About Us

Connections for Families Society supports people with cognitive challenges to make choices and decisions for their lives, including being successful parents. With the support of Connections, parents with cognitive challenges work to maintain safe and nurturing homes. As a leader in parents rights advocacy, Connections provides life-long in-home support and parenting skills education, financial coaching, group programs, counselling, and community resourcing to families in the greater Calgary area.

Connections is proud to offer a supportive, team-oriented work environment. We offer a competitive compensation package which also includes the following benefits:

• 100% employer paid group health, dental, AD&D, & Life coverage from your first day of employment
• A health and lifestyle spending account
• Long-term disability coverage (employee paid to ensure benefits are non-taxable)
• 3 weeks vacation to start, plus quarterly wellness days and Xmas holidays break
• Employee & Family Assistance Program, including enhanced mental well-being and stress management benefits

About the Role

Reporting to the Team Lead, the Family Support Worker provides strengths-based support to families headed by a parent who has a cognitive challenge (e.g., developmental disability, brain injury, or FASD), helping them to establish and maintain safe and nurturing homes for themselves and their families. Connections is committed to work/life balance by offering a flexible schedule that staff co-create in collaboration with their Team Lead.

Position Responsibilities

• Maintain a caseload of clients/families with varying complexity in needs
• Build and manage trusting relationships with client families to provide parenting skills education and support in the clients homes
• Advocate with parents for rights, access to available supports, and funding
• Help clients define goals and collaboratively develop a plan to reach those goals while building on their strengths and self-reliance to be successful parents

• Assess the safety of clients and their family members
• Work with other agencies and government offices to help support what is in the best interest of family members
• Write reports and complete administrative forms and other duties as required
• Collaborate with the Team Lead to develop a flexible work schedule, plan client visits, meetings and activities that meet the needs of clients and their families

• Professionally represent the agency in the community
• Actively participate in agency meetings and activities
• Participate in client events and programming, including occasional evening and weekend work
• Actively engage with team members in exchanging expertise, experiences, and best practices
• Communicate with clients, team members, agency, and other professionals in a timely and effective manner

Qualifications and Experience

• Post-secondary degree or diploma in social work, disability studies or a related field
• Experience working with individuals with cognitive challenges
• Experience working with families living in poverty
• Demonstrated alignment with a strengths-based practice, supporting the philosophy that all individuals have the right to learn how to parent while understanding that not everyone can be successful in a parenting role
• Demonstrated ability to treat client families in a manner that is respectful, welcoming and professional
• Demonstrated ability to conduct research, learn and adapt to respond to client needs
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively and independently within a flexible work arrangement

Additional Requirements

• Successful applicants may be asked to provide proof of qualifications
• A current Criminal Record check (including vulnerable sector screening) and Child Welfare Intervention Record check, the cost of which will be reimbursed by the agency upon offer of employment
• Current First Aid and CPR, or willingness to obtain certification within 30 days of employment
• Valid Class 5 drivers license, a working vehicle, and $2,000,000 liability insurance rated for business use
• Working with families may include walking within the community, taking public transit with clients, walking up and down stairs, lifting up to 20 lbs. (e.g., a young child, a bag of groceries), and interacting/playing with children on the floor (i.e., modelling for the parent)

Equal Opportunity

Connections for Families Society is committed to equity, diversity and inclusion and recognizes that a diverse team benefits and enriches our work and is essential to operational excellence. We welcome applications from all qualified individuals.

Closing Date: March 30, 2025

We thank all applicants; however, only those selected to proceed through the recruitment process will be contacted.