Targeted Youth Advisor

Permanent, Full Time

£29,512 to £34,720 Per Annum

Location: Harlow

Working Style: Community-based worker

Closing Date: Sunday 20th September 2026 at 11.59pm

Please note that visa sponsorship is not available for this role. Applicants must have a current, unrestricted right to work in the UK.

Interview Date: Thursday 1st October onwards. 

To read more about our business area, please visit: Education

The Opportunity 

The Targeted Youth Advisor will play a key role in developing the Youth Service offer by working with identified Young People who are at risk of not engaging in employment, education, and training. TYA’s provide in depth, evidence based, one to one intensive mentoring, bespoke groupwork packages and positive activities to empower Young People to overcome barriers to education to reach their full potential. 

The role supports young people of school age requiring impartial advice and guidance to re-engage in education, as well as progression into post sixteen opportunities such as, appropriate employment, education, training, and vocational opportunities. You will play a key role in identifying opportunities, enabling them to fulfil their potential and access universal services. You will also engage in mentoring and reintegration work that supports the government’s statutory guidance for pupils of alternative provision for those at a compulsory education age. 

A broad understanding of the issues affecting young people, barriers to education, opportunities for learning and the services provided by partner agencies is essential.

Contributing to the development of a high-quality targeted service for young people, the role will work with colleagues across the Council and key partners such as Education, Health, Social Services and Youth Offending Service, to ensure the best possible outcomes for young people. 

Accountabilities 

• Responsible for assisting young people to overcome barriers to access universal services and learning or employment, providing impartial advice, information, and guidance, supportive of young people’s needs and views.
• Work with young people, their families, and schools to remove barriers to education and learning in line with the DfE statutory guidance on Alternative Provision. Carry out young carers statutory assessment of needs, in line with our statutory duty as defined by the Children’s and Families Act 2014.
• Responsible for managing a defined caseload of young people to establish their needs and offer intervention in line with external contracts and create, maintain, and review accuracy of records in conjunction with DfE guidance and that of external funders, whilst ensuring compliance with Information Sharing Protocols.
• Responsible for the effective management of staff; renewing and reflecting on professional practice to achieve continuous improvement in performance.
• Supporting the development and delivery of intensive support to identified young people a, within a cost recoverable framework to remove barriers to education, employment, or training.
• Working in collaboration with stakeholders, including senior school-based staff, social care, SEND, Youth Offending Service, Housing, and partner agencies, to provide wider support to young people to remove barriers to learning, training and employment.
• Responsible for the delivery of high quality one to one interventions, mentoring and group work through positive activities that are cost effective, planned, actioned, and evaluated. This includes large scale events advocating with other professionals to achieve these.
• Work collaboratively with a range of external agencies and commercial bodies to ensure a coherent approach to overcoming barriers to learning and employment faced by young people, ensure they receive service required, including promotion of the eight Gatsby benchmarks as set out in the government’s careers strategy.
• Responsible for ensuring compliance with statutory requirements, including data management, equality and diversity legislation and ensure arrangements are in place to effectively manage concerns and complaints.
• Responsible for brokering opportunities between providers and young people to enable them to engage in preparation for the world of work and search for education and employment opportunities.
• Influence and negotiate the level and type of provision available, to meet economic and young people’s needs and identify and inform gaps in education and training provision. Collate and disseminate information in respect of current opportunities, working closely with educational and training providers.
• Responsible for developing and delivering large scale employability and recruitment events, advocating with parents/carers and other professionals. 

The Experience You Will Bring 

• Educated to IAG Qualification, Dip CG, QCG or NVQ 4 LDDS (minimum NVQ 4) level.
• Preferably working towards level 6 LDDS. Evidence of continuing professional development and expert knowledge in relevant professional area.
• A broad understanding of the issues affecting young people, opportunities for learning and the services provided by partner organisations and proven experience in effective collaborative working. Deep knowledge and understanding of the current local offers of support to young people that may facilitate their reintegration.
• Experience of line management of staff, plus extensive work with young people on a one-to-one basis and in groups.
• Proven experience of successfully progressing young people into employment, education, and training opportunities.
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to relate to young people in a purposeful but responsive manner and demonstrable knowledge and understanding of their needs.
• Ability to build working relationships with stakeholders and partner agencies which are collaborative and engender delivery.
• Advocating on behalf of young people with services and partner organisations with an ability to negotiate with schools, colleges, employers, and other agencies.
• Flexible approach with excellent time management skills and ability to work creatively in order to respond to young people’s needs. 

Why Essex?

As one of the largest and most dynamic UK local authorities, Essex offers a stimulating public service environment. Covering over 1,420 square miles and serving 1.8 million residents, we’re committed to transformational change and delivering better quality at lower cost. Recognised in the top three of the latest IMPOWER index for productivity, we ensure everyone matters in Everyone’s Essex. With flexible working options and a focus on innovation, whether you are looking to develop your career or contribute to the local community, Essex is the ideal place for you.

In March 2026, the Government announced that councils in Greater Essex will be reorganised into five new unitary authorities from April 2028. In addition to this, Greater Essex has been accepted on to the devolution priority programme, where we will work towards establishing a Mayoral Combined County Authority. You can read more about these changes, and what this may mean for this role, on our careers site.

Essex County Council is proud to be a Disability Confident Leader. We’re committed to interview all disabled applicants who choose to apply under our Job Interview Scheme if they meet the minimum requirements of the job. Please speak to our Recruiters if you require any reasonable adjustments during the process. We’re also committed to interview all veterans and care leavers, who meet the minimum requirements of the role for which they are applying.

Once you’ve secured your role within Essex County Council you will receive many great employee benefits, including support for unpaid carers and flexible working arrangements to accommodate their needs.

At Essex County Council, we value integrity and ethical behaviour. We kindly ask that you embrace our code of conduct and the Nolan principles, including throughout the recruitment process. Your commitment to these standards helps us maintain a positive and respectful workplace for everyone.

Please note that the job role requires you to be mobile throughout an operational area. Therefore, the post holder will need to have a driving licence and access to a vehicle, or the ability to meet the mobility requirements of the role through other means.

As part of employment with Essex County Council (ECC) should your role require a DBS check you will be required to register with the DBS update service. The DBS update service ensures all registered DBS certificates are kept up to date and allows authorised parties to view the status of your certificate. This is an annual subscription, and you will be responsible for ensuring this is maintained. For further information on the DBS update service please go to https://www.gov.uk/dbs-update-service

Essex County Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults, and expects all employees and volunteers to share this commitment.

If you would like to be kept up to date on other relevant opportunities, blogs, news, events and industry related news at Essex County Council, please join The Essex Talent Community

If you have queries on this role or require anything further, please email daniel.warner@essex.gov.uk

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