Senior Mental Health Practitioner

Do you want to make a difference to the mental health of children and young people and shape early intervention services, plus have a really enjoyable job?

Gloucestershire Health and Care Trust has four established Young Minds Matter Mental Health Support Teams to work with schools. The aim of the team is to enable earlier and more effective mental health support for children, young people, their families and carers and increase resilience within school communities in managing mental health issues.

We are now expanding our team and we areseeking to recruit enthusiastic and committed mental health clinicians who enjoy working within multi agency settingsto join the Mental Health Support Teams (MHST’s).

The teams comprise of;
- Qualified CAMHS clinicians, Senior Mental Health Practitioners (SMHP - band 6)
- Education Mental Health Practitioners (EMHP - Band 4 / 5)
- Partner agencies aiming to work within a THRIVE model (including Teens in Crisis (TIC+) and Early Help).
- School Mental Health Leads and wider school teams.

Band 6 clinicians as Senior Mental Health Practitioners (SMHP) are a vital part of the service. We are seeking people who are flexible, adaptable to change and able to develop service delivery over time and in response to feedback.

The service welcomes those clinicians who may be currently working within other children’s or adult mental health settings who have the necessary transferable clinical skills and experience.

**Key elements of the role are**:

- Work in partnership with schools to deliver consultation, assessment of children/young people and a range of mental health interventions within school settings. This will involve direct work with children/young people as well as offering specialist consultation, signposting and advice to professional networks, including teaching staff.
- To provide case management supervision to both qualified and trainee EMHPs within the Mental Health Support Team.
- Be responsible and ensure the effective care co-ordination, support and advice around clinical care provided within schools, especially including consideration of safeguarding and clinical risk issues.
- Consult with teachers and school staff to identify children and young people with emerging mental health needs, as part of a whole school approach. This may include supporting the EMHP’s in delivering parenting support, group work and psychoeducation within a school setting.

This post requires the post holder to be able to undertake all statutory and mandatory training and post holders must be able to undertake physical interventions. Fitness for physical intervention will be assessed by Occupational Health.

A valid UK driving licence plus the use of own transport for business purposes is essential. For qualifying staff the Trust has a Lease Car Scheme in place and also offers a popular Salary Sacrifice Car Scheme with our partner Tusker.

The successful applicant must have the necessary professional qualification, including current registration as outlined in the person specification. All CAMHS Registered Practitioners hold a generic job description, however specialist skills and responsibilities related to working within this work role will be clearly reflected within a personalised job plan.

Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust are proud to have been recognised as a ‘Veteran Aware Trust’, evidencing the provision of the best care for Veterans and driving to improve the care for veterans and their families. Find out more about this by clicking on the link at the right-hand side, titled ‘Veterans Covenant Healthcare Alliance’.

At Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust, we are supportive of the people we care for in the community and aim to provide a fully responsive service to everyone who needs it. This is the same approach we take for our employees. We look to value the skills and experiences of those we work with, whether they are service users, carers, families or those looking to work with us.

Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust is part of the NHS. We treat NHS patients according to NHS principles and standards. The difference is the Trust is accountable to local people, rather than to Government, and so we are able to work closely with our community to develop services in the way that best suits the needs of local people.