Consultant - Child and Adolescent Mental Health in Liverpool

Following a significant redesign, and a new model of care which will support all children and young people to thrive, Jersey CAMHS is looking to recruit an additional consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist to join our multi-disciplinary team. The successful applicant will join the three existing consultants. This is an exciting time to join CAMHS with the launch of the service redesign and significant investment into the service. There is opportunity for private practice and a chance to make a real difference to patient outcomes.

The Government of Jersey is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of vulnerable people (to include children) and requires all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. As this position will work with vulnerable people, the selection process will involve safeguarding measures and include an enhanced DBS check.

The post holders will be expected to take on the full range of duties including the routine and emergency diagnosis and management of children and young people with significant mental health problems (up to the age of 18), the support of other team members and providing consultation and advice to other agencies. Successful applicants will be encouraged to develop a special interest and could take a clinical lead in one of the following areas:

• Eating Disorders
• Assessment & Crisis Intervention
• Neurodevelopmental Disorders
• Transition

The service has expanded and continues to develop its service delivery to meet the needs of the community. As a senior clinician you will have opportunity to shape the service and influence child mental health more widely on the island. The CAMHS clinics are based at Liberte House, St Helier which is in main central parish. The post-holder may also be required to see Children and Young People who have been admitted to Jersey General Hospital or Orchard Ward (mental health in-patient facility).

In-patient Provision: There is no designated inpatient provision on island but the team provide flexible intensive packages of care for children and young people with severe or complex mental health difficulties. The packages of care can be provided both for assessment and treatment working jointly with other services including Paediatrics, Adult Mental Health and Children’s Services (Social Care). Both the paediatric ward (Robin Ward) and acute adult mental health ward (Orchard Ward) are used for young people who require admission to hospital. Robin Ward will admit young people up to their 17th birthday. The postholder will be clinically responsible for young people admitted to Robin Ward and Orchard Ward under their care and will be expected to undertake reviews of these patients. All those under 16, and most under 18 admitted to Orchard Ward are cared for separately to the other in-patients if possible or are under continuous observation for safeguarding reasons. When necessary young people can be transferred to the UK for inpatient treatment.

Person specification

Essential Criteria

• Recognised Primary Medical Degree
• Full GMC Registration & License to Practice
• Registered on the GMC Specialist Register or CCT in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (or within 6 months of this at the time of interview) or equivalent (which must be confirmed by GMC)
• Higher speciality training or equivalent experience
• Eligibility for Section 12 approval (Mental Health Law Approval)

Desirable

• MRCPsych or equivalent
• Relevant higher degree, e.g. MD, PhD, MSc or other additional clinical qualifications
• Section 12 approval or equivalent
• Dual accreditation e.g. Forensic, Learning Disability

Responsibilities and Expectations of the Postholders

The post holder will be expected to:

• Work with children and young people with acute mental health presentations including self-harm, suicidal ideation, low mood and psychotic symptoms and providing support to other members of the team in managing this group during periods of crisis.
• Diagnose and manage common psychiatric disorders using both psychological and pharmacological therapies.
• Work with young people with mental health problems who have a history of alcohol and substance misuse.
• Provide consultation and liaison to other medical specialities, Education, Social Services and other agencies.
• Develop and deliver training programmes for a variety of disciplines aimed at improving the level of expertise and the standard of care within the mental health services.
• Participate and contribute to the psychiatry teaching programme.
• Provide supervision for mental health and other professionals, and receive clinical supervision.
• Liaise and work effectively with others who provide services to children and young people as appropriate.
• Comply with Health and Care Jersey agreed policies and procedures.
• Work with managers and professional colleagues to ensure the efficient running of the services and to share with consultant colleagues the medical contribution to the management of the service.
• Participate in clinical governance activities and Quality Improvement including audit.

There is no requirement for Section 12(2) status and/or Approved Clinician status and/or DOL assessment. However, the postholder will be required to attend training to become an Approved Practitioner under the Mental Health (Jersey) Law 2016.

Population and CAMHS Caseload

The population of Jersey at the end of 2024 was estimated to be 104,540 with approximately 22,910 under the age of 19. The current number of cases open to CAMHS is 1885 at the end of 2025. The total number of new referrals received in 2025 was 906. The current postholder’s (locum) caseload is approximately 90. Most of the cases on the caseload will have an allocated care co-ordinator but there may be some exceptions to this. Most new assessments are undertaken by other members of the MDT, but some will require initial medical assessment. There are no fixed requirements for new assessments and follow up appointments. On average there may be 1-2 new assessments per week and 15-20 follow up appointments, depending on the complexity of the cases and other commitments. The postholder will be required to participate in the daytime (9am – 5pm) medical on call rota for 1-2 days per week. The initial duty response (including hospital liaison assessments) is made by the duty worker who will contact the doctor on call if required. With an expansion of our crisis services to cover the out of hours period there may be a requirement to provide medical cover for this in the future.

Annual leave, Study leave and Job Plan

Consultants are entitled to 30 days of annual leave increasing to 32 days after 7 years’ service (at Consultant level).