Health & Justice Liaison and Diversion Practitioner

This post will cover Willesden Magistrates Court, Wembley and Colindale Police Custody Suite.
Unsocial working hours will be required for this post. Shifts will be based on a 7 day rota which all practitioners are expected to participate in. The post holder may on occasions be required to work across sites on any given day in order to ensure the service is covered.
The successful applicant may have contact with patients or service users. As an NHS Trust we strongly encourage and support vaccination as this remains the best way to protect yourself, your family, your colleagues and of course patients and service users when working on our healthcare settings.
- To act as an autonomous practitioner in court and police detention cells. The post holder will also be expected to assess an individual’s mental state and risk and within the context of the alleged offence and the criminal justice system, implement a care pathway for each individual.
- The post holder will maintain a presence on the site they are working for the duration of their shift in order to be able to respond to referrals in a timely manner. It is the post holder’s responsibility to check regularly if there is anyone to be seen in custody. If there is a need to leave the police custody suite, the post holder must leave a contact number with the custody staff and respond to calls.
- In the absence of the youth justice liaison and diversion worker, the post holder will be expected to screen any youths in police custody during their shift in police stations. This will involve engaging with the young person and at times their guardians and depending on the screening outcomes, may involve making onward referrals including safeguarding, youth offending teams and CAMHS.

Our direct contact with service users may take place at police stations or in the courts. Our work can be very challenging but we continue to aim to ensure that individuals receive the best and most appropriate care for their needs. Through screening, assessment and appropriate referral, we are able to promote better health outcomes, reduce re-offending and reduce pressure on the police and court services.
Common failures
- Non-declaration of criminal convictions or Police involvement;
I.E investigations even if no further action, warnings, cautions (No matter how old)
- County court judgements
- Less than 3-year Residency
- Defaults - No debt management plans in place.
- Convictions which resulted in imprisonment or suspended sentence

ALL family members, partners, co-residents and parents’ partners must be provided
Address history must run 5 years straight.
- To undertake a full mental state assessment, risk assessment, and gather a background history for individuals with a variety of needs. These would include those with a serious mental illness or personality disorder and associated learning, social, personal, dependency and substance misuse issues who are in police custody suites and court detention.
- To prepare accurate written reports following assessment in line with quality standards.
- To make clinical judgements in custody on situations as they arise, or change.
- A high standard of interpersonal skills is required to manage the complex and often conflicting needs and wants of those involved in the process.
- To accept referrals from Custody Sergeants in the police custody suites, and in court, from Court cell area, the Bench, Council, Probation, DIP Team workers, solicitors, family or the defendant or any other Court user, who become aware of or have clients with a dual diagnosis or are presenting with a possible mental disorder. This is in addition to accepting referrals from in-patient services and CMHTs.
- Undertake Court work with same day assessments on identified vulnerable clients, who appear over night from the custody suites and who have not been previously seen at the Police Station. To ensure that information is passed to the defence team and the Court Clerk in a manner in keeping with the information sharing protocol. Following the hearing to ensure that information concerning proceedings and the assessment is passed to the GP and other services involved with the client. Where remanded to prison to ensure that information is passed to the mental health in reach team or the reception at the Prison.
- Where the Court orders a psychiatric report on the client then the Post Holder will assist in making the referral to the appropriate Doctor with a view to obtaining the assessment and report within the agreed time frame. The Post Holder will ensure that the copy of any report received by the Court with the permission of the Court and service user will be forwarded to the GP and mental health care professionals involved the client’s care.