School Based Counsellor in Briton Ferry

Location of post: Various schools across the authority.

Contract type: Temporary.

Hours: 22.5 hours per week, 40 weeks per year.

Your workstyle in this role will be a frontline/community based worker. We are currently looking for a School Based Counsellor to join our team. This post has arisen as a result of maternity leave within the team and therefore funding for this post is until May 1st 2027 or when the substantive post holder returns, whichever is soonest.

Neath Port Talbot School Based Counselling Service (NPT SBCS) is a multi-modality team of therapists comprised of School Based Counsellors, Play Therapists and a Drama Therapist. NPT SBCS is committed to helping Children and Young People (CYP) address emotional and mental health issues so that they may rise through adversity, achieve their potential and lead fulfilling lives. This is achieved through the provision of counselling and child therapy to CYP in Years 1-13 across NPT.

Counsellors and Play Therapists provide targeted therapy to CYP in order to address a range of emotional and mental health issues. We support schools in this joint endeavour through consultation, support and high quality in house training which is available to head teachers, school Governors, teaching and non-teaching staff. Additionally, the service is passionate about addressing school staff wellbeing due to the well documented link between staff wellbeing and pupil wellbeing, thorough initiatives such as the School Staff Supervision Service and School Staff Counselling Service.

We are seeking to appoint a dedicated and innovative qualified Counsellor to work with pupils from Years 1-13 across primary and secondary schools within Neath Port Talbot. Some work may also be undertaken outside of school hours and outside the school setting. In addition to providing direct counselling, you will have an important role in delivering group work where needed. You will also run workshops with groups of children and young people and deliver training when required. You will play an integral part in developing the School Based Counselling Service within the authority, including collaborative working with other staff within the Inclusion Service and taking part in multi-disciplinary consultations with schools. Enhancing the skills of school based staff will also be an important element of the post.

What current team members say about working in NPT SBCS:

• ‘It is certainly true that no day in this job is the same I have been working as a School Based Counsellor for three years now and find the role is stimulating and highly rewarding. It is a privilege to be able to work with children and young people therapeutically and to be part of a team that is supportive and allows space for individuality and creative ways of working.’
• ‘A day in the life of a school counsellor is rich in the range in client presentations, challenging, rewarding and varied.’
• ‘I am so proud of what we do as a team’
• ‘The culture of the service is warm and supportive and a place that you feel heard. It is open to individuality with an abundance of knowledge and skills. We come together to help each other to achieve the best outcomes while making good friends in the process.’

We welcome applications from those who hold a Professional Diploma in Counselling and are accredited/registered with the BACP or UKCP or equivalent. You may also have:

• Experience of counselling in an education environment.
• Experience of working with school aged children.
• A thorough knowledge of Child Protection and Safeguarding procedures.

On completing the application form, please ensure that you address the elements of the Person Specification. We believe in rewarding and recognising our colleagues’ efforts and achievements. We also believe that there’s life at work and life outside of work. We want everyone to be healthy and happy and have the financial resources and support they need.

Choose to work for us and you’ll be rewarded with a range of attractive benefits and support to help you live your best life:

• Hybrid working (in some roles) and flexible working schemes to improve your work life balance.
• Benefit from a competitive employee package with a remarkable 22.4% employer pension contribution.
• Enjoy a holiday entitlement of 25 days, increasing to 32 days after 5 years’ service (not forgetting the additional 8 bank holidays too).
• Access discounted gym membership with Celtic Leisure.
• Utilise the cycle to work scheme with up to 40% off bikes and cycling equipment.
• Purchase a new car through Tusker salary sacrifice scheme.
• Enjoy exclusive discounts at local and national retailers with the Smart Spend app through our staff wellbeing group.

If you would like to start a rewarding career with a company that values and invests in its employees and you have the necessary experience and qualifications, this could be your dream job and we would love to hear from you.

Should you require any further information, please contact Rhian Miller, School Based Counselling Service Manager to arrange an informal discussion.

This post is subject to an enhanced with child barred list DBS disclosure. Neath Port Talbot Council is totally committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people/vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Our schools/employees are equally committed to ensuring the safety and protection of all children and young people/vulnerable adults and will take action to safeguard their wellbeing. The recruitment process for this post will be underpinned by rigorous safer recruitment assessment to ensure that children and young people are protected.

Welsh Language skills are desirable. Applications may be submitted in Welsh; applications submitted in Welsh will not be treated less favourably than an application submitted in English.

We offer a guaranteed interview scheme for candidates who have a disability and armed forces veterans. In support of employees of Tata Steel who are at risk of redundancy, or have been made redundant in 2024, Neath Port Talbot Council is offering a guaranteed interview for jobs across the Council. Please note that applicants must meet all the essential criteria, as shown in the person specification, to qualify for a guaranteed interview. If you are or going to be affected by the job losses at Tata Steel then we would welcome an application from you. Just make it known on your application form that you are currently at risk of redundancy or you have been made redundant.

At Team NPT, we all work together to serve the people, communities and businesses of Neath Port Talbot. We are committed to providing training opportunities and the professional development of all our employees. We look forward to welcoming you to Team NPT.