Disability Support Worker

Disability Support Workers – Highett & Keysborough | Casual employment | Regular shifts | From $40/hour

CareAbilities is recruiting for two separate support roles. You can apply for either position or both.

Position 1 – Male Adult | Highett

CareAbilities is seeking several reliable, proactive Disability Support Workers to join an established team supporting a non-verbal adult man with autism and intellectual disability. Based in Highett, these are casual employee positions with regular shifts available. It suits people who enjoy building rapport over time, taking an active role in support and helping a person develop greater independence.

The client walks independently and enjoys outings, music, walking, gym sessions and swimming/spa activities. His companion dog is also part of his home and daily routines.

The role combines everyday skill development, community participation and hands-on personal care. You’ll help him participate in activities and routines using encouragement, clear prompts, communication supports and appropriate assistance. Good support also means recognising when to offer choices, allow processing time or adjust the pace.

Personal care is a regular part of the role, including showering, shaving, dressing, toileting and continence care. You must be comfortable providing respectful, hands-on assistance.

Available shifts:

• Wednesday: 8am–4pm
• Thursday: 8am–4pm
• Sunday: 4pm–9am Monday, including a sleepover
• Emergency shifts other days and nights

The role includes:

• Build everyday skills: Support participation in meal preparation, shopping, household tasks, grooming and daily routines, providing the assistance needed while encouraging independence.
• Support community participation: Actively participate in outings, walks, gym and pool/spa activities, and follow exercise guidance developed by an exercise physiologist.
• Provide personal care: Assist with showering, shaving, dressing, toileting and continence care while maintaining dignity and privacy.
• Support communication and choice: Use his established augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) system, iPad communication apps such as Proloquo2Go, and visual supports to help him express needs and preferences.
• Follow agreed support strategies: Recognise early signs of distress, respond calmly and consistently, and adapt support in line with established routines and behaviour support strategies.
• Support healthy routines: Prepare meals and follow agreed approaches to food, physical activity and daily wellbeing.
• Include his companion dog: Help him participate in feeding, walking, toileting and positive interactions with his dog, providing assistance as needed.
• Keep the team informed: Complete clear, timely shift notes and handovers, recording relevant observations about health, continence, communication, behaviour and progress towards goals.

Because he cannot communicate through speech, he may sometimes express distress or frustration physically. You need to be able to remain calm, recognise early signs of distress and follow agreed support strategies.

You should have:

• Experience supporting adults with autism and/or intellectual disability
• Confidence providing hands-on personal care and continence support
• Experience or confidence supporting people with complex communication or behaviour support needs
• A calm, patient and consistent approach
• Good judgement and willingness to follow established routines and strategies
• The ability to participate in walks, gym sessions and community activities
• Confidence around dogs

Experience with Behaviour Support Plans (BSPs) and AAC is desirable.

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Position 2 – Female Child | Keysborough

We are also seeking a support worker for a child with disability and complex behaviour support needs in Keysborough.

This is a separate role from the Highett position and is best suited to someone with direct experience supporting children with disability, particularly where complex behaviour support is required.

The role involves building rapport, supporting participation in everyday and community activities, and consistently following the child’s established support strategies.

Available shifts – fortnightly roster:

• Wednesday: 2pm–5pm
• Saturday: 9:15am–1pm
• Thursday: 12:30pm–4:30pm, fortnightly

You should have:

• Experience supporting children with disability
• Experience with autism, developmental disability and/or complex behaviour support
• The ability to remain calm and responsive when a child becomes distressed or dysregulated
• Confidence following Behaviour Support Plans and guidance from family and allied health professionals
• Reliability and consistency with agreed shifts
• Good communication, professional boundaries and accurate documentation

Experience working with children with behaviours of concern is strongly preferred. Because the client has speech difficulties, she may sometimes express distress or frustration physically. You need to be able to remain calm, recognise early signs of distress and follow agreed support strategies.

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What CareAbilities Offers

• Regular shifts with the same participant
• Participant-specific training and shadow shifts
• Established routines and documented support strategies
• Guidance from management and allied health professionals
• Opportunities to build genuine long-term rapport with participants
• A team environment where staff observations and ideas are valued

How to Apply

Apply via SEEK with your current résumé and a short introduction telling us:

• Whether you are applying for Highett, Keysborough or both
• Which available shifts you can regularly work
• Your relevant disability support experience
• If applying for Highett, your experience with personal care and behaviour support
• If applying for Keysborough, your experience supporting children with disability and complex behaviours

Pay: From $40 per hour, depending on experience