Simon Community Scotland
Women's Development Worker (Gambling Harm)
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Women's Development Worker (Gambling Harm)
Gambling Harms Development Worker – Simon Community Scotland
About Simon Community Scotland
Simon Community Scotland is the largest provider of homelessness services in Scotland. Our vision is for everyone to have a safe place to live, with access to the support they need. Every day we help make positive things happen for people facing extremely difficult circumstances.
Every action we take—for and by people—is guided by our values: inclusion, personalisation, warmth, partnership, and ambition. We deliver a range of services across Glasgow, Edinburgh, Perth, and North Lanarkshire, including Street Outreach, Housing First, Managed Alcohol Program (MAP), and emergency accommodation.
Our flexible, resilient teams work with individuals across intersecting challenges like homelessness, mental ill health, and substance use, ensuring each person’s voice shapes the support they receive.
Our #OneTeam ethos ensures we care for and support one another, regardless of role or service. Discover more about our work: Simon Community Scotland Services.
Job Purpose
The Gambling Harms Development Worker works directly with individuals facing gambling-related harms, alongside homelessness, substance use, and mental health challenges. You’ll create psychologically safe environments where people can rebuild confidence, explore options, and co-design support tailored to their needs.
Embedded in a multidisciplinary team, your role combines:
- Facilitation: Leading 1-1 and group sessions in trauma-informed ways.
- Advocacy: Ensuring systemic barriers are navigated collaboratively.
- Engagement: Building partnerships in community and service spaces to expand reach.
- Leadership: Empowering people to influence service development through co-design.
You’ll deliver this nationally, but with a heavy focus on Scotland’s major service hubs: Edinburgh, Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Ayrshire, and Perth. Work is hybrid, with on-site visits to services and unsocial hours to meet community needs—effectively deploying your time across Scotland.
We encourage applicants with lived experience of gambling harms (personal or through family/friends) to apply.
Key Responsibilities
Leadership & Support
- Coordinate in-person and online sessions for people impacted by gambling, ensuring safe, meaningful engagement.
- Facilitate group-work events—from Capturing Inspiring Voices to local community-based gatherings.
- Develop partnerships with internal teams, external agencies (e.g. local authorities, mental health organizations) to raise awareness and share best practice.
- Provide 1-1 practical support addressing:
- Gambling harm
- Homelessness
- Mental health
- Substance use
- Amplify lived experience: Use your innate ability to build trust with communities and elevate the voices of those you support.
Coordination & Advocacy
- Liaise with staff teams to organise attendance and promote event participation.
- Advocate on behalf of individuals to remove systemic barriers, ensuring access to housing, medical care, and pathways to safety.
- Provide information and relevant referrals—connecting people with appropriate criminal justice, mental health, or debt advice services.
- Develop physical and digital materials to raise awareness—from leaflets to social media, challenging stigma around gambling.
Innovation & Quality
- Champion a trauma-informed approach in all delivery, focusing on equality, dignity, and holistic need.
- Actively seek ways to enhance digital inclusion, fostering familiarity and safety with tools like Google Suite, Chromebooks, and smartphones.
- Encourage participation from diverse backgrounds, including those with disabilities or limited languages.
- Engage with multidisciplinary teams to share insights on improving service delivery.
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Flexible & Initiative-Driven
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Operate autonomously, using creative problem-solving to navigate challenges with people-centred flexibility.
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Commit to self-evaluation and practice reflection, drawing strength from challenging environments.
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Attend colleagues/consultants meetings and contributions to shared learning and service development.
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Undertake additional tasks as directed by the Programme Lead.
Our Values in Motion
As an integral team member, your contribution aligns with our five core values:
- Inclusion & Participation: All voices shape every stage of the work.
- Personalised & Creative: Tailor support to honour each individual’s identity and aspirations.
- Warmth & Regard: Showthere is, and foster ongoing potential.
- Partnership & Collaboration: Create trust between agencies, clients, and teams.
- Supportive & Ambitious: Drive growth for both supported people and professional development.
Core Competencies
| Core Competency | What This Looks Like in Your Work |
|---|---|
| Planning & Organising | - Personalise support plans, tracking progress and flexing responses. <br> - Organise and adapt sessions weekly: coordinators meetings, housing casework, training sessions calendar updates. <br> - Champion awareness of harm reduction strategies in your networks. |
| Resilience | - Navigate highly emotional discussions with composure while de-escalating harm from gambling using tried-and-tested techniques. <br> - Study regular reflective practice; practice mindfulness to understand your emotional toll. |
| Motivation | - Demonstrate optimism as you educate vulnerable individuals; mitigate stigma by sharing our #hopeoverfear campaign. <br> - Champion co-design, using case scenarios with support-focused tools like AI scoring. <br>Engage ambassadors. |
| Problem Solving | - Identify causes of homelessness (e.g., debt cycles), developing tailored solutions. <br> - Think on your feet with trauma-sensitive techniques during high-risk interactions. |
| Teamwork | - Lead team activities with empathy and accountability; stand up for vulnerable people in group settings. <br> - Influence peer education in collaborative spaces, e.g., training programmes on dynamic inclusion. |
| Communication | - Bridge language barriers and elicit preferences through adaptive engagement. <br> - Facilitate transformative stories for digital platforms, showcasing your team’s impact. |
| Digital Enablement | - Use shared tools (Gsuite, websites) to craft materials; train peers, thanks to frequent needs analysis. <br> - Spread accurate, compassionate messaging online, e.g. promoting Mental Health Scotland resources. |
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Person Specification
Training & Qualifications
Essential:
- SSSC-recognised practice qualification (e.g. SVQ3 in Care Services)
- Register as a support worker with Scottish Social Services Council
- Demonstrated experience in a comparable role
- Compliance with SSSC’s Code of Practice
Desirable:
- Qualifications in Community Education, Psychology, or Trauma Studies
- Training in ASIST, SafeTalk, MHFA (Mental Health First Aid)
- Trauma-informed practice certification
- First Aid, Naloxone (overdose) training
- Vocational expertise in mental health or addiction
Experience
Essential:
- Supporting individuals facing homelessness and/or any of the following: gambling harm, mental health crises, or substance misuse
- Experience leading group sessions, workshops, and community education events
- Work in development or community learning, ideally with marginalised groups
- Conflict management skills with strangers, family members, and colleagues in high-stress contexts
Desirable:
- Multidisciplinary experience (e.g. partnership with housing, health, or criminal justice sectors)
- Comprehensive trauma-informed care training
- Prior involvement with women-specific programmes or minority inclusion initiatives
We actively encourage applicants with lived experience of gambling harms (personal or affecting a loved one).
Knowledge & Skills
Essential:
- Human rights-based understanding of advocacy approaches
- Skilled in facilitation, event organisation, and training delivery
- Cultural competence to engage effectively with diverse communities
- Ethical boundaries awareness
- Health of Homeless scheme knowledge: grant funding, Prison Framework, Housing Ingredients, etc.
- Competent in basic digital systems (GSuite, online assistance forms)
Desirable:
- Familiarity with Scotland’s services for harm reduction, debt advice, and mental health support
- Understanding of lides related to UK gaming regulations and related inequality concerns
- Supportive of women-centralised frameworks offered by organisations like Aila Scotland
Personal Traits
Essential:
- Individuals who have experienced or supported others affected by gambling to align with core values.
- A visionary spirit, embedding dynamic solutions in complex systems with empathy.
- Intellectual curiosity, flexibility, self-leadership, and professional integrity.
- Ability to ethically de-escalate challenging situations with warmth rather than force.
- Excellent relationship-building skills and a strong commitment to active listening.
- A routine focus on your own self-care to prevent burnout while modelling resilience
Desirable:
- Willingness to prioritise continuous learning
- Boulez energy for community-focused innovation and digital facilitation
"This is an essential requirement under Schedule 9, Part 1 of the Equality Act 2010, considering provision of trauma support for those experiencing homelessness and violence, within women’s accommodation."
About You & Why Simon Community
We aspire to fundamental change—because nobody should feel trapped. If you’re someone who believes small moments of connection can change lives, we want to meet you and talk. Whether you’re fresh from a housing-backed qualifications or a skilled facilitator with first-hand insights, let’s work together to dovetail with Scotland’s equality ambitions.
“It took my CV and asked me questions relevant to understanding what kind of jobs to suggest for me. Suggestions were almost perfect. Jobs were exactly what I’ve been looking for.”
Jessica, London
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