Location: London

Type: Part-time (approximately 10 hours per week including weekends)

Salary: £13.50 per hour. Travel expenses reimbursed for outreach visits and community trips.

About Us

London Autism Group Charity is a fully Autistic-led organisation supporting Autistic people of all ages, their families and carers, across London and nearby boroughs.

We advance mental health, wellbeing and social inclusion, and all our work is grounded in the social model of disability and the neurodiversity paradigm. Everything we do is free to access, inclusive and designed to reduce loneliness, stigma and isolation.

We run monthly Community Cafés across London (including Southgate, Ealing, Old Street,
Woodford and Grays), wellbeing activity days in Central London, a Befriending Service, walk-
and-talk initiatives, and our new Autistic Workplace Support Sessions.

About the Role

• Provide an extension of the Befriending Service by meeting service users in their home or out in the community.
• Support some of the most isolated members of the adult Autistic community who experience loneliness or find it difficult to access community spaces.
• Provide friendly, compassionate, one-to-one social and emotional support, through home visits (for housebound service users), local outings such as cafes or parks, or online. Friendly conversation and emotional support.
• Provide gentle encouragement and companionship, helping people to feel less isolated and more connected to their local area.
• Provide support tailored to the needs of each individual – The process begins with a short
  discussion or interview to understand what the person would like help with, how they prefer
  to communicate, and how often. You will then agree together on suitable times and methods of contact, ensuring the relationship develops at a pace that feels comfortable for both parties. This usually starts with low-demand texting or emailing to develop trust.
• Maintain brief records of visits, feedback and hours.
• Uphold safeguarding, confidentiality and equality policies at all times.
• Represent the Charity positively and with empathy when meeting members of the
  community.

Essential skills and abilities

• Compassionate, patient and reliable, with excellent listening and communication
  skills.
• Comfortable engaging with people who may experience anxiety, isolation or
  communication differences.
• Respectful of neurodivergence, disability and different communication preferences.
• Ability to travel across parts of London as required.
• Willingness to undertake an enhanced DBS check (funded by the Charity).

Desirable skills and abilities:

• Knowledge or lived experience of Autism, neurodivergence or mental health
  challenges.
• Experience of community support, befriending or voluntary sector work.
• Understanding of trauma-informed, non-judgemental approaches.
• We particularly welcome applications from Neurodivergent and Autistic candidates, as lived
  experience is highly valued in this role. Knowledge of neurodiversity, mental health or autistic
  advocacy would be an advantage, though not essential.

How to apply

Please apply through our ‘apply for a job’ form here and put the role you’re interested in as ‘Community Outreach Officer’. A member of the Enna team will then email you with next steps and whats needed to make a formal application. Any questions email hello@enna.org.

To learn more about the charity’s work visit: https://www.londonautismgroupcharity.org