Job summary
Do you have a passion for helping others and an understanding of (or willingness to learn about) the complexities of hoarding behaviour? At MRS Independent Living, we've been making a real difference in the lives of individuals struggling with hoarding for over ten years through our respected and well-regarded Making Room service. Based in North East London, we're one of the few organisations in London, and nationally, offering dedicated one-on-one decluttering support within individuals homes.
Imagine the profound impact you could have: empowering someone to finally reclaim their living space, sleep in their own bed, or welcome loved ones for a visit. As a Decluttering Practitioner, you'll provide practical decluttering assistance while working therapeutically with individuals to identify the underlying triggers and motivations for their hoarding behaviour, bringing about positive and long-lasting behaviour change.
Main duties of the job
We're seeking a compassionate, patient and skilled individual with experience in supporting people with mental health issues or working directly with people with hoarding behaviours in relevant settings (e.g. mental health services, homelessness services, housing or social care).
You will:
- Provide person-centred, collaborative, and enabling support tailored to individual needs.
- Demonstrate a strong understanding of hoarding behaviour and its impact on people's lives.
- Utilise an empathetic and non-judgmental approach when working with individuals and their families who may be facing a range of emotional, practical, and mental health challenges.
- Gain a unique insight into the world of people and services that support those with hoarding issues.
- Have the autonomy to manage your own caseload and time.
- Work as part of our small, dedicated Making Room team which actively encourages new ideas and shares practice.
About us
MRS Independent Living is committed to providing high-quality support services to help people stay independent, active and connected to their communities. Our Making Room service has a proven track record of helping individuals reduce risk and overcome the challenges of hoarding. We offer a supportive and collaborative work environment where you can truly make a difference.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Making Room provides one to one practical decluttering support in a therapeutic manner bring about long-lasting behaviour change. We support individuals to identify the motivation for their hoarding behaviour and identify the outcomes they want, for example, reconnecting with their family. We work with them in a personalised way that acknowledges their agency whilst reducing risk, which is often the reason they have been referred to us. Our approach to decluttering encourages the individual to focus on reducing clutter, but puts them in control about what is removed.
Overall purpose of the role
To help individuals and families identify the outcomes they want to achieve and work independently with them in a practical and therapeutic way to clear clutter from their homes.
To reduce risk and support individuals to achieve long-lasting behavioural change by identifying triggers for hoarding and providing strategies to reduce hoarding behaviours.
Main duties
- Assess level of risk due to the clutter in an individuals home, and their willingness to engage with the service in order to inform an estimate.
- Support service users to identify personal goals in terms of decluttering, agree action plans, and regularly monitor progress towards achieving the desired outcomes.
- Use therapeutic and motivational interviewing techniques to engage individuals in the process of decluttering and support them to achieve long-lasting behavioural change.
- Provide practical support to declutter and restore access to rooms, working alongside individuals to organise their possessions and physically remove clutter from the property.
- Undertake risk assessments and observe the requirements of relevant MRS policies such as health and safety and lone working.
- Coordinate an individual caseload to ensure all allocated individuals receive support in a timely and appropriate manner in line with MRS expectations for service delivery.
- Build effective relationships with referrers, key contacts and the individuals family, friends and support networks to exchange and share information and work collaboratively towards the agreed outcomes.
- Ensure good ongoing communication with referrers and professionals involved in cases by coordinating/attending meetings and joint visits, and providing regular updates and reports.
- Undertake all administration required to support effective service delivery including maintaining accurate, timely and up-to-date case records on MRS case management systems.
- Provide signposting information about other services and activities that may help the person sustain their behaviour change, to address other issues they may be facing, and to integrate into the community. If appropriate, undertake informal, short term advocacy for the individual.
- Ensure any safeguarding concerns are appropriately reported and followed up in line with the MRS safeguarding policy and the relevant boroughs safeguarding policy.
- Attend team meetings and supervision sessions as required.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Making Room provides one to one practical decluttering support in a therapeutic manner bring about long-lasting behaviour change. We support individuals to identify the motivation for their hoarding behaviour and identify the outcomes they want, for example, reconnecting with their family. We work with them in a personalised way that acknowledges their agency whilst reducing risk, which is often the reason they have been referred to us. Our approach to decluttering encourages the individual to focus on reducing clutter, but puts them in control about what is removed.
Overall purpose of the role
To help individuals and families identify the outcomes they want to achieve and work independently with them in a practical and therapeutic way to clear clutter from their homes.
To reduce risk and support individuals to achieve long-lasting behavioural change by identifying triggers for hoarding and providing strategies to reduce hoarding behaviours.
Main duties
- Assess level of risk due to the clutter in an individuals home, and their willingness to engage with the service in order to inform an estimate.
- Support service users to identify personal goals in terms of decluttering, agree action plans, and regularly monitor progress towards achieving the desired outcomes.
- Use therapeutic and motivational interviewing techniques to engage individuals in the process of decluttering and support them to achieve long-lasting behavioural change.
- Provide practical support to declutter and restore access to rooms, working alongside individuals to organise their possessions and physically remove clutter from the property.
- Undertake risk assessments and observe the requirements of relevant MRS policies such as health and safety and lone working.
- Coordinate an individual caseload to ensure all allocated individuals receive support in a timely and appropriate manner in line with MRS expectations for service delivery.
- Build effective relationships with referrers, key contacts and the individuals family, friends and support networks to exchange and share information and work collaboratively towards the agreed outcomes.
- Ensure good ongoing communication with referrers and professionals involved in cases by coordinating/attending meetings and joint visits, and providing regular updates and reports.
- Undertake all administration required to support effective service delivery including maintaining accurate, timely and up-to-date case records on MRS case management systems.
- Provide signposting information about other services and activities that may help the person sustain their behaviour change, to address other issues they may be facing, and to integrate into the community. If appropriate, undertake informal, short term advocacy for the individual.
- Ensure any safeguarding concerns are appropriately reported and followed up in line with the MRS safeguarding policy and the relevant boroughs safeguarding policy.
- Attend team meetings and supervision sessions as required.
Person Specification
Other criteria
Essential
- A non-judgemental approach towards individuals with hoarding behaviour and their families who may be confronting a range of emotional, practical and mental health issues.
- Understanding of the needs of people with hoarding disorder and the impact hoarding can have on their lives, together with a person-centred approach that focuses on the outcomes they want to achieve.
- Willingness and capability to work independently and as part of a team to provide practical support with decluttering, removing items from the property and restoring access to cluttered living spaces.
- Ability to assess risk and make judgements about safe working environments.
- Ability to build and maintain positive relationships with service users and their families, referrers, other professionals involved in cases, and the organisations they represent.
- Ability to manage time and prioritise tasks effectively and independently to keep cases flowing.
- Understanding of the importance of maintaining accurate and up-to-date case and other records as required by the service and in line with data protection requirements.
- Confidence using IT and digital technology to support service delivery. We use Google Workspace for documents and communication, and Trello and Airtable for case management.
- The ability to travel independently to and willingness to work alone in individuals homes, some of which may be highly cluttered.
- A satisfactory DBS clearance and the right to work in the UK.
Desirable
- Training or experience in using motivational interviewing techniques.
- Understanding of trauma-informed practice.
- Knowledge of safeguarding practice and procedures.
- A full, clean driving licence.
Experience
Essential
- Experience of supporting individuals with mental health and/or hoarding issues in relevant settings (such as mental health services, homelessness sector, social care, housing), or demonstrable transferable skills.
- Experience of, or evidence of the ability to support and enable individuals to increase control over their own lives.
- Experience of delivering services for or in partnership with statutory and/or voluntary organisations.
Person Specification
Other criteria
Essential
- A non-judgemental approach towards individuals with hoarding behaviour and their families who may be confronting a range of emotional, practical and mental health issues.
- Understanding of the needs of people with hoarding disorder and the impact hoarding can have on their lives, together with a person-centred approach that focuses on the outcomes they want to achieve.
- Willingness and capability to work independently and as part of a team to provide practical support with decluttering, removing items from the property and restoring access to cluttered living spaces.
- Ability to assess risk and make judgements about safe working environments.
- Ability to build and maintain positive relationships with service users and their families, referrers, other professionals involved in cases, and the organisations they represent.
- Ability to manage time and prioritise tasks effectively and independently to keep cases flowing.
- Understanding of the importance of maintaining accurate and up-to-date case and other records as required by the service and in line with data protection requirements.
- Confidence using IT and digital technology to support service delivery. We use Google Workspace for documents and communication, and Trello and Airtable for case management.
- The ability to travel independently to and willingness to work alone in individuals homes, some of which may be highly cluttered.
- A satisfactory DBS clearance and the right to work in the UK.
Desirable
- Training or experience in using motivational interviewing techniques.
- Understanding of trauma-informed practice.
- Knowledge of safeguarding practice and procedures.
- A full, clean driving licence.
Experience
Essential
- Experience of supporting individuals with mental health and/or hoarding issues in relevant settings (such as mental health services, homelessness sector, social care, housing), or demonstrable transferable skills.
- Experience of, or evidence of the ability to support and enable individuals to increase control over their own lives.
- Experience of delivering services for or in partnership with statutory and/or voluntary organisations.
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
Additional information
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
