Youth Worker - Sexual Health

Job overview

Job Advert Sexual Health Education Practitioner (Youth & Schools Focus)

The overall aim of this role is to empower young people (aged 19 and under) to make positive choices regarding their sexual health and relationships. You will be competent in working with young people and professionals and be comfortable discussing sensitive topics in a clear, non-judgemental way.

In axess, we provide an integrated and innovative approach to sexual health through combining expertise in contraception & reproductive health, STIs & HIV, system leadership, digital health & postal testing. The service has a mobile clinic that can be adapted for use in health promotion, outreach activity and community events.

Main duties of the job

This role involves engaging diverse audiences, promoting healthy relationships, and supporting informed, safe decision-making around sexual health. You will work in a variety of settings including schools, colleges, youth centres, and community venues, delivering approved interactive sessions that are inclusive, evidence-based, and age-appropriate.

The postholder will have comprehensive understanding of young people’s sexual health and be required to work as an accountable practitioner often working flexibly on their own in community settings, making decisions according to policy and protocol.

Working for our organisation

Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust comprises Aintree University Hospital, Broadgreen Hospital & Royal Liverpool University Hospital.

We are part of NHS University Hospitals of Liverpool Group, formed on 1 Nov 2024 from the coming together of LUHFT and Liverpool Women’s NHS Foundation Trust. The Group was born from a shared aim to improve the care we provide our patients.

UHLG is one of the largest employers in the region, with over 16,800 colleagues dedicated to caring for our communities - from birth and beyond.

For the 630,000 people across Merseyside, we are their local NHS. We provide general and emergency hospital care, alongside highly specialised regional services for more than two million people in the North West.

Liverpool Women’s Hospital specialises in the health of women and babies, delivering over 7,200 babies in the UK’s largest single site maternity hospital each year. The Royal Liverpool University Hospital is the largest hospital in the country to provide inpatients with 100% single bedrooms and focuses on complex planned care and specialist services.

For roles at Liverpool Women’s, visit their careers page.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• Plan and deliver sexual health education programmes covering topics such as consent, relationships, contraception, STIs, online safety and emotional wellbeing
• Adapt sessions to meet the needs of different age groups, cultures, abilities and learning styles
• Build and maintain positive relationships with schools, youth services, and community partners
• Create safe, inclusive, respectful spaces for discussion and learning
• Monitor attendance, evaluate sessions, and contribute to programme monitoring and reporting
• Represent the organisation professionally at events and meetings
• Develop and implement action plans that support sexual health

• Follow safeguarding policies and refer concerns appropriately
• Maintain accurate records and contribute to service learning and improvement

• Experience of working with children and young people in education, youth or community settings
• Confidence in delivering group-based sessions and facilitating discussion on sensitive topics
• A commitment to equality, inclusion and trauma-informed practice
• Strong communication, organisational and relationship-building skills
• Willingness to work flexibly, including independent and outreach-based working across 7 days with possible evenings.

Person specification

Qualifications

• Educated to degree level in relevant subject or equivalent experience of working at a similar level in sexual health

• Level 3 Award in Education Qualification (or commitment to complete the qualification)
• Can demonstrate continued professional development
• Counselling Skills / Certificate
• STIF course

Experience

• Able to demonstrate experience of working with vulnerable groups in community settings
• Experience working with and delivering formal and informal education to young people

• Experience of developing, implementing and evaluating campaigns and promotion programs.
• Experience and knowledge of record keeping requirements

Knowledge

• Comprehensive knowledge of teenage pregnancy and sexual health issues/policies
• Awareness of issues specific to teenage sexual health and MSM (men who have sex with men)

• Knowledge of child protection issues and procedures, including aspects involving domestic violence
• Knowledge of child protection issues and procedures, including aspects involving domestic violence.

Skills

• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
• Ability to communicate well with vulnerable people from varying backgrounds and abilities, and liaise with the multi-disciplinary teams.
• Ability to work flexibly within a changing/evolving organisation
• Ability to produce reports and have good presentation skills
• Ability to represent the service at meetings and working groups
• Ability to work unsupervised, under own initiative and to self-motivate
• Ability to participate in the planning, promotion and delivery of outreach services

Other

• To travel between sites (internal & external)
• IT skills (e-mail, Microsoft office)
• Evidence of participation in Audit & Research
• Ability to work flexibly to in accordance to service needs and specific role

Please ensure you check the email account (including junk/spam boxes) from which you apply regularly as we will use this to contact you regarding your application.

Posts advertised to ‘internal staff’ are open to employees of hospitals within University Hospitals of Liverpool Group and you should confirm your employment within your application form.

Note: Under current Home Office Immigration Rules we are currently unable to offer right to work visa sponsorship for Band 2 and 3 roles with a salary of less than £25,000 pa as they do not meet the UK Visas & Immigration criteria.

Only those applicants who demonstrate clearly how they meet our person specification will be shortlisted for interview.

We reserve the right to close any vacancies from further applications when we have received a minimum number of applications from which to make a shortlist. Please ensure you apply without delay if you wish to be considered for this role.

Candidates applying for the role of Healthcare Assistant on the staff bank should note that due to the nature of the role, workers must be aged 18 or above when commencing in post. Applicants are therefore welcome from those aged over 18 or within 3 months’ of their 18^th birthday.

Not all roles are suitable for every flexible working opportunity all of the time. Flexible working options may include reduced hours, compressed hours, fixed shifts, time back in lieu and home working.

The Trust is committed to promoting equality and diversity; we value the contribution of individual talent, skills, knowledge and experience and aim for a workforce demography representative of the local community. We encourage applicants from the following groups that are currently under-represented in our workforce black, Asian and minority ethnic, lesbian, gay, bisexual and Transgender (LGBTQ+), disabled, male and age 16-24.

Bank posts require upfront payment.

From April 2017, Skilled visa applicants and their adult dependant(s) will be required to provide a criminal record certificate from each country they have lived in consecutively for 12 months or more in the past ten years.

Applicants requiring sponsorship may wish to determine the likelihood of obtaining sponsorship for this position by assessing themselves against the criteria on the gov.uk website - https://www.gov.uk/check-uk-visa.

This organisation has a zero-tolerance approach to the abuse of children, young people and vulnerable adults. All staff must ensure they adhere to the organisations safeguarding children and adults’ policy and comply with the Local Safeguarding Children and Adult Board procedures.

Staff should be mindful of their responsibility to safeguard children and adults in any activity performed on behalf of the organisation in line with the requirements of statutory guidance and legislation.

All employees (and volunteers)are expected maintain their safeguarding knowledge and skills by completing mandatory safeguarding training which includes understanding and recognising the signs of abuse and neglect and taking appropriate action.

As an organisation, we have adopted the Merseyside Domestic abuse workplace scheme which supports our staff who are experiencing Domestic Abuse /any forms of sexual violence.

If you have any personal requirements that will enable you to participate in our recruitment process please contact a member of the Recruitment Services by phone on 0151 706 4666 at the earliest opportunity to ensure that measures can be put in place to enable your application for this post.

Please note: new entrants to the NHS will commence on the first pay point of the relevant band.