Specialist Support Officer, Eating Disorders, Lincoln University

Job summary

First Steps ED is a leading eating disorder charity working across the Midlands and Home Counties supporting individuals and their families of all ages, genders and backgrounds impacted by body image, disordered eating and disorders.

We are looking to appoint a Specialist Support Officer to be based at Lincoln University working 2-3 days onsite per week and hybrid supporting university students with our Eating Disorders In Student Services and liaising with our partners at Lincolnshire NHS Partnership Foundation Trusts, Adult Eating Disorder Service.

We are flexible on working hours whether you are seeking a full time or part time employment opportunity with our charity team.

Main duties of the job

As a Specialist Support Officer, you will provide peer support to university students referred to EDISS with disordered eating and disorders and helping them realise their goals as agreed within their care plan.

You will work with the individuals to access our services including one-to-one peer support, which may include our Guided Self-help, psychoeducation programmes and support groups, befriending, and volunteering opportunities as part of their supported self-care.

The role requires the ability to relate to and work with a range of professionals to ensure provision of high quality and safe services. You will be working as part of a multidisciplinary team that includes clinical and non-clinical colleagues from referring organisations and colleagues from across our organisation.

The post holder will have at least one years experience of working with people with eating disorders and/ or mental health difficulties. A good understanding of the pathways and services is an advantage and full induction and training will be provided to ensure quality and safe services are delivered.

You will be working with university students 18 years plus. The opportunity to deliver workshops and training to outside organisations is also part of the role.

About us

We are experts by experience, a quality-assured,research-based specialist eating disorder provider, and a leading light workingas an integrated partner in the health and education environments.

Trailblazersin innovative service redesign, continuously benchmarking ourselves against thebest eating disorders service models world-wide to ensure that the people whoapproach us, receive evidence-based care, support, and the real possibilitythat recovery is achievable for eating disorders and people are no longerdefined by their illness.

Our multidisciplinary staff work across a range ofprimary and secondary care pathways employing the NHS Care Programme Approachas an Integrated Community Service for patients with Severe and Enduring EatingDisorders (SEED) focused on delivering shared care arrangements working withCAMHS and Adults, CYP-CEDS and ACEDS teams we deliver admission avoidance anddischarge planning through effective step up and step-down care.

Our multidisciplinary team is trauma informedand takes a compassionate, person centred, family-based approach to the supportwe provide and have the skills and expertise to develop new services or adaptedservices to meet specific unmet needs and demands with a focus on joined upcare.

You will be joining a team of 100+ staff, bank staff and befrienders who receive the same training, supervision, and continued professional development where your skills and passion to help others is recognised and valued by all stakeholders.

Job description

Job responsibilities

DUTIESAND RESPONSIBILITIES

Service

1.Managea caseload of univesity students who access our services.

2.Arrangeand conduct initial assessment appointments, assessing the most appropriateservices and provide the relevant options available.

3.Planand facilitate a programme of psychoeducation workshops in the agreed communityand stakeholder locations.

4.SupportNHS Primary Care and Secondary Care referrals to our service.

5.Developa rapport with stakeholders to build appropriate person-centred support plansand risk assessments which will detail their full range of needs.

6.Liaisewith community teams to contribute towards decision making, helping to ensurean inclusive approach is always maintained.

7.Ensureservices are well planned and promoted to the relevant organisations tomaximise intake of the commissioned services available.

8.Positivelypromote the service by participating in community activities and working withother local services, contributing to a greater understanding of disorderedeating and eating disorders and body image.

9.Safeguardand ensure the quality of care of the service user and where appropriateparents/carers.

10.Undertakerisk assessment and risk management for service users, working in collaborationwith other care team members to manage risks identified.

11.Towork as a full and active member of the multidisciplinary team.

Training,and Supervision

1. To receive regularclinical, professional, and managerial supervision and where appropriate, othersenior professional colleagues and line managers as appropriate.

2. To attendpost-qualification training (CPD) opportunities and contribute to the coachingof trainee students and volunteers attached to the service, as appropriate andin consultation with the Clinical Supervisor.

undertake trainingand provide training (, CBT, peer support) for other qualified andunqualified staff, user groups and volunteers as required and commensurate withexperience.

4.To maintain and develop skills in the area of professional competencies.

Management,policy and service development

1. To contribute to theevaluation and monitoring of organisational practices and policy within theservice.

2. To provide andmaintain adequate statistics and records of work as required by the organisation.

3. Exercises delegatedresponsibility for the safe, appropriate use of care plan material and otherequipment deployed in the post holders area of duty. Inform managers ofequipment and resources needed to maintain work undertaken and any shortcomingswith these.

4. To participate asappropriate in staff recruitment, both in the short-listing process and as amember of interview panels for assistant, trainee and qualified Psychotherapistsand Specialist Support Officers.

5. To contribute to thedevelopment of Services in discussion with the Clinical Supervisor.

6. To represent PeerSupport and attend relevant meetings and professional activities by agreementwith the Clinical Supervisor.

7. To inform the ClinicalSupervisor of those aspects of the service where therapeutic and/ororganisational matters need addressing.

Researchand service evaluation

1. To utilise theory,evidence-based literature to support evidence-based practice in individual workwith other team members and colleagues within supervision groups.

2. To undertake serviceevaluation, with colleagues within the service to help develop service provision.

Generaland Professional

1. To contribute to thedevelopment and maintenance of the highest professional standards of practice,through active participation in internal and external CPD training anddevelopment programmes, in consultation with the post holders professional andservice manager(s).

2. To contribute to thedevelopment and articulation of best practice across the service, by continuingto develop the skills of a reflexive and reflective practitioner, taking part inregular professional supervision and appraisal, and maintaining an activeengagement with current developments in the field of eating disorder peersupport and related disciplines.

3. To maintain up to dateknowledge of legislation, national and local policies, and issues in relationto both the specific service user group and mental health.

4. To ensure higheststandards of appropriate clinical record keeping are maintained in accordancewith the codes of practise of a recognised governing body, and NHS commissionedcontract, and with organisations policies and procedures and to be able to doso in electronic format if required.

5. To supply all clinicalinformation within the required timescales to keep data on the electronicinformation system up to date.

6. To establish andmaintain close working relationships with other professional groups anddisciplines and participate in meetings as required.

CODEOF CONDUCT

Allstaff are required to work in accordance with their professional groups codeof conduct.

Thisjob description is intended as a basic guide to the scope and responsibilitiesof the post and is not exhaustive. It will be subject to regular review andamendment as necessary in consultation with the post holder.

Inaddition to undertaking the duties as outlined above, the post-holder will beexpected to fully adhere to the following:

PersonalDevelopment

1.Toactively participate in an annual performance review (appraisal) and thedevelopment and implementation of a personal development plan.

2.To take responsibility for theirown professional development ensuring professional standards are maintained andstatutory and mandatory training is in date.

3.Toattend any training as requested.

4.Touphold the principles and values set out in the organisations policies andStaff Handbook.

5.To support the organisation indeveloping an effective work/life balance for employees that meets the needs ofthe organisation.

6.Toensure that the health and wellbeing of service users is at the centre of all activitiesand that all staff engage and communicate with service users as appropriate.

7.Toalways promote quality and safety of service users, visitors and staff thusenabling the organisation to meet its regulation requirements that relate mostdirectly to service users and strive for continuous quality improvement.

EqualOpportunities/Diversity

1.Toobserve First Steps ED and all Partner organisations relating to the Servicesbeing delivered under NHS Contracts, Equal Opportunities Policy providingequality of treatment and opportunity to employees, service users and serviceproviders irrespective of sex, sexuality, age, marital status, ethnic origin ordisability.

Health and Safety

1. To takeresponsibility for the health and safety of themselves and other persons whomay be affected by their omissions or actions at work.

2.Topromote the organisations Health and Safety Policy and ensure matters aremanaged in accordance with it.

3.Tocooperate with the organisation to ensure that statutory and service regulationsare adhered to.

4.Reportaccidents, incidents and near misses, implementing corrective action wherenecessary.

Confidentialityand Data Security

1.Tocomply fully with the duties and responsibilities outlined in the organisationInformation Governance policy.

2.To comply with the Data ProtectionAct 1998, NHS Confidentiality guidelines ( Caldicott), and any code of practiceon Confidentiality and Data Protection as accepted by the organisation. Codes of practice andprocedures for confidentiality are available from the Chief Executive and full training isprovided to all staff at request.

3.To ensure that all informationcollected, stored, and used is done so in compliance with the above legislations, standards, andany relevant organisation Policy.

4.Topreserve the confidentiality of any information regarding service users, staffrecords in your area (in connection with their employment) and the organisationsbusiness. This obligation shall continue in perpetuity.

5.Toraise any matters of concern with your line manager.

Safeguarding

1.Torecognise that promoting the welfare and safeguarding children, young peopleand adults is everyones business and access training and supervision asappropriate to the role.

2.Tosupport the organisation in ensuring service users are protected from abuse orthe risk of abuse and their human rights are respected and upheld.

3.Toensure concerns are responded to appropriately in line with the organisationsconcerns and safeguarding policy for Adults and Children, in line with relevantlegislation.

4.Tocomply with recruitment and other checks as requested by the organisationincluding undertaking an Enhanced Disclosure via the Criminal Records Bureau.

Other

1.To beaware of and work in line with all organisation policies and procedures.

2. Tocarry out any other tasks as reasonably directed.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

Educated to Level 2 GCSE, NVQ, O Level grade C or above

Desirable

Post-graduate diploma or higher degree in a relevant discipline CBT certificate or qualification. Recent delivery experience in the provision of both long-term and time-limited, focussed evidence-based eating disorders service models

---