Senior Mental Health Practitioner (Nurse/OT/SW/Psychologist/Therapist) in St Leonards

Are you excited by the challenge of launching a new service? Following on from successful launches in Brighton and Crawley, the Reflect Primary Care Mental Health Treatment Requirement Service is ready to expand to Hastings / East Sussex. Reflect is commissioned by NHS England to provide Community Sentence Treatment Requirements in collaboration with the Probation Service and substance use services. The new team will provide Primary Care Mental Health Treatment Requirements for eligible people whose sentences are managed within East Sussex.

You will be based in the Hastings (St Leonard’s) Probation office and work closely with our partner agencies—the Probation Service and Change, Grow, Live (CGL)—to deliver high‑quality, evidence‑based psychologically informed interventions to an often high‑need and marginalised population. As Senior Mental Health Practitioner you will be central to the pathway, completing assessments and delivering psychologically informed interventions to the client group. You will have extensive experience in delivering evidence‑based brief psychological interventions, including work with complex presentations. You will support the team through formulation, training and supervision. Experience of working in the Criminal Justice System and primary care settings is advantageous but not essential.

Main Duties of the Job

• Completing the initial screening/assessment and agreeing suitability for an MHTR with the Clinical Lead;
• Delivering and supporting others to deliver outstanding brief psychologically informed interventions, in individual formats for the client group;
• Communicating with the Probation Practitioner and relevant partner services throughout the order;
• Attending the MHTR steering group and other locally appropriate governance structures.

You will have expertise in delivering evidence‑based brief psychological therapies, including working with complex presentations, and be able to support the team and others via formulation and training and by participating in systematic clinical governance.

Working for our Organisation

At Sussex Partnership we are committed to providing opportunities for flexible working. If you would like to work differently or in different hours from those advertised, please get in touch to discuss this in more detail.

Life in Sussex (Benefits)

• Journey from the coast to the countryside in minutes;
• Enjoy a lifestyle with renowned cycle routes and picturesque walks, including the famous South Downs Way in the South Downs National Park;
• Discover miles of scenic coastline, including Hastings, Bexhill on Sea and Eastbourne;
• Easy access to airports – Gatwick and Heathrow are both within 90 minutes of the county, providing links to Europe and beyond;
• Brighton and Hove or London are within easy reach via local and national bus routes and national mainline stations.

Detailed Job Description and Main Responsibilities

The post holder will be an autonomous practitioner who will carry continuing responsibility for a defined caseload of service users by undertaking the following duties:

• Operate as a specialist mental health practitioner, providing a specialised range of clinical interventions and demonstrating knowledge of models of practice and how to apply them;
• Provide specialist clinical assessment, formulation, intervention, review and be proficient in monitoring, evaluating and modifying treatment to measure progress and ensure effectiveness of interventions;
• Work closely with Probation and the Court Service and colleagues in the MHTR Service and other services within the Trust in a collaborative way, ensuring that decisions are made that ensure the best care for service users and that there is a seamless pathway;
• Contribute psychological knowledge and expertise to policy and service development through participation, where practical, in regional multidisciplinary meetings and special interest groups, working parties etc that may impact on the functioning of the service.

See attached JD and PS for full details of role. For further details about this role or to arrange an informal visit, please contact: Steve Eaton – Service Manager.

Person Specification

Qualifications – Essential Criteria

• Degree/Diploma in Occupational Therapy or Nursing or Social Work or a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology / Clinical training in a relevant Psychological Therapy;
• Evidence of post‑qualification study;
• Registration with the HPC as an occupational therapist / Clinical Psychologist / Social worker / Nurse‑NMC / Therapist UKCP or BACP.

Knowledge / Experience – Essential Criteria

• Extensive experience as a qualified mental health practitioner;
• Broad experience of working with clients with a range of mental health problems;
• Experience of supervising staff and students;
• Experience of multi‑agency work;
• Experience in applying a range of assessment tools and a comprehensive knowledge of clinical approaches.