Age Disputes Casework Adviser

About us 

Founded in 1951, the Refugee Council exists to support people who come to the UK in need of safety and speak out for compassion, fairness and kindness. We achieve this by providing expert advice and casework, building the capacity of refugee community organisations, and working with allies across society to change government policy. 

Our vision for refugees to be welcome to live safe and fulfilling lives contributing to the UK has never been more urgent and needed.

About the team

The Age Dispute work sits within the Youth Casework team, and we seek to deepen the impact by supporting more children and young people now dispersed across England and who are wrongly age assessed of assumed as over 18 by the Home Office and/or by the local authorities.

About the role

As an Age Disputes Casework Adviser, you will bring your expertise to provide specialist casework to challenge incorrect age assessments, use experience to deal and prioritise high risk cases, work with various stakeholders including legal representatives, statutory agencies, and collaborate with others in sector to develop, learn and share best practice resources in casework provision.

You will maintain an understanding of the changing practice in relation to age assessments in particular and the wider policy landscape, work with colleagues in the Youth Services and in consultation with the Youth Services Manager, liaise with other relevant Refugee Council teams, including advocacy, practice development, youth involvement, In-Form to use casework evidence to address inequities in policy and practice.

This role is fixed term until 31/03/2027.

Based within the Youth Services of the Refugee Council, the Age Disputes Casework Adviser will be responsible for:

• Working with children and young people to understand their experiences and needs.
• Working closely with other Age Disputes Casework Advisers and the Youth Services Manager to identify and review high risk and complex cases that need prioritising and create effective internal case triage and allocation systems.
• Liaising with a wide range of stakeholders to ensure that the needs of young people with disputed age are recognised and met.
• Identifying age assessment policy and practice issues impacting on the lives of separated children for possible action via strategic litigation with legal representatives and advocacy colleagues.
• Maintaining expert casework knowledge and understanding of the environment and barriers that separated children seeking asylum face in with regards to the assessment of their age, and issues related to access to high quality information, advice and legal representation on immigration, asylum and welfare, and always learning and sharing the knowledge with others.

Main duties and responsibilities

Working with young people

1. Work in the best interests of all separated young people who are wrongly age assessed and referred unto our service.
2. Manage a high volume of referrals from internal colleagues and professionals effectively, and work with Youth Services Manager to identify high risk cases, decide eligibility and priority criteria, and providing timely, helpful, and legally accurate responses at all times.
3. Manage their own complex caseload, primarily age dispute related (appropriate assessments, litigation, and appeals) and support on a range of welfare matters including health, education, and community care issues.

For more information on the role and to apply, please visit our website via the apply button. 

Closing date: 6 December 2024.

Ensuring that the Refugee Council is an inclusive and accessible place to work is important to us. We want to enable people from different backgrounds to apply and thrive with us. We believe our recruitment process enables that and are also happy to make adjustments on request.