Youth Worker, CSS

As we serve vulnerable youth, all employees working for Covenant House Vancouver must be fully vaccinated for COVID-19. Proof of vaccination status will be required prior to your start date.

Since 1997, Covenant House Vancouver has provided relentless support for youth experiencing, or at‑risk of experiencing, homelessness. We provide support to young people age 16 to 24 who have experienced a wide range of early life and ongoing, complex trauma; including physical, sexual and emotional abuse and neglect. Our purpose is to serve all youth, with absolute respect and unconditional love, to help youth experiencing homelessness, and provide a safe and supportive environment for all youth in need.

Working at Covenant House will be one of the most meaningful things that you’ll do in your life. However, you will be confronted with significant issues in this work and frankly, this work is not for everyone. In the course of doing your work, particularly for those doing frontline work, you will be exposed to the trauma of others. The youth we serve may also experience overdose, physical harm perpetuated by self or others and even death.

Because we provide a relational model of care, the harms our youth experience can impact us in varying degrees.
While we provide training for youth workers on avoiding what we call vicarious trauma (namely, the trauma you can experience or take on by hearing other’s traumatic stories), and a generous allowance for counselling, it is still difficult work that can and does take its toll on many employees. Self‑awareness and self‑care are key. Some candidates and employees decide during the recruiting and probationary periods that this work isn’t for them, and that is totally fair.
We will provide more information on vicarious trauma during recruiting and on‑boarding, to help you decide if Covenant House is the place for you.

Your primary role as a youth worker is to build trusting, supportive professional relationships with youth. You will work with a multidisciplinary team to determine the best plan of care to help youth reach their goals and transition to healthy, confident adults. Working in the Community Support Services (CSS) Program you will provide an array of ‘as‑needed’ services to young people.

You will support the youth with personal planning, assist with finding employment, referrals to other social services and involve the youth in recreational opportunities.

The CSS space requires a seasoned Youth Worker, one that is able to work confidently with less structure and navigate multifaceted health and substance misuse concerns.

How you will contribute:

• Greet and welcome youth accessing CHV services, assess and respond to their immediate needs, and provide them with practical resources including food, clothing, transportation
• Initiate, develop and maintain relationships with at risk youth 16-24 years of age
• Upon entry to the Program, introduce the services provided, orient new youth, complete program intake/admission
• Work collaboratively with other staff to assist youth in identifying attainable short and long‑term goals, strategies for meeting these goals, and an action plan for implementation
• Provide guidance and support to youth looking to better their education and employment goals
• Coordinate youth meetings and activities, including recreation and life skills
• Respond confidently to emergencies and behavioral, mental health, emotional, or substance use concerns using trauma‑informed practice
• Provide Outreach support as required to assist youth to connect with Covenant House
• Provide crisis intervention, including responding to overdoes/administering first aid and Naloxone that may happen within CHV premises, ongoing training will also be provided
• Document client notes in ETO, write Incident Reports, and other routine documentation as required
• Manage youth case files, including all relevant reporting and documentation
• Attend all training as directed by your manager
• Laundry as needed
• Front Desk and reception duties as required
• Other duties as required

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