Job Reference: 371386205

Senior Caseworker

High Risk Offenders Unit (HRO) and Commonwealth Crime Unit (CCU)

Clerk Grade 7/8 – Ongoing

 

 

•              Ongoing role

•              High Risk Offenders Unit and Commonwealth Crime Unit

•              Clerk Grade 7/8 (salary range $106,025 – 117,363 plus super and annual leave loading)

•              Location – Central Sydney office

 

About us

Legal Aid NSW helps people with their legal problems. We can help people with most areas of criminal law, family law and every day civil law legal issues. We give legal advice, help at court and do family dispute resolution. We can do this over the telephone or at one of our 27 offices.

 

About the High Risk Offender Unit (HRO) & the Commonwealth Crime Unit (CCU)

The High Risk Offender (HRO) Unit is a multi-disciplinary team that offers specialized advice, assistance, and representation services to offenders involved in proceedings for post-sentence detention or supervision orders under the Crimes (High Risk Offenders) Act 2006, the Terrorism (High Risk Offenders) Act 2017, and the Criminal Code (Cth).

The Commonwealth Crime Unit (CCU), part of the Criminal Law Division, specializes in representing individuals charged with offences under Commonwealth laws and provides assistance to offenders seeking parole.

 

About the role

In this role, you will provide comprehensive case management to clients of the HRO Unit and CCU who have complex social and legal needs. Your responsibilities will include offering referral assistance, conducting thorough assessments, supporting clients in complying with court orders, and facilitating access to services that address their psychosocial needs.

You will work closely with HRO Unit lawyers and support staff to assist clients who are subject to applications for continuing detention or extended supervision orders by the Supreme Court, or who are already under such orders. You will work closely with CCU lawyers to assist clients with a range of issues, including post release plans for parole.

 

 

About you

As a Senior Caseworker for the High Risk Offenders Unit and Commonwealth Crime Unit, you will be dedicated to supporting and assisting clients with complex social and legal needs. Flexibility and experience in multi-disciplinary settings are essential for this role.

You will possess strong interpersonal skills, enabling you to identify barriers and devise creative solutions to help clients achieve positive outcomes.

Your proven experience in building relationships and collaborating with various government and non-government stakeholders will be crucial. Additionally, you will be adept at working with legal professionals in a social legal context to provide services to clients.

This recruitment process may also be used to create a talent pool for similar ongoing or temporary vacancies that may arise over the next 18 months.

 

WHY YOU SHOULD JOIN LEGAL AID NSW!

We are committed to diversity and inclusion

We are committed to creating a culturally safe and genuinely inclusive organisation and workplace for everyone who works and interacts with us. We strive to be a place where people from diverse backgrounds want to work, where voices and cultures are valued and where people feel valued, welcomed, respected and heard.

We want a workforce that reflects our clients, so we can deliver a service that meets the needs of the community. We welcome applications from people with diverse backgrounds — including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, people with disability, the LGBTQI+ community, culturally diverse people and other diverse communities. 

We acknowledge, support and accommodate the diverse access needs of people with visible and invisible disabilities. If you need a reasonable adjustment to participate in the recruitment process, or you’d like information about what we can do to help you, please contact our team at erecruitment@legalaid.nsw.gov.au.

Other benefits of working with us

• You will have access to training, development and mentoring opportunities.
• We are an accredited Flex Ready certified employer and are recognised as leaders in the area of flexible work. Most of our staff work flexibly — for example, from home some of the time or in a way that helps them balance family and work life.

The essential requirements for this role

You must:

• have 5 years minimum relevant experience
• have a four- year Bachelor Degree in: Social Work, Psychology or directly relevant other degree OR Bachelor plus Masters degree in Social Work, Psychology or directly relevant other degree
• have professional registration
• hold Australian or NZ citizenship, Australian Permanent Residency (for ongoing vacancies) or a valid visa to work in Australia (for temporary vacancies)
• be willing to do a Criminal Record Check and Working with Children Check

 

How to apply

You MUST submit your application online through www.iworkfor.nsw.gov.au. If you submit your application late or by email it will NOT be accepted.

Your application must include:

• your resume (no more than 5 pages)
• cover letter (no more than 2 pages). In your cover letter, please address the following questions:

1.    Provide an example of a challenging case you managed. How did you approach it, and what was the outcome?

 

2.    Describe a situation where you had to collaborate with a multi-disciplinary team (e.g., police, lawyers, mental health professionals) to support a high-risk offender. What were the key challenges and successes?

Make sure your application is complete and you have answered all questions before you submit it.

Do you need help to apply?

It’s important to properly prepare before you apply for a role. Here is some other information to help you:

• If you have questions about the role, you can contact the Hiring Manager – Rebecca Neil on 02 9219 5756 or rebecca.neil@legalaid.nsw.gov.au
• If you are an Australian Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander and are thinking about applying, you can contact the Aboriginal Services Branch to arrange a confidential conversation about any questions you may have.
• The Role Description sets out the responsibilities of the role.
• The focus capabilities and key accountabilities in the role description indicate what is expected at that level. Being familiar with these will help you understand what the panel will be looking for in the successful candidate. 
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• Working at Legal Aid NSW