At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead a dynamic team providing proactive support to individuals with severe mental illness in their communities.
- Company: Join a compassionate organisation dedicated to high-quality mental health care.
- Benefits: Professional development opportunities and a supportive multidisciplinary environment.
- Other info: This role requires face-to-face engagement; remote work is not an option.
- Why this job: Make a real difference in people's lives while shaping a new model of care.
- Qualifications: Registered mental health professional with leadership experience and strong crisis management skills.
The predicted salary is between 47810 - 54710 £ per year.
An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Band 7 Team Lead to join our newly established Assertive Outreach Team (AOT) in Hillingdon. This is a key leadership role within a transformational model of care, designed to support individuals with severe mental illness who are at risk of disengagement and require intensive, proactive community-based support. This is a high-impact, community-focused role, where you will lead a team delivering care directly to patients in their homes and local communities, ensuring no one is lost to follow-up.
The Assertive Outreach Team (AOT) role is fundamentally a patient-facing position, focused on engaging and managing individuals who are often reluctant to engage with services. Given the nature of this work, requiring proactive outreach, direct contact, and consistent face-to-face intervention, the role is not suitable for remote or hybrid working arrangements.
Main duties of the job:
- Provide clinical and operational leadership to a multidisciplinary outreach team
- Ensure delivery of high-intensity, assertive engagement, including home visits and community-based care
- Lead on risk management, safety planning and complex clinical decision-making for a high-risk cohort
- Deliver and embed a model based on proactive, flexible contact with patients
- Provide line management, supervision and support to team members
- Oversee team performance, caseloads and quality of care delivery
- Work collaboratively with CMHT/CMHH, Crisis Teams, inpatient services and partner agencies to ensure coordinated care pathways
- Go out to patients and maintain engagement when others disengage
- Provide practical support that prevents crisis
Working for our organisation:
The Team is committed to delivering safe, compassionate and high-quality care across all services. The Assertive Outreach Team is a new and developing service, offering:
- The opportunity to shape and lead a new model of care
- A strong focus on patient safety, engagement and outcomes
- A supportive multidisciplinary environment with clear leadership oversight
- Opportunities for professional development within a growing Trust-wide model
Detailed job description and main responsibilities:
- Registered mental health professional (e.g. RMN, OT, Social Worker)
- Experience working with complex mental health needs and high-risk patients
- Experience of clinical leadership, supervision and team management
- Strong skills in risk assessment, care planning and crisis management
- Experience of community-based or outreach working
- Driving licence and access to a vehicle for work
- Experience in assertive outreach, crisis or urgent care services
- Experience of service development or transformation
Person specification:
Education & Qualifications:
- Registered professional qualification (e.g. RMN, OT, Social Worker or equivalent)
- Current professional registration (NMC, HCPC, Social Work England)
- Evidence of post-registration training relevant to mental health / community services
- Leadership or management qualification or training
- Training in Psychosocial Interventions
- Training in other relevant psychosocial interventions
- Counselling qualification
Experience:
- Significant experience working with individuals with complex mental health needs and high risk
- Experience of working with disengaged or hard-to-engage service users in a community setting
- Experience of risk assessment, safety planning and crisis management
- Experience of leading or supervising staff within a clinical team
- Experience of operational management (e.g. rota management, performance, workload oversight)
- Experience of multi-disciplinary and multi-agency working
- Experience of service development or mobilisation of new models of care
- Experience in assertive outreach, crisis services or urgent care settings
You must have appropriate UK professional registration. This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.
Senior Assertive Outreach Practitioner employer: CNWL
Join our newly established Assertive Outreach Team in Hillingdon, where you will have the unique opportunity to shape a transformative model of care for individuals with severe mental illness. We pride ourselves on fostering a supportive and collaborative work culture that prioritises patient safety and engagement, while also offering robust professional development opportunities within a growing Trust-wide framework. As a key leader in this high-impact role, you will be instrumental in delivering compassionate, community-based support, ensuring that no one is lost to follow-up.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Senior Assertive Outreach Practitioner
✨Dive into Local Community Groups
Social work thrives on community connections, so get involved in local groups or forums specific to your interests. Whether it’s volunteering at local shelters or joining community action boards, these are great ways to boost your visibility and make direct contacts that could lead to opportunities like the one at CNWL.
✨Attend Social Work Events and Workshops
Keep an eye out for workshops, seminars, or conferences in social work. These events are fantastic for meeting professionals in the field, learning about emerging trends, and spotting job openings. Plus, you might just bump into someone from CNWL!
✨Showcase Your Passion and Expertise
Use platforms like Instagram or LinkedIn to share your journey and insights into the social work sector. Whether it’s writing about your experiences or sharing relevant articles, this helps to establish you as an engaged professional. Potential employers, like CNWL, will notice your enthusiasm!
✨Leverage Your Network
Don’t hesitate to reach out to professors, mentors, or even past colleagues who are in social work. They might have inside knowledge about openings at CNWL or be able to connect you with someone who’s hiring. Networking is key, especially in a full-time role where relationships matter.
We think you need these skills to ace Senior Assertive Outreach Practitioner
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show Your Passion for Social Work:In your cover letter, let us see your passion for social work shine through! Talk about the experiences that made you want to pursue this career—whether it’s volunteering, personal experiences, or academic projects. We want to know why this field matters to you.
Emphasise Relevant Qualifications:Make sure your CV highlights any relevant qualifications, like degrees in social work or certifications like a DBS check. If you've done any workshops or training, don’t forget to include those as well. We're keen to see your commitment to your professional development!
Detail Your Experience with Clients:Since this is a hands-on field, detailing any direct experience you have with clients is crucial. Whether it's internships, volunteer roles, or previous jobs, highlight those experiences in your CV to show us you've got the practical skills necessary for the job!
Tailor Your Application to CNWL:Before hitting send, make sure to tailor your application specifically to CNWL! Research our mission and values, and refer to them in your cover letter. This shows us that you understand our work and are genuinely interested in being a part of our team!
How to prepare for a job interview at CNWL
✨Understanding the Role of Empathy
In social work, understanding and demonstrating empathy is key. Be prepared to share personal experiences or scenarios where you effectively showed compassion and support. This helps show that you genuinely care about the well-being of others, which is crucial in social work.
✨Demonstrating Knowledge of Frameworks
Familiarise yourself with the frameworks and models used in social work, such as the Strengths-Based Approach or the Ecological Perspective. Be ready to discuss how these frameworks apply to your work, especially if you can tie them into real-world examples or case studies you've encountered.
✨Showcasing Your Multi-Disciplinary Skills
In a full-time social work role, you'll often collaborate with healthcare professionals, educators, and law enforcement. Be prepared to describe your teamwork experiences and how you've effectively communicated with other disciplines to achieve the best outcomes for clients.
✨Preparing for Scenario-Based Questions
Expect questions that put you in hypothetical social work situations, such as dealing with a crisis or managing a complex case. Think through your thought process for these scenarios beforehand, considering how you'd assess the situation and what steps you'd take, as this demonstrates your critical thinking and problem-solving abilities.
