Vision Loss Advisor

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Unit 29, Weltech Business Centre, Welwyn Garden City, AL7 2AA
Permanent
Closing date: 21/07/2023
Disability Confident Employer

Herts Vision Loss

Role:  To support all service users as required.  Provide comprehensive assessments and ensure the needs of the users and family members are met. Deliver the community home visiting scheme, monitoring volunteers and client matching across Hertfordshire.
Scope: The key purpose of the role is to provide appropriate support to people who are blind and visually impaired, their careers and families and other professionals within a specified geographical area.

Hours of work:        Full-Time, 35hrs per week,

Rate of Pay:             £13.00 per hour

Contract:                  Permanent

 

Main Duties:

 

·         Visit clients, carers, and their families, when required, to offer support and advice, completing relevant assessment of needs.

·         Match clients to volunteers for relevant support in their own home.

·         Manage a case load of volunteers within a geographical area.

·         To facilitate Sight Information Points in a geographical area

·         To facilitate one off Low Vision Exhibitions in a geographical area

·         To facilitate information points in local eye clinics and low vision clinics within the hospital

·         Multi agency and multi-disciplinary work, referring to other voluntary and statutory organisations as appropriate.

·         Promote HVL to the wider community.

·         Participate in recruitment, training, and support of volunteers.

·         Maintain accurate records relating to services in a geographical area, including statistical information for monitoring purposes.

·         Provide relevant support for office-based services including Sight Line, Resource Centre, information services and other relevant duties that may be needed from time to time.

·         Work with children in schools to educate on peer support and respect campaign.

·         Set up and facilitate regular support groups for a range of ages as requested by team leader.

·         Present HVL to the local community at events and roadshows

·         Seek out and actively find funding for new projects.

·         Take the lead as required in the office environment, deputising for the team leader/CEO in her absence and as requested.

·         Support on the recruitment of students and take part in mentoring students as requested.

Challenges:

 

To balance a diverse range of duties over a wide geographical area together.  Also, to ensure that the work is carried out effectively and efficiently to make best use of mileage and expenses costs.

To increase our outreach to hard-to-reach communities, both in terms of clients and volunteers. Development of services with financial constraints. Keeping up to date with new technologies and initiatives.

 

(The duties and challenges are not an exhaustive list and are subject to change as finances and service requirements do)

Vision Loss Advisor- Person Specification

Desirable:

  • Experience in a customer/client facing role involving organising activity and resources.
  • Experience with equipment/assistive technology to help a disabled client group to cope with their disability.
  • Experience and/or understanding of the needs of visually impaired people and their environment.
  • Experience of daily living support issues and knowledge of welfare benefits.

Essential:

  • Excellent communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills.
  • Good organisational and administrative skills and the ability to prioritise and manage a busy workload.
  • Ability to run and organise the office environment as
  • A high degree of self motivation as much time is spent away from the office base.
  • Ability to help develop the service by identifying and communicating/networking with appropriate organisations.
  • A flexible, co-operative attitude to respond to the varying requirements of a small, busy charity and with the ability to work effectively in a team as well as alone.
  • Commitment to supporting underrepresented groups in the community.
  • Must be a car owner/driver with current driving licence and appropriate vehicle insurance.

HVL is committed to being an equal opportunity employer.

Applications to HVL are especially welcome from people living with

Visual Impairment

[Sections 38 of the RRA 1976 and 48 of the SDA apply]