Forensic Social Work Women's Lead

OXLEAS NHS Foundation Trust has a rich history, well-established community links and an international reputation. We provide a full range of local mental health services to the Greenwich, Bexley and Bromley boroughs as well as specialist forensic mental health services within the South London Partnership.

We are committed to providing high quality integrated health and social care for local people with mental health problems and more specialist mental health services for people throughout the UK. The Care Quality Commission already rates our services as ‘good’ however we aim to be ‘outstanding’.

When you join us, you’ll be part of something special - an innovative and rapidly growing organisation that is helping to redefine Mental Health provision.

Our innovative Women's Forensic Hostel is located within the Goldie Leigh Hospital site, Abbeywood and our Medium Secure provision is located at the Bracton Centre in Dartford Kent. The post holder will be expected to work across both these sites and complete assessments when required across South London.

The post holder must be adept at prioritising the activities that will provide the most efficient, effective and safe step down or discharge pathway for female Service Users and escalate any conditions that will prevent this from happening.

The post holder will be responsible for the development and monitoring of the assigned care pathway quality and improvement plans, alongside the development of project specific policies and procedures with other senior members of the MDT. The post holder, in conjunction with the management team, will ensure all clinical effectiveness systems are embedded and sustainable.

Oxleas offers a wide range of NHS healthcare services to people in community and secure environment settings. Our services include community health care such as district nursing and speech and language therapy, care for people with learning disabilities and mental health care such as psychiatry, nursing and therapies. Our multidisciplinary teams look after people of all ages and we work in close partnership with other parts of the NHS, local councils and the voluntary sector and through our new provider collaboratives. Our 4,300 members of staff work in many different settings including hospitals, clinics, prisons, secure hospitals, children’s centres, schools and people’s homes.

We have over 125 sites in a variety of locations in the South of England. In London we operate within the Boroughs of Bexley, Bromley Greenwich and into Kent. We manage hospital sites including Queen Mary’s Hospital, Sidcup and Memorial Hospital, Woolwich, as well as the Bracton Centre, our medium secure unit for people with mental health needs. We are the largest NHS provider of prison health services providing healthcare to prisons within Devon, Dorset, Bristol, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire, Kent and South London. We are proud of the care we provide and our people.

Our purpose is to improve lives by providing the best possible care to our patients and their families. This is strengthened by our new values:

- We’re Kind
- We’re Fair
- We Listen
- We Care

To work in conjunction with the Forensic Outreach team with a specific focus on the care coordination and management of the Women’s Forensic Project.

To have direct management responsibilities (profession specific) of identified registered and non registered staff within the Women’s Pathway.

To be involved in the formulation of local policy and procedures as well as being able to provide ongoing strategic input to the development and running of the project.

To work alongside the Housing Manager in your capacity as Clinical Manger of the Forensic Women’s Project.

To have an enhanced understanding of the needs that women who suffer with mental health disorders and/or personality disorder have when being discharged from forensic services. The post holder must be experienced in the complexities that this client group brings, especially in a community setting.

The post holder will provide a highly specialist service to an agreed caseload of service users and their carers, which will include care co-ordination and social supervision.

To maintain a clear understanding of the patients who are placed in women’s services within OXLEAS and throughout the SLP partnership by acting as a point of contact to attend CPA’s, assertively manage discharge pathways and reduce risk of delayed discharge.

To take a lead role in monitoring and reviewing of OXLEAS female patients who are in conditions of medium to low security within the SLP as well as out of area. The post holder will be expected to ensure timely and personalised pathways in the least restrictive care/support settings, in line with the person’s recovery goals whilst building on their strengths.

To work with the Community Care Coordinators to facilitate transfer from out of borough service provision, liaising with local health care and commi