Jordan joined BCHA in September of 2019 and has recently transitioned into a Senior Practitioner role.
“As a Senior Practitioner, I lead and manage a team of 8 people. My whole role is based on working with the team and our customers to bring them forward on their homeless journeys. Sometimes we have to give creative solutions to problematic challenges, such as signposting our customers to additional agencies through the Plymouth Alliance. I also have a general oversight of my teams’ caseloads to make sure they don’t overload themselves. This can be detrimental both to the teams’ mental health but also affect our customers, so finding the right balance is key."
We work in a grey area in a black and white system. We need to be able to navigate the system for people and see them as individuals, not cases.
“My team is really diverse. We have a range of past experiences and there are lots of different strengths. We have a great team dynamic and really cultivate having a safe space within the team, and the team do a great job of supporting and uplifting each other and myself. It takes a certain type of person to do this kind of job. People need to be resilient and resourceful, as well as being adaptable and maintaining holistic approach.
“My favourite part of working with BCHA is being privileged enough to be trusted to help so many people on their homeless journeys. Every story and person are so unique. We work with so many marginalised people and being able to give them a voice and a chance makes me feel so grateful for my job. I previously worked with a different customer group before homelessness and struggled with how support needs were identified and managed, and that approach did not work for me."
No one is unworthy of support, regardless of their background or circumstance.
“Now that I am a Senior Practitioner, I have less face-to-face engagement with customers. On complex cases I will attend support work sessions with our support workers as I need to be present to build trust with our customers, especially families who may have young children. Sometimes, if there is bad news to deliver, I will give this news to our customers to preserve the relationship and trust that our support workers have with our families.
“I am committed to seeing everyone as an individual and think this is integral to my role. I hold the BCHA values closely to my heart and they are so special to me. Every day I get to come in to work and make a difference to people’s lives. I can contribute to making a sad situation a better one.
“My biggest achievement is stepping up to be a service co-ordinator. I worked really hard and am so proud of my progression at BCHA. Because of the housing crisis there seems to be no end to the support we need to provide and knowing that I am part of the solution in ending homelessness gives me great job satisfaction.
“Homelessness can happen to anyone. It does not matter who you are, where you come from, or how much money you did or did not have. Homelessness is just one circumstance away from anyone. Losing a job, dealing with grief or having an illness means that, for many, unfortunately it is always within reach. Working at BCHA means we can offer the support to help those that have been dealt these difficult situations.”
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