Job Summary:
The C4 Delegated Social Worker (Float) is responsible for maintaining collaborative relationships with the Ministry of Child and Family Development and other Delegated Aboriginal Agencies in relation to providing adoption, guardianship, and resources services for Métis children and families, adoptive parents, birth parents, and foster parents. The goal of this service is to provide the most culturally appropriate solution available to meet the needs of children in care of the Director. The role of this position is under the direction of the team leader for which program the C4 Delegated Social Worker (Float) is working within at the time.
Reports to: Assigned Team Leader and Director and Programs and Practice
Key Duties and Responsibilities:
C4 Delegated Social Worker (Float) position is intended to move between the Adoptions, Guardianship, and Resources programs as needed in order to cover short to mid-term program needs.
Adoptions Responsibilities: The C4 Delegated Social Worker Float will provide all relevant adoption services in accordance with Legislation, Policies and Practice Standards. Within Adoptions, the C4 Delegated Social Worker Float will:
- Prepare children for adoption by preparing birth, family and social and health history reports as required.
- Attend to the emotional needs of children placed in adoptive homes related to separation and loss.
- Prepare documentation related to adoption planning such as reviewing prospective homes, prepare placement/visitation schedules, prepare exception and exemption reports and court documentation.
- Complete adoption homes studies by assessing adoptive families, completing and writing a SAFE home study and educate the family about the procedures of adoption.
- Conduct recruitment of adoption homes by liaising with adoption groups and agencies, communicate with community groups and the media and liaises with Indigenous agencies and communities.
- If required, may conduct birth parent planning by exploring options available to birth parents, providing alternatives, preparing documentation related to relinquishment and adoption placement and provides support throughout the process.
- Conduct adoption placement activities by organizing pre-placement visits, oversees the home after placement and prepares documentation.
- Provide adoption education and training to community agencies.
- Prepare post adoption assistance contracts and monitor the renewal of contracts.
- Plan events, gathering and training opportunities for adoptive families.
- Collaborate with guardianship workers in ensuring that cultural safety agreements are in place that include connection to the birth family and the birth family’s community.
- Prepare openness agreements that promote connection with the family.
- Perform other duties as required.
Guardianship Responsibilities: The C4 Delegated Social Worker Float will provide all relevant guardianship services in accordance with Legislation, Policies and Practice Standards. Within Guardianship, the C4 Delegated Social Worker Float will:
- Ensure that all aspects of the child’s life are planned for, and goals achieved.
- Ensure that thorough documentation is completed of critical incidents and plans of care with a strong child centered approach.
- Ensure that culturally appropriate and specific Plans of Care are developed for every child and that Plan of Care meetings are scheduled regularly.
- Liaise with other involved professionals and the child’s Métis community to assist with planning for the child’s care needs.
- Ensure biological family and community involvement in the development of the Plan of Care, where possible and appropriate.
- Work closely with caregivers, and the child’s Métis community to ensure that the child’s needs are being met.
- Ensure that the child is seen separate and apart from the caregiver according to time frames set out in policy.
- Explain to the child why they are in care and involve the child in ongoing planning wherever possible.
- Provide on-going support and guidance for the duration of a child’s time in care, taking into consideration the child’s voice, and the best interests of child.
- Ensure that the child is aware of their rights as a child-in-care and advocate for the child’s needs.
- Promote the child’s existing relationships with siblings, family, and community.
- Provide access supervision with family of the child or liaise with other services that do access supervision.
- Develop permanent plans of care in the child’s best interest, including reuniting the child and family, placing a child in a home of a relative, placing the child with their cultural community, placing the child into an adoptive family.
- Assist in preparing the child for transitions into new placements or long-term plans.
- Selects or assists with the selection of a home for adoption and prepares the child for adoption placement.
- Prepare child for independence by ensuring life skills are learned through appropriate placements and support of placement.
- Arrange or facilitate access to resources for caregiver to support the child’s needs.
- Respond to requests from caregiver regarding the child as quickly and efficiently as possible.
- Work with the Resource Social Worker around the placement needs of a child in care.
- Advise the Public Trustee of any injuries or legal action involving a child in continuing custody of the Director.
- Ensure that electronic and physical file documentation is complete and up to date.
- Perform other duties, as required.
Resources Responsibilities: The C4 Delegated Social Worker Float will provide all relevant Resources services in accordance with Legislation, Policies and Practice Standards. Within Resources, the C4 Delegated Social Worker Float will:
- Appropriate Resources
- Receiving requests from delegated social workers for placement of children being brought into care on an emergency and planned basis
- Coordinating out-of-region placements, if required
- Coordinating out-of-care options, if required.
- Liaises with delegated teams regarding placements of children in care by:
- Participating in Integrated Case Management (Gathering the Circle) meetings on a regular basis to discuss and report on specific placement issues and general outstanding resource issues as well as quality of care issues
- Acting as information advisor for children needing placement and/or service and transferring information to the appropriate resource worker
- Providing ongoing evaluation and assessment of a child’s progress during placement to assist in the planning process
- Facilitates the provision of foster home resources for children-in-care by:
- Recruiting, orienting, studying, recommending for approval and training foster caregivers
- Monitoring and provision of service standards and supporting foster caregivers
- Coordinating the negotiation of special foster home rates, as required liaising with local foster parent associations and regional councils to resolve issues and provide information of mutual interest
- Recruits and develop contracted resources by:
- Consulting with line child welfare workers and supervisors to identify resource development needs
- Providing background information to the negotiator to aid in contract negotiation
- Reviewing and understanding the contract negotiated, and interpreting same as required
- Monitors the provision of service
- Supports foster homes, contracted resource providers and/or out of care options by
- Participates in Investigations of Abuse and Neglect in child welfare resources according to regional and provincial protocols.
- Collaborates with indigenous communities to:
- Initiate or increase caregiving options in the community
- Support caregivers, and share resources
- Manage Financial responsibilities associated with the role.
Qualifications, Education, & Experience
- Bachelor’s Degree or higher in Social Work OR Child and Youth Care OR Master of Education in Counselling Psychology/Master of Arts in Counselling Psychology; Bachelor’s Degree in a Human Services field OR Bachelor’s Degree with a Major/Honors in a Human Services OR Master’s level graduate Certificate/Diploma in a Human Services field AFTER the completion of an unrelated Bachelor’s Degree.
- PLUS, a minimum of two years of recent related OR job-specific work experience.
- NOTE: If this education was obtained outside of Canada, you need to confirm it has been assessed for equivalency through the International Credential Evaluation Services (ICES). You must provide a basic report by the closing date of this posting to be considered.
- Already holds C3 delegation or eligible to have prior C3 delegation or above reinstated.
- Knowledge and appreciation of Indigenous cultures and history and how these affect the development of individuals, families, and communities. Knowledge of Métis culture is preferred.
- Understanding of cross-cultural issues as they affect children in care, foster parents, biological parents, and communities of origin.
- Carrying out special projects as required by the Resources, Guardianship and Resources Team Leader, Director of Programs & Practice and/or CEO
Job Skills and Abilities:
- Excellent understanding and knowledge of Métis/Indigenous cultures, traditions, and socio-economic issues affecting urban indigenous families.
- Demonstrated abilities and experience in developing strong working relationships with children, families, Indigenous communities, foster parents, and biological parents.
- Professional commitment, flexibility, good problem solving and dispute resolution skills.
- Computer literacy on databases, Microsoft Word, Excel and other computer software
- Safe Home Study training is an asset.
- Training in Integrated Case Management System (ICM) is an asset.
- Excellent oral, written, facilitation, interpersonal and communication skills
- Excellent organizational and time management skills
- Ability to work effectively with agency staff, volunteers and professionals from community agencies and partner organizations.
- Knowledge of child development milestones
Additional Information:
- This position requires the ability to function independently while managing multiple projects and deadlines including effectively managing emergency situations. Program delivery activities may require a moderate level of physical fitness to effectively carry out duties of the position.
- Must be eligible to obtain appropriate Provincial Delegation and consideration will be given to those who already hold C4 Guardianship delegation and Adoption delegation.
- Required to use own vehicle. Valid Class 5 Driver’s License, Driver’s Abstract and a reliable and safe vehicle.
- Subject to a positive reference check.
- Successful completion of security screening requirements of Metis Family Services, which includes a criminal records check, and/or Criminal Records Review Act (CRRA) check, police record checks and/or enhanced security screening
- May be required to work evenings/weekends
Core Competencies:
Indigenous Relations Behavioural Competencies
- Building and Trust-based Relationship requires a fundamental understanding that “relationship” is the foundation from which all activities happen and that building a good relationship takes time and commitment. It is a willingness to build a personal relationship in addition to a professional one, participating in open exchanges of experiences and culture. It requires a genuine, non-controlling approach and relies upon demonstrated integrity and transparency. Building a trust-based relationship requires a high level of consciousness of the experience of Indigenous people. It assumes that strengths abound in Indigenous people, cultures, and communities.
- Cultural Agility is the ability to work respectfully, knowledgeably and effectively with Indigenous people. It is noticing and readily adapting to cultural uniqueness in order to create a sense of safety for all. It is openness to unfamiliar experiences, transforming feelings of nervousness or anxiety into curiosity and appreciation. It is examining one's own culture and worldview, to notice their commonalities, and distinctions with Indigenous cultures, and worldviews. It is recognition of the ways that personal and professional values may conflict or align with those of Indigenous people. It is the capacity to relate to or allow for differing cultural perspectives and being willing to experience a personal shift in perspective. effectively to other people from diverse backgrounds with diverse views.
- Collaborative Planning, Organizing and Coordinating involves shared planning, establishing priorities jointly, and assigning resources accordingly, with sensitivity to the competing demands faced by Indigenous people. It is expressed by building plans together prior to acting and ensuring that plans and resourcing align with their evolving interests and needs. It involves timely monitoring, evaluation, and work refinement to mandate of supporting Indigenous self-determination. It means developing staff orientation and managing knowledge so that when a new employee takes up a position within an already established relationship, educating the employee does not automatically and continually fall to Indigenous people.
- Empathy is the ability to recognize, understand and directly experience the emotion of another. It involves listening with heart, accepting their message and staying focused on their experience rather than reacting. It means understanding that the behaviour may be connected to something outside of the immediate situation. (Sympathy is not empathy. Sympathy means feeling pity and sorrow for someone's misfortune, or the tendency to want to help them with what you see as something negative. This can send a message that you believe that others cannot arrive at their own solutions.)
- Sustained Learning and Development means continually increasing your ability to build and maintain respectful and effective relationships with Indigenous people. Central to this competency is appreciating that there are many other cultural understandings of knowledge and ways of working that have legitimacy and deserve respect - and therefore require our continual learning and development, including direct exposure to cultural and community ways. It includes an eagerness to continually reflect upon and assess your own level of cultural agility and competence, self-awareness, and expertise. It means being willing to learn in new and different ways and appreciating how diverse ways of thinking and acting can ensure the success in supporting Indigenous self-determination.
Behavioural Competencies:
- Information Seeking is driven by a desire to know more about things, people, or issues. It implies going beyond the questions that are routine or required in the job. It may include "digging" or pressing for exact information; resolution of discrepancies by asking a series of questions; or less-focused environmental "scanning" for potential opportunities or miscellaneous information that may be of future use.
- Listening, Understanding and Responding is the desire and ability to understand and respond effectively to other people from diverse backgrounds. It includes the ability to understand accurately and respond effectively to both spoken and unspoken or partly expressed thoughts, feelings and concerns of others. People who demonstrate high levels of this competency show a deep and complex understanding of others, including cross-cultural sensitivity.
- Planning, Organizing and Coordinating involves proactively planning, establishing priorities, and allocating resources. It is expressed by developing and implementing increasingly complex plans. It also involves monitoring and adjusting work to accomplish goals and deliver to the organization's mandate.
- Conflict management (Reduces and Resolves Conflict in a Proactive Manner) involves working to resolve conflict when the conflict directly impacts on achievement of work objectives. Anticipates and acts to mitigate/reduce potential conflict management and to reduce and resolve conflict at the outset, by encouraging continued. Open, two–way communications.
- Teamwork and Co-operation is the ability to work co-operatively with diverse teams, work groups, and across the organization to achieve group and organizational goals. It includes the desire and ability to understand and respond effectively to other people from diverse backgrounds with diverse views.
Rate of pay: SPO24: $42.8904 to $48.8807 per hour (with Provincial Delegation)
Salary increase for 2026 effective date will be applicable and notify for the HR and Finance Team.
Start date: As soon as possible.
Please apply for this position from our Career Opportunities website by looking for this specific job position and then clicking on the "Apply Now" button.
This position requires union membership.
Metis Family Services thanks all applicants for their interest in this career opportunity; however, only those considered for the position will be contacted.
