Family Liaison Officer

Are you passionate about helping children and families overcome barriers, strengthen their engagement with school and make the most of educational opportunities?

Lift Clacton is seeking a compassionate, resilient and highly organised Family Liaison Officer to build strong links between the school and the families it serves. You will work closely with parents, carers, students, school colleagues and external agencies to help families access the support they need and ensure children can engage positively with school and learning.

About the role

As Family Liaison Officer, you will identify children and families who may benefit from additional support and work directly with them both in school and in the community. You will help parents and carers understand attendance expectations, identify barriers to regular attendance and support practical plans to improve engagement.

You will provide advice, guidance and practical support around parenting, behaviour, wellbeing and access to local services, while building trusting relationships with families who may be difficult to engage. You will also support students experiencing difficulties, including those at risk of exclusion, and help ensure their voice is heard.

Working closely with safeguarding, attendance and external professionals, you will contribute to referrals, meetings and multi-agency work, using information and data to identify patterns, target support and help improve outcomes for children and families.

In this role, you will:

• Build strong, trusting relationships with parents, carers and students, including hard to reach families.
• Support improved attendance by identifying causes of absence, carrying out home visits where appropriate and helping develop practical plans with families and school staff.
• Provide practical support to parents and carers, including guidance around parenting, behaviour management, play and access to information, benefits and local services.
• Support children and families through transitions and help maintain positive engagement with school and learning.
• Support students experiencing difficulties, including those at risk of exclusion, and help communicate the voice of the child to parents and school staff.
• Support the coordination and delivery of wellbeing and nurture interventions that improve emotional resilience and reduce barriers to learning.
• Use attendance information and other data to identify trends, inform interventions and evaluate the impact of support.
• Work collaboratively with external agencies and maintain up-to-date knowledge of local statutory and voluntary services.
• Support safeguarding processes by preparing reports, attending relevant meetings and drafting referrals where required.
• Represent the school at safeguarding and multi-agency meetings, providing clear case updates and appropriate professional challenge.

What we're looking for

• GCSE Maths and English at Grade 4 or equivalent.
• Experience of motivating students and promoting high expectations.
• Experience of using data to analyse performance, track progress and inform decision making.
• Experience of engaging hard to reach families, including through home or community visits.
• Knowledge of the education sector, safer recruitment and safeguarding/child protection.
• The ability to build strong relationships with students, families, colleagues and external agencies.
• The ability to de-escalate situations, remain calm under pressure and manage competing priorities.
• Strong communication, organisation and interpersonal skills.
• A positive, non-judgmental, patient and empathetic approach, with the resilience to persevere when challenges are complex.
• Current knowledge of attendance and exclusions legislation, previous experience in an educational environment and experience working with external agencies are desirable.

About Lift Clacton

Lift Clacton is a rapidly improving school at the heart of the community and achieved 'Good' in its most recent Ofsted inspection in June 2024. The school has experienced significant growth, with more than 1,500 students now on roll.

We believe every child deserves an excellent education, every classroom, every day. Our staff are ambitious, supportive and committed to helping every student succeed, creating a culture where colleagues are valued and encouraged to develop professionally.

Joining Lift Clacton means becoming part of Lift Schools, one of the country's largest multi academy trusts, offering excellent professional development, career progression opportunities and a comprehensive employee benefits package.

Visits to the school are warmly encouraged. For an informal discussion about the post or to arrange a visit, please contact Saran Vijay, School Operations Manager, at svijay@liftclacton.org.

Who is Lift Schools?

Lift Schools is made up of 62 primary, secondary and special schools, educating more than 35,000 pupils across the country. We believe education can transform lives – and we want every child in our schools to achieve their full potential.

How we support you

We want you to feel supported, valued and able to grow throughout your career with Lift Schools. From high-quality professional development and career progression to wellbeing support and opportunities to connect and collaborate across our network, we invest in you so you can do your best work.

Discover how we'll support you to thrive, develop and grow your career in the way that's right for you: How we support you