Senior Practitioner in Wakefield

37.5 hours per week - fixed term until December 2026. Are you passionate about children and young people’s mental health? Do you enjoy sharing your knowledge of how to support children and young people with colleagues within the education sector?

Our Future in Mind (MHST) is a growing and developing service within Wakefield which aims to provide early intervention to improve the lives of children and young people experiencing mild to moderate emotional and mental health needs. Due to additional funding we are looking to recruit an enthusiastic practitioner to join our friendly and supportive team. Applicants will need to hold a professional registration with post qualification experience of working with children and young people with emotional and mental health needs is essential whilst knowledge and experience of the education system is desirable. Informal enquiries are encouraged. Please contact Kate McNulty, Team Manager for more information. All employees of the Trust are strongly encouraged to have their up-to-date flu vaccination to protect staff and patients.

Main duties of the job

• Delivering evidenced based interventions to children, young people, parents/carers through individual and group work.
• Delivering psychoeducation sessions to children, young people, parents/carers through assemblies, classroom and parent sessions.
• Ensuring children/young people play an active part in decision making about the support they need.
• Providing advice/consultation to education staff to support children/young people getting the right help at the right time.
• Developing local knowledge of services particularly in relation to mental health issues to enable effective signposting and planning.
• Supporting education settings in developing and embedding whole school approaches to mental health through collaboration and coproduction with the school community.
• Participating in the delivery of training programmes for education settings and community services.
• Completing CYP-IAPT supervision training and providing clinical supervision to EMHPs.

Temporary sponsorship

While this role meets the eligibility requirements for Skilled Worker sponsorship, due to the short-term nature of the contract, the Trust will not be offering sponsorship for this post. We welcome applications from individuals who already have the right to work in the UK or are on a visa route that permits employment without sponsorship. Such applications will be considered alongside all others.

About the Employer

South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Trust is a specialist NHS Foundation Trust providing community, mental health and learning disability services. We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expect all colleagues to share this commitment. We reserve the right to close vacancy before the advertised closing date if necessary.

Job responsibilities

• The post holder will work as part of the Wakefield Mental Health Support Team (MHST) to manage a defined caseload with a focus on providing comprehensive assessment, consultation and evidence-based interventions for children and young people with mental health difficulties and their parents/carers.
• Support Educational Mental Health Practitioners (EMHPs) with developing their clinical practice, psychological formulation and school engagement.
• Provide Case Management and Clinical Skills Supervision to trainee/EMHPs (training may be provided).
• Work flexibly across a range of education providers and participate in joint working initiatives and adapt to changes in a growing service.

Key Result Areas

• Deliver a range of evidence-based mental health interventions with CYP and some parent-led interventions; facilitate group interventions; provide specialist mental health-based consultation; coordinate clinical care including safeguarding and risk; identify emerging needs; promote access to Wakefield MHST; establish therapeutic relationships; plan reviews within required timeframes; inform relevant parties of care plan changes; liaise with CYP/families, local authorities, and other bodies; manage care plans and maintain records; undertake assessments and monitoring of outcomes.
• Contribute to service development, share clinical skills, deliver person-centred care, communicate with stakeholders, participate in team meetings, maintain relationships, engage in audits and quality improvement, and adhere to governance.
• Ensure practice is evidence-based, participate in supervision, manage diary and caseload, maintain records, undertake mandatory training, abide by policies, and engage in appraisal and development.
• Provide supervision and caseload management to new EMHP/CYWP practitioners and trainees, mentor learners where appropriate.
• May have limited financial responsibilities; use resources efficiently and report concerns regarding misuse.

For full details of the role please see the attached supporting documents.

Person Specification

Essential: A good understanding of evidence-based, low intensity interventions for mild to moderate mental health difficulties; understanding of safeguarding and multi-agency work; CYP-IAPT principles; excellent communication; ability to manage caseload; IT skills; teamwork; problem-solving; client-facing skills; documentation and risk assessment capability.

Desirable: Understanding of the Green Paper initiative and MHST function.

Experience

Essential: Substantial post qualification experience with CYP and carers in mental health/community settings; experience in Primary Care/MHST/CAMHS; caseload management; risk assessment; CBT experience; working with parents or adults; collaboration with educational settings; clinical supervision; cross-agency work; Early Intervention/Prevention; service delivery via digital platforms.

Training

Essential: Experience delivering training to diverse audiences.

Personal Attributes

Essential: Ability to work autonomously and in a team; commitment to multi-agency approach; decision making under pressure; calm, confident, innovative; flexible; inclusive; crisis-capable; strong self-care; driving licence and access to a car during the working day.

Physical Attributes

Essential: Ability to undertake duties; satisfactory sickness record for the past 2 years.

Qualifications

Essential: Registered Wellbeing Practitioner (PWP/CWP/EMHP) or Registered Mental Health Practitioner (NMC/HCPC) or Registered Social Worker or KSA equivalent accreditation. Desirable: CYP-IAPT CBT/EMHP supervisor training or willingness to undertake.

Disclosure and Registration

This post is subject to Disclosure and Barring Service checks and requires current UK professional registration.

Employer details

South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Trust, Fieldhead Hospital, Ouchthorpe Lane, Wakefield, WF1 3SP. Website: https://www.southwestyorkshire.nhs.uk