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Moreways Healthcare
Premier Care
Complex Needs • Recovery • Community Reintegration
Complex Needs Recovery Worker
Work alongside adults whose mental health, behavioural, social and practical needs can interact in complex ways, helping them achieve greater stability, strengthen independence and build sustainable lives within the community.
About the role
Moreways Healthcare provides specialist supported living and community support for adults whose needs may not fit neatly within a single diagnostic or service category.
People may experience a combination of mental health difficulties, learning disability, autism, complex emotional needs, substance misuse, social isolation, difficulties sustaining a tenancy, previous offending, vulnerability or repeated periods of placement breakdown.
As a Complex Needs Recovery Worker, you will work with the whole person rather than focusing on one issue in isolation. You will help individuals understand their strengths, build practical skills, improve stability and work towards outcomes that reduce reliance on formal services wherever this can be achieved safely.
Some people may be moving from hospital, secure care, residential settings or other structured environments into supported living. Others may already live within the community but require flexible support to maintain their placement and avoid deterioration or crisis.
Stability
Help individuals establish routines, recognise triggers and develop approaches that reduce repeated crises or placement breakdown.
Capability
Build confidence and practical skills in areas such as daily living, appointments, budgeting, tenancy management and community access.
Progression
Support people to move towards greater independence and more sustainable community living rather than remaining unnecessarily dependent on intensive support.
Key responsibilities
- Build respectful and professionally boundaried relationships with individuals who may have experienced repeated service disruption or difficulty engaging with support.
- Provide key-working support where allocated and contribute to co-produced support plans and agreed outcomes.
- Help individuals identify strengths, priorities and realistic short- and longer-term goals.
- Support the development of daily living skills including cooking, shopping, budgeting and maintaining a home.
- Support tenancy-related responsibilities and help individuals understand the practical requirements of maintaining their accommodation.
- Assist with appointments, correspondence and professional meetings where this forms part of the person’s support plan.
- Support engagement with mental health, social care, substance misuse and other relevant services.
- Encourage positive social networks, community participation and meaningful activity.
- Support education, volunteering or employment-related goals where appropriate.
- Help individuals recognise triggers, relapse indicators and patterns associated with deterioration or increased risk.
- Use agreed de-escalation, coping and positive behaviour-support strategies where relevant.
- Support medication processes where authorised and within training and competency.
- Recognise safeguarding concerns, vulnerability or exploitation and respond in accordance with procedures.
- Contribute to risk assessment, reviews and contingency planning within the scope of the role.
- Maintain clear, factual and timely records of support, progress, incidents and significant changes.
- Work collaboratively with colleagues and external professionals to maintain consistency and continuity of support.
Supporting the whole person
Complex needs rarely exist independently. Poor mental health can affect motivation and tenancy management. Substance misuse can increase vulnerability or relapse risk. Social isolation can worsen emotional wellbeing. Financial difficulties can increase stress and instability.
Effective support therefore requires an understanding of how different parts of a person’s life interact.
Understand
Identify the combination of strengths, needs, risks, barriers and protective factors affecting the individual.
Prioritise
Work with the person to identify what needs attention now and what can be developed gradually over time.
Build
Strengthen practical skills, coping strategies, routines and community connections.
Progress
Review what is working and support movement towards greater independence where appropriate.
Complex risk, vulnerability and positive risk management
People with complex needs may experience overlapping vulnerabilities and risks. This can include deterioration in mental health, substance misuse, self-neglect, exploitation, financial abuse, missing-person concerns, behavioural escalation, offending-related risks or difficulty maintaining engagement with services.
Some individuals supported by Moreways Healthcare may also be progressing through forensic or structured step-down pathways. Depending on the person, arrangements may include Section 37/41 conditional discharge, Section 117 aftercare, MAPPA involvement, probation oversight or other professionally agreed measures.
Your role is to follow agreed plans consistently while maintaining the least restrictive approach possible. Risk management should support safe progression rather than prevent people from developing skills, confidence and independence.
You will not be expected to make decisions outside your professional remit. You will be expected to recognise significant information, document it accurately and escalate concerns appropriately.
Areas of support
Community reintegration
A central part of the role is helping people move beyond formal services and develop sustainable connections with ordinary community life.
You may support access to education, volunteering, employment preparation, leisure activities, local services, faith or cultural communities, peer support and other opportunities that are meaningful to the individual.
Community reintegration is not simply about attending activities. It is about helping a person develop confidence, identity, relationships, routine and a sense of belonging outside the support service.
Supporting tenancy and independent living
Moreways Healthcare’s supported living services are people’s homes. Staff therefore need to understand the difference between supporting somebody in their own tenancy and managing an institutional environment.
You may help people maintain their accommodation, understand household responsibilities, develop budgeting skills, manage appointments and build routines that reduce the likelihood of placement breakdown.
Wherever appropriate, tasks should be completed with the person rather than automatically for them. The objective is to increase capability and reduce avoidable dependency.
Working with professionals
Complex support often involves several services. Depending on the individual, you may work alongside social workers, care coordinators, community mental health teams, forensic teams, GPs, substance misuse services, commissioners, probation practitioners and other community organisations.
Good partnership working requires accurate information sharing, professional boundaries and clarity about which organisation is responsible for each part of the person’s support.
You will be expected to contribute relevant observations, follow through agreed actions and escalate changes that may require professional review.
What we are looking for
Experience and development
Previous experience in supported living, mental health, complex needs, homelessness, forensic services, substance misuse, learning disability, autism or community rehabilitation would be advantageous.
Experience of key working, support planning, risk assessment, community reintegration or tenancy sustainment would also be relevant.
We value practical experience, good judgement and the ability to build respectful working relationships. A relevant Health and Social Care qualification may be beneficial but will be considered alongside experience and suitability for the role.
You will complete Moreways Healthcare’s mandatory induction and training programme together with any service-specific learning required for the people you support.
Why join Moreways Healthcare?
- Work within specialist supported living and community services focused on progression rather than institutional dependency.
- Support adults whose needs span mental health, learning disability, autism, substance misuse and forensic pathways.
- Develop practical experience in key working, recovery planning, tenancy sustainment and community reintegration.
- Gain experience of positive risk management and complex multidisciplinary working.
- Help people build practical skills, stronger community connections and sustainable independence.
- Develop towards Senior Recovery Worker, Senior Support Worker, Lead Support Worker, Team Leader or management roles.
What successful complex-needs support looks like
Success can look different for every person. It may mean maintaining a tenancy after previous placement breakdowns, reducing crisis presentations, engaging more consistently with mental health support, managing money more safely, building healthier relationships or moving towards a less intensive level of support.
Progress may be gradual and setbacks can occur. A good Complex Needs Recovery Worker remains consistent, keeps expectations realistic and continues to work with the person’s strengths rather than defining them by previous difficulties.
If you are practical, compassionate, professionally curious and confident working across multiple areas of need while keeping independence at the centre of support, we would welcome your application to join Moreways Healthcare as a Complex Needs Recovery Worker.
