About the Department

The role of the Department of Education is to support Victorians to build prosperous, socially engaged, happy and healthy lives. It does this by supporting lifelong learning and healthy development, strengthening families and helping to equip people with the skills and knowledge for a 21st century economy and society.

About the Group

Schools and Regional Services (SRS) offers central, regional, and local expertise to enhance learning and development outcomes, supported by a diverse and geographically dispersed workforce. It comprises 17 areas within 4 regions, backed by 5 central office divisions, all collaborating to deliver improved outcomes for early childhood services, schools, communities, and learners, in line with Education State commitments. SRS regions serve as a bridge between the central office, schools, and service providers, ensuring smooth transitions for learners and achieving the department's ambitious targets. Each region includes divisions specialising in school performance, student wellbeing and early childhood support, working with area-based teams to tailor local interventions and practices. The 17 areas provide crucial insights into local trends and issues, facilitating effective policy and program development and driving child and learner outcomes across all services and programs.

The Student Wellbeing and Engagement Division is responsible for promoting and implementing regional and statewide consistency in areas relating to school services, student health, wellbeing, inclusion, and engagement supports. LOOKOUT centres were established in 2016 to address the educational disadvantage of children and young people in Out-of-Home Care (OoHC) and raise the profile of the Out-of-Home Care Education Commitment. LOOKOUT improves outcomes for children and young people in OoHC through capability building of school staff and leadership teams to understand children's needs and strategies to engage them and their carers to best support their education, strengthening relationships between the service systems (DE, Department of Families, Fairness and Housing and foster care agencies) and improving monitoring & reporting of children in care, ensuring that they can be tracked and identified within the system and prioritised for support.

About the Role

The LOOKOUT Learning Advisors are a critical role within the multi-disciplinary LOOKOUT teams. Key functions of the Learning Advisor role include:

• supporting Area teams in building the capabilities of schools (including Learning Mentors and Designated Teachers), across their areas and region, to tailor education supports to meet the educational needs of children and young people in contact with the youth justice system. Activities include delivering professional learning, running workshops, providing consultation, advocacy and advice. This will include building understanding of trauma and how this presents in the education and care/ classroom settings and the impacts on children and young people in OoHC
• collecting, effectively analysing and implementing findings from data to better direct efforts, and understand the impact of actions (e.g. prioritising support for schools and services with high numbers of children and young people and with complex needs)
• ensuring decisions are in the best interests of the child and young person's learning and wellbeing outcomes
• referring complex cases for support and using this as an opportunity to build the capabilities of schools, Area Team members and other stakeholders to overcome complex barriers to engagement in education
• providing time limited advocacy, and advice (including to carers) in instances where without this intervention a child would not be connected to the support they need to engage in education.
  
  

Attributes

To be successful in this role you will be motivated and committed to improving educational outcomes for our most vulnerable students, requiring strong influencing, diagnosing, decision-making and leadership skills. Your capability to establish and maintain productive and collaborative relationships will be critical, as will the ability to deliver outcomes and influence change in a complex environment.

This is an excellent opportunity for the successful applicant to join and contribute to a team of committed professionals and undertake work that is challenging in nature but rewarding in the outcomes it delivers for vulnerable children and young people.

The successful applicant will be based in the Barwon Area, but will be expected to travel across the South-West Victoria Region with occasional overnight stays required.

Qualifications and Experience

• Essential: Bachelor's degree (or higher) in Education or other relevant discipline.
• Demonstrated experience in the school sector is highly desirable for this role.
• The successful applicant will be required to provide a current Working with Children Check.
  
  

How to Apply

Please ensure that you address the requirements of the role and the capabilities in your application.

Further Information

For more details regarding this position please see attached position description for the capabilities to address in application.

The department values diversity and inclusion in all forms - gender, religion, ethnicity, LGBTIQ+, disability and neurodiversity. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander candidates are strongly encouraged to apply. For more information about our work, working for the Department, diversity and inclusion, and our employment conditions visit the Department website and our Diversity and Inclusion page

Applicants requiring adjustments can contact the nominated contact person.

Information about the Department of Education's operations and employment conditions can be located at www.education.vic.gov.au.

For further information pertaining to the role, please contact Kellie Walker – Team Leader via 0408 870 553 or kellie.walker2@education.vic.gov.au or Matthew Hyde – Executive Principal via 0421 112 749 or matthew.hyde@education.vic.gov.au.

Preferred applicants may be required to complete a police check and may be subject to other pre-employment checks. Information provided to the Department of Education will be treated in the strictest confidence.

Please let us know via phone or email if you require any adjustments to ensure your full participation in the recruitment process or if you need the ad or any attachments in an accessible format (e.g large print) due to any viewing difficulties or other accessibility requirements.