Family Support Worker

As a Family Support Worker, you provide practical and emotional support to families experiencing difficulties such as addiction, financial hardship, disability, bereavement, or parental illness. You visit families in their homes or meet them at family resource centres, assessing their needs and helping them access the appropriate health, social care, and community services. You work closely with parents and children to build coping skills, improve home routines, and strengthen family relationships. Your caseload may include families referred by Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, and you collaborate with social workers, public health nurses, school staff, and community organisations to coordinate care. Safeguarding children's welfare is central to everything you do, and you maintain detailed case records to track progress and flag concerns.

A relevant Leaving Certificate, with subjects such as Home Economics, Biology, Religious Education, or SPHE providing useful background, is the starting point for entry into this field. The most common route is a Level 7 Bachelor of Arts in Applied Social Studies or Social Care Work at a technological university such as TU Dublin, ATU, MTU, SETU, or TUS, or a Level 8 Honours Bachelor in Social Studies or Social Care. Some entrants begin with a QQI Level 5 or Level 6 PLC award in Community and Health Services or Social Care at a College of Further Education, which can provide progression routes to degree programmes. A Level 9 postgraduate qualification may be required if you wish to progress into qualified social work, which additionally requires registration with CORU, the Health and Care Professions Council of Ireland. Many Family Support Workers employed by Tusla or family resource centres hold a minimum of a Level 7 qualification, and continuous professional development is expected throughout your career. Garda vetting through the National Vetting Bureau is mandatory before working with children or vulnerable adults.