Principal Strategic Advisor

About the Guardian for Children and Young PeopleThe Guardian for Children and Young People is an independent body that promotes and advocates for the rights and best interests of children and young people who are:

• under the guardianship of the Chief Executive of the Department for Child Protection; and/or

• detained at the Adelaide Youth Training Centre (AYTC).

The Guardian provides advocacy on individual and systemic issues, as well as monitoring safety and wellbeing for children and young people in care or youth detention. 

In everything we do, we are committed to ensuring the voices of children and young people are heard, and their rights are upheld.

The Office of the Guardian for Children and Young People (OGCYP) provides support for the Guardian for Children and Young People, who is an independent statutory officer appointed under the Children and Young People (Oversight and Advocacy Bodies) Act 2016. The Guardian also holds the roles of Training Centre Visitor, Child and Young Persons Visitor and Youth Treatment Orders Visitor. 

More information about each of these roles and the work of the OGCYP is available on the Guardians website at www.gcyp.sa.gov.au.

About the positionThe Principal Strategic Advisor provides high-level analysis, advice and leadership to support the Guardian to meet their statutory responsibilities and contributes policy leadership across the Guardian and their various mandates.

The role reports and is accountable to the Guardian for providing leadership with respect to initiating, researching, developing, monitoring, and reviewing policies and practices, across Mandates implemented through the OGCYP. The role also involves consulting and managing relationships with internal and external stakeholders, managing projects and organisational systems, and preparing high level strategic advice, reports, submissions, and briefings about complex and sensitive matters.

The Principal Strategic Advisor will contribute directly to state and national strategic processes, especially in the context of the work of the Australian and New Zealand Childrens Commissioners, Guardians and Advocates (ANZCCGA) group and the National Preventive Mechanism Network in relation to the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture (OPCAT). 

The Principal Strategic Advisor must have regard to the views of children and young people in the child protection and youth justice systems and pay particular attention to the needs and circumstances of those identified for particular attention in relevant statues, including those under the guardianship of the Chief Executive of the Department for Child Protection, those who identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islanders and/or those who have a physical, psychological or intellectual disability. 

The Principal Strategic Advisor is responsible for leading and managing a team people who are undertake a range of policy, strategy, inquiry and inspection functions of the Guardian.  

QualificationsEssential: Tertiary qualification in an appropriate discipline e.g. youth justice, social work, psychology, social sciences, government investigations, law or public policy, or equivalent relevant, high-level experience.

Special conditionsThe successful applicant is required to gain a Department for Human Services (DHS) working with children check (WWCC) prior to being employed which is required to be renewed every five years before expiry. 

The incumbent will be required to undertake the Safe Environments for Children and Young People `Through their Eyes training course and update as necessary. 

For all other Special Conditions please refer to the attached Position Description.

EnquiriesTo learn more about this exciting opportunity, please contact Shona Reid, Guardian for Children and Young People, on Tel: (08) 8226 85***or Email: ****@gcyp.sa.gov.au

Further information:This is a full-time (1.0 FTE) ongoing position.

For further information and details on how to apply for this vacancy, please go to iworkfor.sa.gov.au and search for vacancy number 677817. Applications are to be made through the IWorkForSA website.

Applicants are required to submit a CV, the Application Cover Sheet, Employment Declaration, and a cover letter of no more than two pages addressing the key competencies in the attached position description.

The South Australian public sector promotes diversity and flexible ways of working including part-time. Applicants are encouraged to discuss the flexible working arrangements for this role.

People of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent and/or those who have a disability are strongly encouraged to apply.