Job Title: Regional Outreach Coordinator

Reporting to: Day Centre Manager

Date of Issue: August 2024

The Role

The Regional Outreach Coordinator, has overall responsibility for the leadership and operation of COPE Galway’s Pilot Regional Outreach service for people who are rough sleeping in Counties Galway, Mayo and Roscommon, aligning it to the Organisation’s existing City Outreach Service and ensuring the smooth operation of both. The Coordinator carries a client caseload and oversees the work of a Regional Outreach Project Worker as well as members of the Day Centre Team in relation to Street Outreach and a team of volunteers. They place a particular focus on the health needs of the client group and ensures that the team works in a culturally sensitive manner with marginalised communities, including Roma people. They focus on ensuring the provision of a high quality service in line with NQSF (National Quality Standards Framework for Homeless Services) and leading and supporting their team to work to their fullest potential. They have a role in mentoring and supporting their colleagues with an aim of collaboratively embedding the values of COPE Galway and a trauma informed approach within the service.

The Service

COPE Galway has operated a Street Outreach Service in Galway City since 2017, housed within our suite of Day Centre services for people who are experiencing homelessness. The aim of the Galway City Street Outreach has been to establish contact with people who are rough sleeping in the city, develop connections and assist and signpost people to where they can access services and supports through homeless services. Since 2019 the Nurse and GP from the Multi-disciplinary Team (MDT) for homeless have accompanied COPE Galway one morning per week with a focus on specifically addressing the health needs of those who are rough sleeping. The frequency of Street Outreach is currently eight times per week, four mornings from 6.30am and 4 evenings after 7.30pm. Much of the focus is on the Galway City Centre area and there is a more targeted approach towards other specific city locations where there are identified to be people sleeping rough. During severe weather events, including when the Severe Weather Response operated by COPE Galway is activated, there is a targeted approach taken to engaging with and transporting people rough sleeping to safe shelter.

We are now extending the work of our Outreach Service for rough sleepers to Counties Galway, Roscommon and Mayo with a focus in particular in the towns in both counties where there are on occasion reports of people sleeping rough but also to have a facility and capacity to engage with others reported to be rough sleeping across the three counties.

The approach includes:

• Engagement with services, starting in the larger towns, to identify if there are people sleeping rough or living in settings not suitable for human habitation and locating where people are
• Developing referral pathways for people sleeping rough where these do not already exist or where there is scope to further advance them including to health and welfare and housing and accommodation services
• Targeted outreach in identified towns where there are reports of street rough sleeping as required, in early morning or later evening as appropriate when most likely to encounter people sleeping rough
• Day time follow up work – flexible during day time hours, Monday to Friday

Please see Job Description attached below.

To Apply:

CV can be sent here https://api.occupop.com/shared/job/team-leader-outreach-service-d65f3

Deadline: 8th of October