Family Services Worker Family Services Worker

As the need for mental health services grows, Child Development Institute (CDI) continues to be the steadfast support and leading provider of specialized mental health services for children and youth aged 0-18 and their families. All of our services are guided by a strength-based approach that incorporates the family and the community into the journey of supporting children and youth.

Trusted with the mental well-being of our community's most sensitive members, infants and children, all of our programming is backed by rigorous research. Science is the backbone which informs our work as we evolve alongside the needs of our community.

We are committed to providing services that are respectful of racial, cultural, religious, ethnic and linguistic diversity, as well as sexual orientation, age, gender and family differences. All our services are delivered by a deeply caring and compassionate team that guides children, youth and families along a mental health journey in a safe, respectful and welcoming space.

Stop Now And Plan (SNAP) is an evidence-based model for children ages 6-11 that provides a framework for teaching children struggling with behaviour issues and their parents effective emotional regulation, self-control and problem-solving skills. The primary goal of SNAP is to keep children in school and out of trouble by helping them make better choices "in the moment."

Reporting to the Clinical Supervisor, SNAP Clinical Program, we are looking for a Family Worker to join our SNAP West team, someone who wants to act as a first point of contact for families coming to us for support and services. You will draw on our evidence-based programs, playing a pivotal role in providing clinical leadership and mental health treatment for clients and guiding the overall treatment plan in a multidisciplinary context.

You are a BSW or MSW and eligible to register with the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers (OCSWSSW) or a Registered Psychotherapist ready to step into the role of a Service Coordinator for Families and Children. You have worked with the whole family system, including parents and caregivers, school administration and teachers, and the community, to understand how behaviours impact all aspects of a client's life. You are flexible in when, where and how you conduct client assessments; days or evenings, in-office, in-home or in-school, you prioritize the comfort and needs of the children you work with. You are as comfortable sitting on the floor to engage younger clients in play as listening to a youth reluctantly share their experiences.

You want to be the steady hand and the calming presence, someone who is a champion for the well-being of clients and can bring forward their perspectives, introduce clarity, observe behaviour and identify interventions.

Growth as a Family Worker and as a compassionate human. This is an exciting opportunity to build a solid foundation for a career in social work. This is an opportunity to rapidly increase your skills with training to provide counselling, a structure to follow, and guidance on ensuring families benefit from the solutions and programming you are offering. As our new SNAP Family Worker, you will:

You will collaborate with clients and families to evaluate situations, submit data for analysis, and develop comprehensive psycho-social assessments and shared treatment plans.

Provide counselling. You will deliver mental health treatment services for children (ages 6-11) and their families as identified in the treatment plan, including individual, family, and group counselling. You will collaborate with Child Workers and liaise, consult and coordinate with additional internal and external professionals and community services to ensure effective clinical treatment.

Own case management. You will lead case management activities and case review meetings. You will initiate case conferences and recommend additional mental health services in the community. You will update client documentation in client information management systems, coordinate consent forms, and manage case closure activities. You will provide limited follow-up service to discharged clients (e.g. support, service navigation, etc.).

You will participate in development planning, research activities, and ongoing service evaluation, collaborating with internal and external professionals and organizations on special projects. You will conduct, contribute to, and complete assessment reports, intervention plans, closing reports, pre- and post-measures, case notes, statistics and other documentation, as required by agency standards and the client information management system. You will contribute to developing training programs and materials for other professionals and community groups. Support our mission. You will liaise with other CDI staff, including clinicians and experts in their field, to ensure appropriate communication, service coordination, and delivery for children, youth, and their families.

You have a Bachelors in Social Work, and you are eligible to register with the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers (OCSWSSW). You have experience applying various mental health intervention modalities, working with children, youth, families, and groups in a therapeutic or clinical setting. You have proven organizational, analytical, and decision-making skills required from a successful group and therapy leader; You can effectively prioritize work in an environment of competing demands while achieving established benchmarks and key performance indicators (KPIs).

You have worked with children and youth with mental health challenges. You can work in a highly distractible environment with sensitivity to the uniqueness and demands of a public service agency, handling interruptions that require constant refocusing. You are confident in your ability to draw on your clinical background to engage in supportive counselling and different mental health interventions, to step in and manage crisis situations and to empathize and connect with people.

You are comfortable growing into your role and delivering one-on-one, family-based, and group-based therapy sessions; you are flexible to work some evenings every week to facilitate group sessions and meet with clients.

You are open to feedback and coaching; The utmost respect and enthusiasm for working with children and youth. You can build genuine, trusting relationships with children, youth, young adult staff, and client families. You excel at coaching or training, providing constructive and positive feedback, supervising large and small groups, and evaluating individual and team performance.

You have education, training, or experience navigating high-risk, high-emotion situations. you want to play a vital role in creating and fostering a positive experience with measurable outcomes that makes a genuine impact on the lives of your clients and the people they interact with.

This is a permanent position under OPSEU.

A virtual interview with a Talent Advisor will discuss your interest in the role and your background in family services and counselling. The conversation will be recorded using BrightHire, an AI-powered video interview tool. CDI is firmly committed to diversity within its community and welcomes applications from racialized persons/persons of colour, Indigenous People of North America and the world, persons with disabilities, 2SLGBTQIA+ persons, and those who may contribute to the further diversification of ideas.