Habilitation/Mobility and Orientation Specialist

Habilitation/Mobility and Orientation Specialist

Salary PO1, £39,615 - £40,503

Full time - Permanent (with school holidays)

Job Ref: HED00571

Hackney Education provides a range of services to support the education of children, young people and adults in our inner London borough. Hackney is one of the UK’s highest performing local authorities, serving one of London’s best places to live and work. Within our diverse borough we serve a wide range of children and young people. We have a particular focus on supporting less advantaged families: Hackney figures in the 10% most deprived boroughs in England on a number of measures.

Hackney Education’s key priority is to improve the life chances of every child, young person and learner: making Hackney the most forward looking education system in the UK, where schools, settings and partners provide an exciting environment which ensures inclusion and success for everyone. We see our borough as being one of the best places in the country for young people to grow, learn, develop and achieve – and one of the best places for colleagues to work and thrive in our education system.

We continually invest in making sure staff have the right tools to do the job, the best working environments, and an open, collaborative and creative culture for you to succeed. Please find further details around our employee benefits and flexible working and Timewise. For this role, a Hackney parking permit will be made available for car users.

Do you have previous experience of working with visually impaired learners from 0-25 years? As part of the SEND Specialist Service you’ll play a crucial role in promoting the inclusion of learners with a visual impairment who are pre-school or in mainstream or specialist settings, schools and colleges.

We are looking for an individual who is:

• Able to work independently.
• Highly motivated and able to work flexibly.
• Able to communicate well with children, parents and a range of education and other professionals.

Here is an opportunity for you to work in a vibrant, inclusive, inner London borough committed to helping visually impaired learners get the best out of education. You must possess or be about to graduate in the ‘Graduate Diploma in Habilitation and Disabilities of Sight (Children and Young People)’ or equivalent qualification OR be a qualified Rehabilitation Worker with experience of working with visually impaired children and willing to undertake the ‘Habilitation Work – Working with Children and Young People’ Top Up Degree - BSc (Hons). It is desirable that the candidate has a minimum of one year’s direct experience of teaching long cane to children and young people with a visual impairment, which may be as part of your course.

Interested? Please apply via our website: Education Hackney | Habilitation/ Mobility and Orientation Specialist | Apply Now  

Closing date: Thurs 9 February 2023

Interviews (in person): Pm Friday 24 February 2023

Projected start date: 17 April 2023

Hackney Education is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. We expect all staff to share this commitment. As this role involves regulated activity, the successful applicant will be required to undertake an enhanced DBS check and additional pre-employment checks in line with Keeping Children Safe in Education statutory guidance. This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and the amendments to the Exceptions Order 1975, 2013 and 2020.

We are also working towards our vision, which is to be a place for everyone; where residents and staff can be proud; a place that celebrates diversity and where everyone can feel valued, included and involved. In order to achieve this, we look for people who are: Proud; Ambitious; Pioneering; Open; Proactive; Inclusive.

Hackney Council works to eradicate discrimination on the basis of race, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy and maternity, age and marital status. We also recognise that people can be disadvantaged by their social and economic circumstances, so we will also work to eliminate discrimination and disadvantage caused by social class. We also welcome those interested in flexible working. We particularly welcome applications from disabled people and people from a black and ethnic minority background as these groups are currently underrepresented in our workforce.