Project worker

Job Summary

Ben's Centre is an organisation that works with people who have substance misuse issues. We are seeking dedicated and compassionate Project Worker.

Retiring team member.

This is the best 'towards twilight of my career' job ever!...because every day is different.

You need to be comfortable being you...so you can be both comfortable and uncomfortable being you engaging effectively and respectfully with individuals often at their most stressed and vulnerable.

You need to be able to hold the line [s] and know your role and its limitations, be flexible and resilient, know your own mind and be at ease and able to support those who may have lost theirs. You will learn to read the room, anticipate and de‑scale any risks and be confident in asserting boundaries, be able to laugh when it’s appropriate, be a great listener, multi‑task but also know when it’s the right time to sit and “just be” with our clients.

Play pool or connect 4, colour and draw at the table or actively implement a sanction when someone’s behaviour has crossed a Ben’s ground rule. You need to know when to seek support from your colleagues and manager, and develop your own strengths, skills and passion to flourish and become an established member of our team.

It’s both a privilege and a challenge to sit alongside individuals in our community and support them to make teeny incremental, harm‑reducing changes in their lives or to work with them on gigantic ones. One minute you’ll be making endless teas and coffees (with no more than 3 sugars and ideally less!) or playing Jenga in the dining room, then sorting out our endless supply of stores, boxer shorts and socks.

Occasionally it may involve calling the paramedics in an emergency overdose situation, or reasoning with someone after a disagreement in the centre…more often you will be enabling our clients to use the computer or phone to contact relevant support agencies often at the same time as modelling strategies and skills to help them stay calm.

On any day you might be discussing the recent footy results, then finding yourself listening to the most sensitive of disclosures about trauma and loss…working at Ben’s Centre is about listening, and being genuine; having a sense of humility and respect for others…to be curious and interested with care and concern, not vicarious disinterest or collusion.

Being accepting of people’s choices, be they good, bad, informed or reckless is a skill that we grapple with daily at Ben’s. As does our community, who, despite their significant and often hidden histories more often than not can make the absolute most of their 4 hours a day, 5 days a week in the centre socialising, sticking to rules and capitalising on nutritional, social and recreational opportunities available.

Clients are encouraged to value themselves and their own strengths within Ben’s Centre. We can’t, and don’t pretend to be able to solve every problem presented, but we can and do strive every day to offer a thriving day centre and sanctuary for those in our community involved in substance use and associated vulnerabilities.

• It’s not the best paid job.
• And in a small team there is nowhere to hide!
• If you’re not sociable, compassionate or interested in people no matter who they are or how harmful their behaviours may be to themselves or others, this is not the job for you at this point.
• But the positives are many.
• Care for and welfare of our staff team and understanding of the dynamics and stresses associated with this job, through wellbeing policies, flexible working outside of core tasks is a major plus in the current climate.
• Westfield / trade union recognition.
• There is access to training, mandatory and relevant issue‑based online.
• …and like every job, the more you put in, the more you gain in skills and experience!
• Hopefully future workers will share our passion about their role, the team and Ben’s ethos of inclusivity and compassion for some of the most vulnerable and complex folk in the city that we work with.

Sheffield

Part Time

19.5 hours per week – Monday, Thursday and Friday 09:00 – 15:30

• Company pension
• Health and well‑being programme
• On‑site parking
• Daily meals
• Sick pay
• Holiday pay

20-02-2026

Email  with a cover letter and CV and any information you think would be relevant to your application.