Senior Practitioner

·         Application close Date COB on 17th September 2026

·         Part-time (60.8 Hours per fortnight)

·         Fixed term until June 2027

·         Remuneration SCHCADS level 6 dependent on qualifications and experience + superannuation

·         5 Weeks Annual Leave

·         Up to $15,900 for living expenses + up to $2,600 towards meals and entertainment can be tax-free through NFP Salary Packaging

About us

Youth Support + Advocacy Service (YSAS) is one of Australia’s largest and most comprehensive, youth specific community service organisation that enables young people experiencing serious disadvantage to access the resources and support they require to lead healthy and fulfilling lives.

YSAS is a Child Safe organisation. We actively promote the safety and wellbeing of young people, and are committed to protecting young people from harm or abuse who come into contact with and/or access our service.

At YSAS we are committed to people of a diversity of backgrounds and identities being included, represented, and having the opportunity to participate equally in the life of our organisation and the communities in which we provide our services. We strive to create the conditions where people feel safe, enfranchised and valued. We value lived-living experience wisdom, insight, and knowledge.

About the position

The Senior Practitioner is a member of the Sunshine Leadership team. The position will undertake direct service activities, crisis intervention, assessment, case management services and provide ongoing support to minimise the harm of drug use to young people within the Reach Out Program. The role will hold a case load of young people primarily those living in out of home care residential homes; adolescent community placements and secure welfare services along with young people who have a history of out of home care or child protection involvement.

Key Selection Criteria

1.      Demonstrated experience in assessment, treatment and care of young people experiencing alcohol and other drug concerns, including those with complex needs who may be involved with Child Protection, Out of Home Care or Youth Justice.

2.      Demonstrated knowledge of adolescent development, trauma-informed AOD practice, with experience in delivering assessment, care planning, therapeutic interventions, crisis response and collaborative outreach.

3.      Demonstrated ability to provide practice leadership through case consultation, mentoring, reflective practice and to support high-quality service delivery.

4.      Demonstrated understanding of the complexities faced by young people involved with Child Protection, Out of Home Care, including trauma, co-occurring needs and placement instability.

5.      Demonstrated understanding of youth AOD practice frameworks, with the ability to balance therapeutic engagement, risk management, professional judgement and collaborative care planning.

6.      Demonstrated ability to build collaborative partnerships with Child Protection, residential care, youth justice and other community services to deliver coordinated care.

What our young people request from our workers:

Young people across YSAS have spoken out and given feedback about the qualities that best describe a good YSAS worker:

“A good worker takes the time to understand your interests and doesn’t treat everyone the same.”  “Young people believe that a good YSAS worker is empathetic and good at actively listening in a non-judgmental way, is relatable, down-to-earth and able to build trust and rapport in a consistent manner”. “It takes time to trust someone, but it’s worth it when you know they’ve got your back”. Young people have also raised that genuine human connection is an important quality, “being authentically human”, while having a holistic, flexible, and adaptable approach that considers the entire context of a young person’s life and their intersectionalities. “It’s about making sure workers don’t just tick boxes but genuinely want to see us thrive”

Regardless of where they are based or what position a worker has, everything we do at YSAS is about young people and their families.

For full details of the position and more about YSAS benefits please visit our employment website https://ysas.org.au/employment/

Why work with us?

·         YSAS has a true commitment to flexible working, ensuring that individual, team and client needs are met

·         YSAS offers additional leave entitlements such as gender affirmation, ceremonial leave for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, fertility leave, blood donors leave, a generous Parental Leave Scheme and the ability to purchase additional leave.

·         Access to learning and development opportunities

·         Employee Assistance Program (EAP)

Please Note:

1.      As part of our Employment screening process you will be required to undertake a National Criminal History check and have a current Working with Children Check.

2.      You must have Australian work rights to apply for this position.

Further Enquiries

For a confidential discussion about the position, please contact, Emma Hutchinson, Community Manager, on 0417380307 regarding Senior Practitioner position, Recruitment Ref. Number – 058_2026.

·         YSAS is an equal opportunity employer, and we welcome applications from all sectors of the community.

·         YSAS has a zero tolerance for child abuse and is committed to the provision of a child-safe organisation.