galop’s offices are located in London, but fully remote working is available for this role from anywhere nationally, with occasional travel to London required.

Hours
Full Time (35 hours per week)

Contract
Until 31/3/2025

Reports to
Advocacy & Support Manager/Senior Advocate

Salary
Galop uses the NJC scales. This post is on NJC scale points 20 to 25 (£26,445 – £30,094 per year). The NJC scale also includes an Inner London Weighting allowance of £3,779 which is available to staff who live in live in London and/or work from the Galop building in central London.

 

Closing Date
Applications should be submitted by 10:00am on Monday 5th December 2022.

Interviews will be held on Monday 19th December 2022.

 

Questions?
If you have any questions or would like to discuss the role further prior to application, please contact Nick Antjoule at: [email protected]