Specialist Health Care Navigator in North East

Join our Specialist Health Care Navigation (Enhanced Reconnect) team and help improve health outcomes for people leaving prison. You’ll support individuals with complex needs as they prepare for release and settle back into the community, providing structured support, advocacy, coaching, and clear coordination with health and wellbeing services. Your work will reduce health inequalities, strengthen engagement with community care, and contribute to reducing health‑related reoffending—empowering people to rebuild their wellbeing and return safely to independent living.

Client Support & Navigation

• Provide Specialist Health Care Navigation to individuals pre‑ and post‑release from North East prisons and courts.
• Complete screening and care‑mapping assessments, developing personalised support plans.
• Deliver tailored 1:1 and group interventions, promoting independent self‑management.
• Use a coaching approach to help individuals manage release planning and healthcare needs.

Multi‑Agency Working

• Work within integrated mental health teams and collaborate with statutory and non‑statutory services.
• Attend multidisciplinary meetings and maintain strong professional relationships to ensure continuity of care.
• Support health promotion, planning and delivering wellbeing events with colleagues and partners.

Professional Standards & Record Keeping

• Maintain accurate, timely and professional notes on clinical systems in line with local and national requirements.
• Uphold high professional boundaries, solution‑focused practice, and organisational values.
• Communicate clearly and confidentially with clients, colleagues, and external stakeholders.

Workload & Time Management

• Work autonomously in a high‑volume, fast‑paced environment with time‑limited caseloads.
• Meet activity targets, manage competing demands, and respond effectively to deadlines.
• Use diary planning to optimise time and resources.

Reflection, Supervision & Development

• Use supervision for guidance, clarity, and continuous improvement.
• Engage in reflective practice to identify strengths and development needs.
• Complete mandatory training and additional learning as required.
• Maintain integrity, transparency, and a flexible, pragmatic approach to service delivery.

Essential Skills And Experience

• NVQ Level 3 (or equivalent) in a relevant area such as Health & Social Care or Mental Health.
• 2+ years’ experience supporting vulnerable individuals through 1:1 and/or group interventions.
• Strong knowledge of health, social care, housing, debt, courts, mental health, substance misuse and criminal justice systems.
• Confident delivering structured, time‑limited support, maintaining professional boundaries.
• Skilled in completing assessments, developing and reviewing risk management and support plans, using clinical outcomes to guide practice.
• Respectful, patient and non‑discriminatory approach, valuing individual life experiences and diversity.
• Excellent communication skills (verbal and written) and ability to stay calm under pressure.
• Strong time management and ability to prioritise workload effectively.
• Proficient in Microsoft Office and database systems.
• Holds a full UK driving licence and access to transport.
• Engages well in supervision, reflective practice and ongoing learning to improve skills.
• Able to build positive professional relationships and seek guidance appropriately to ensure safe, high‑quality support.

If you’re passionate about empowering individuals, reducing stigma, and improving mental health outcomes, we’d love to hear from you!

Why Work With Rethink Mental Illness?

At Rethink Mental Illness, we believe that when you feel supported, you can make the biggest difference. That’s why we offer a range of benefits to help you thrive:

• Inclusive Culture: Join staff networks that champion diversity and inclusion.
• Wellbeing Support: Access our Wellbeing Hub, Employee Assistance Programme, and the Unmind mental health app.
• Recognition & Rewards: Enjoy discounts, cashback offers, and celebrate achievements through our PULSE platform.
• Flexible Working & Generous Leave: Starting at 25 days annual leave (plus bank holidays and your birthday off), with options to buy or sell extra days.
• Learning & Development: Grow your career with structured onboarding and training opportunities.
• Financial & Family Support: Contributory pension scheme, enhanced family leave, and travel benefits like season ticket loans and cycle‑to‑work schemes.
• Referral Bonus: Earn up to £300 for introducing someone to our team.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion

Diversity is important to us, and we appreciate difference through difference, inclusiveness and belonging. It gives us a deeper understanding of the world, our society and the diverse communities we’re working with. By including everyone, we are able to draw on the unique experiences and expertise of our people to help shape and enrich our workplace and improve our services.

We recognise and support staff networks and support groups for our ethnically diverse and LGBTQIA+ colleagues. We are also proud to have been awarded Disability Confident Employer status and are a signatory to the Business in the Community Race at Work Charter. We aim for our workforce to reflect the diversity of the communities we serve; for those who work for us to feel heard, valued and feel they belong; and for our work to help tackle wider mental health inequalities. We therefore actively encourage and welcome applications from everyone, including applicants with lived experience of mental illness, those who are Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer or Questioning, Intersex, Asexual and any other gender identity not expressed here (LGBTQIA+); people who are neurodiverse, have a health condition, or a disability or hidden disability and people from an ethnically diverse background - regardless of your age, religious or spiritual belief, sexual orientation, marital status, veteran status, pregnancy, political view or socio-economic status.

Becoming a truly anti‑racist organisation

We have an ambition of become a truly anti‑racist employer, campaigning organisation and service provider -and in our efforts to influence policy and wider societal factors impacting on mental health set out in our anti‑racist statement. We have designed a multi-year anti‑racist programme of work contained in our Race Equality Action Plan which demonstrates our intention to hold ourselves accountable and be judged on our progress on becoming a truly anti‑racist organisation.