Forensic Community Care Coordinator

South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust has a rich history, well-established community links and an international reputation. We deliver specialist services in the London boroughs of Croydon, Lambeth, Lewisham and Southwark, Bexley, Bromley, Greenwich, Wandsworth and Richmond. We are committed to providing high quality and specialist care to our service users and we are recognised for the care and treatment we provide. The Care Quality Commission rates our services as ‘good’. We launched our five-year strategy, Aiming High; Changing Lives in 2021 together with Our Care Improvement System as our quality management system methodology to make a positive impact on patient care, outcomes and staff experience. By joining SLaM, all staff will get the opportunity to be part of this exciting improvement journey supported with learning and development to harness everyone’s potential as change makers.

The trust recognises the unique and valuable contribution that people with lived experience of mental illness can bring to a role. We therefore welcome applications from people with lived experience and consider them as an asset to the Trust.

Our Values

We take pride in providing specialist care to our service users where our Trust values and our promise to be caring, kind, polite, prompt, honest, listen and do what I say I’m going to do is at the heart of everything we do. When you join us, you’ll be part of something special. As a Trust we are happy to talk flexible working.

Job overview

We are looking for an enthusiastic and proactive forensic care coordinator to join our community forensic team based at Queens Resource Centre in Croydon. The forensic community team aims to provide assessment, treatment, rehabilitation and aftercare to those service users with a mental disorder and associated offending behaviour. The level of service involvement will be determined by a combination of a service user’s current mental health, historical factors, the nature of offending behaviour and the degree of risk posed, as well as the specific criteria of the local service.

Main duties of the job

• Provide care coordination and case management to defined caseload of service users with offending history within the framework of the Care Programme Approach (CPA).
• Care co-ordinate mentally disordered offenders in the least restrictive setting.
• Oversee/monitor and coordinate the discharge of mentally disordered offenders from secure forensic inpatient settings.
• Ensure the safe and sustainable transition of service user to the community from secure care.
• Provide care and support for patients requiring specialist interventions to address mental health and criminogenic needs, and to reduce the risk of relapse and reoffending.
• Provide consultation and training to local mental health teams and external agencies.
• Safely manage the transition from forensic community services to general adult community services.

Person specification

Qualifications

• Recognised Professional Qualification in Mental Health Nursing or Social Care Degree or Master level.

Experience

• Experience of research based/reflective practice, e.g. understanding and ability to use supervision to reflect on skills, attitude and knowledge and develop these by using evidence-based practice.
• Significant relevant clinical experience.
• Evidence of continuing professional development.
• Experience as a preceptor / mentor.
• Knowledge of clinical governance and audit.
• Knowledge of relevant Professional and Clinical legislation.
• Experience of taking responsibility for a ward / clinical unit.
• Experience of engaging / supporting clinical research projects.
• Experience of supporting practice development in clinical areas.
• Experience of teaching, e.g. lecturer practitioner/preceptorship.
• Experience of recruitment and selection of staff.

Knowledge and skills

• Able to provide quality care that is responsive to service user’s needs.
• Teaching ability.
• Resilient: able to cope with difficult interpersonal situations.
• Approachable.
• Self-aware, self-confident and intrinsically motivated to do a good job and to motivate others.
• Problem solving, ability to identify problems, review options and take appropriate action without a predetermined framework.

The Trust is committed to providing services which embrace diversity and that promote equality of opportunity. We are a Disability Confident Employer, we welcome applicants from all sections of the community and people of all protected characteristics. We provide reasonable adjustments for candidates with a disability and are committed to treating people fairly with compassion, respect and dignity and in promoting equality and human rights. We aim to put this commitment into practice by:

• Embedding our commitment to tackling inequality, eliminating discrimination and harassment; promoting equality of opportunity and fostering good relations in our everyday practice.
• Ensuring that all our services and all staff understand and support our commitment.
• We believe that people who use our services, their carers and our staff, should be treated with compassion, respect and dignity.

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.