Want to make a real difference where it truly matters?
We’re looking for a Family Support Practitioner to join our team at HMP Highdown, working full time (35 hours per week). This is a frontline role where you’ll support people in custody and their families across both the prison and local community, helping to rebuild relationships, strengthen wellbeing, and support long-term recovery and rehabilitation.
This role sits within the Family Support and Specialist Programmes department and focuses on delivering impactful 1:1 and group interventions. You’ll help clients understand the role of relationships in addiction, offending, mental health, and wider life challenges, while also working directly with family members and affected others to improve their health, resilience, and ability to support positive change.
What you’ll be doing
- Delivering 1:1 support (face-to-face, online, and telephone) for clients and families
- Facilitating group programmes such as relationships work, parenting interventions, and structured recovery programmes
- Supporting and coordinating family meetings and family visits
- Completing needs and risk assessments, and co-producing tailored support plans
- Working directly with children and young people where appropriate to support whole-family recovery
- Signposting to specialist services and building strong referral pathways
You’ll collaborate closely with prison-based teams, substance misuse services, Forward colleagues, and external partners to ensure joined-up, holistic support. You’ll also play a key role in developing relationships with community organisations and raising awareness of the service.
What the role involves beyond delivery
- Maintaining accurate case records and outcome data
- Supporting service improvement, audits, and feedback activity
- Contributing to programme development and co-production work
- Upholding safeguarding, health & safety, and compliance standards at all times
- Managing your own caseload and working independently while meeting deadlines
What we’re looking for
Someone who’s confident working with complexity, skilled at building trust, and passionate about helping people make lasting change. You’ll need to be organised, reflective, and committed to safeguarding and professional boundaries.
Experience in family support, criminal justice, substance misuse, or social care is highly desirable, but your ability to engage people, support relationships, and stay resilient in a challenging environment is what really matters.
Please see attached Job Description for full details
All prison-based roles are subject to enhanced DBS checks and HMPPS security vetting. These checks can take up to 5 months to complete. Any offer of employment will be conditional upon the successful completion of both checks.
Please note if you have lived overseas within the last 5 years then checks may take longer.