Job Introduction
1x Full-Time Residential Practitioners – Fixed Term (12 months)
2 x Part-Time Residential Practitioners.
About the Home
Our five-bedded Short Breaks Service offers a safe, nurturing and inclusive environment for children and young people aged 5–17 who have disabilities and complex health needs.
Children come to us for planned short breaks while continuing to live at home with their families. Our role is to provide enjoyable experiences, consistency, and high‑quality support that helps families take a break and enables children to develop confidence, skills and positive relationships.
We support children with a wide range of needs, including physical disabilities, learning disabilities, autism, sensory processing differences and complex medical conditions. Our skilled team works closely with families and professionals so that every stay is tailored, positive and meaningful.
If you have a genuine passion for supporting children with additional needs—and want to help them enjoy fun, safe and memorable short breaks—we’d love to hear from you.
About the Role
As a Residential Practitioner in our Short Breaks Service, you will help create positive experiences for children during their stays.
You will build warm, trusting relationships, support communication, assist with health and personal care needs, and help to create meaningful activities—such as sensory play, outdoor walks, cooking, arts and crafts or simply offering a calm, comforting space.
Many of the children we support have significant health needs, mobility needs or communication differences. You will play a key role in helping them feel comfortable, understood and supported throughout their stay.
This role includes working shifts, weekends, waking nights, sleep‑ins and bank holidays on a rota basis.
What our children want
- Warm and caring personality
- Playing with them
- Watching television with us and joining in with hobbies that we enjoy
- You won’t see the role as a job and will instead see it as our home that we live in
What our children say
- “I love to go out to have a pamper day getting my nails and eyebrows done!”
- “I enjoy dedicated time with those who care for me especially going for a walk and getting a Starbuck’s. We have a good chat about what’s going well for me or anything I may need support”
- “I love going to the farm and horse riding, I had never ridden a horse before”
- “I loved the caravan as it was my first ever holiday and it was very nice. I especially loved the kids disco and playing in the arcades.”
- “I love getting my bedtime stories read to me at night time.”
What we expect from you
- Provide a loving, safe and positive environment for our children living with us.
- Be instrumental in creating a positive future for the children living with us from a social, educational and an individual approach.
- Assist with daily activities such as getting ready for the day, including school and assisting with homework where possible.
- Thinking creatively about activities that our children can get involved with and assisting with bringing this to life.
- Being aspirational in relation to plans for children.
- Support our children with their social and emotional needs.
- Experience working with young children.
- Hold natural empathy and a caring attitude towards the children that lives with us and adopt a family mentality within the home.
What you can expect from us
- The opportunity to give children and young people a childhood that they deserve
- Enhancements for sleep ins, waking nights, bank holiday are paid in addition to salary
- Regular supervision to support development
- Generous employer contributions in a Local Government Pension Scheme
- Competitive salary and pay progression structure
- Real living wage as the minimum rate of pay
- Supportive carer and parental policies
- Enhanced maternity, paternity and adoption leave
- Access to Occupational Health and confidential counselling services
- Supportive staff networks
- Access to Blue Light Card discounts
- Professional development and support to work towards a qualification in Residential Childcare
- Career progression
- Enhanced annual leave entitlement
Location: Keighley, Bradford
Next Steps
For an informal discussion about this role please contact Lisa Allison via lisa.allison@bradfordcft.org.uk.
Closing date: 26th April 2026
Interview Date: tbc
Bradford Children and Families Trust is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all employees to share this commitment.
If shortlisted, you will be required to disclose relevant information regarding criminal history prior to interview.
An Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check including a check against the Children’s barred list, will be carried out on preferred candidates.
