Senior Practitioner in Sunderland

An exciting opportunity has arisen at Sunderland Counselling Service for an energetic individual with significant and demonstrable counselling experience post qualification working with children & young people. They will also have a qualification in, and experience of delivering, clinical supervision as well as experience of providing operational line management.

The post holder will be working in a STCCYPMHS locality base within South Tyneside and will be responsible for managing & co-ordinating a team of counsellors employed by Sunderland Counselling Service ensuring that targets and activity levels set out in the specification for the service are met. The post holder will be responsible for the delivery & development of the counselling, supervision & training components of the service. This will involve reviewing & being confident with data. They will carry a small case load of clients working with children & young people whose lives are, or have been, affected by events to such a level that it impacts upon their emotional and mental well-being.

The post holder will be entitled to 30 days annual leave at normal salary rate or pro rata for part of a year and entitlement to all statutory public holidays will be given at normal salary rate. The post holder will be employed full time on a fixed term contract for 12 months which will be subject to a probationary period of 6 months; continued employment will depend on project funding.

Main duties of the job

• Provide clinical leadership, oversight, guidance and decision making for STCCYPMHS counsellors, ensuring an ethical, safe & consistent service.
• Ensure that effective clinical governance arrangements are in place & adhered to throughout the service.
• Provide direct line management & case management for all salaried counsellors working within the service.
• Ensure that all counselling staff are appropriately supported, supervised, skilled & trained to deliver the services required.
• Provide assurance to service management of the safety, consistency & effectiveness of services provided, raising any issues or concerns with service management.
• Professionally represent Sunderland Counselling Service in all dealings with external agencies.
• Work as part of the senior management team within Sunderland Counselling Service, participating in team development, training and regular supervision sessions.
• Contribute to the further development and sustainability of the STCCYPMHS Counselling Service.
• Carry a small caseload of counselling clients, assessing the needs of children & young people in relation to their emotional and mental well-being and offering counselling.

About us

The successful candidate will be line managed through Sunderland Counselling Service, an independent local charity that has been established for over 40 years. It has a strong person centred ethic, and has grown into one of the leading IAPT (Improving Access to Psychological Therapies) providers for mental health across the North East of England.

Although you will be line managed through Sunderland Counselling Service, you will be working as part of a South Tyneside Community Children and Young People’s Mental Health Service (STCCAYPMHS) team, following all of their policies and procedures. This supportive team of people from different professional backgrounds works together to ensure that children and young people from 0-18 receive the support they need.

Sunderland Counselling Service may use Artificial Intelligence (AI) detection tools to identify whether an application has been completed using AI. We expect that AI may be used to enhance your application such as refining and clarifying your ideas and thoughts and checking for grammar and spelling. However, applications where AI has been used to invent or inflate your skills and experiences or create generic responses will be rejected. To verify you have written your application please add the following to the bottom of your application: "I confirm that the content of this application is my own work and has not been generated by artificial intelligence tools beyond basic editing or proofreading."

Job responsibilities

Sunderland Counselling Service is looking to employ a Senior Practitioner to work within South Tyneside Community Children and Young Peoples Mental Health Service (STCCYPMHS). They will report to Sunderland Counselling Service's Chief Executive. The post is full time - 37 1/2 hours a week with a yearly wage of £50,273.00. The post holder will be entitled to 30 days annual leave at normal salary rate or pro rata for part of a year. In addition, entitlement to all statutory public holidays will be given at normal salary rate. The post holder will be employed on a fixed term contract for 12 months which will be subject to a probationary period of 6 months; continued employment will depend on project funding.

The post holder will be working in a STCCYPMHS locality base within South Tyneside and will be responsible for managing and coordinating a team of STCCYPMHS counsellors who are employed by Sunderland Counselling Service. The post holder will be responsible for the delivery and development of the counselling, supervision and training components of the service. They will take primary responsibility for service development and will manage the team of counsellors to ensure that targets and activity levels set out in the specification for the service are met. This will involve reviewing and being confident with data. They will carry a small individual case load of clients and so will work with children and young people whose lives are, or have been, affected by events to such a level that it impacts upon their emotional and mental well-being.

The post holder will be called upon to use a personal means of transport while engaged in the work of the service for which travel expenses will be available.

Main Responsibilities of the post holder are:

• Providing clinical leadership, oversight, guidance and decision making for Community Children and Young Peoples Mental Health Service.
• Ensuring the safety and consistency of STCYPMHS Counselling Service.
• Ensuring safe and ethical practice is observed within the service.
• Ensuring that effective clinical governance arrangements are in place and adhered to throughout the service.
• Ensuring that all counselling staff are appropriately supported, supervised, skilled and trained to deliver the services required.
• Providing assurance to service management of the safety, consistency and effectiveness of services provided, raising any issues or concerns with service management.
• Providing direct line management and case management for all salaried counsellors working within the service.
• Being confident in the understanding and evaluation of data.
• Acting as a point of contact and guidance for any staff members needing clinical support or guidance.
• Providing operational guidance to all Sunderland Counselling Service counsellors.
• Coordinating regular team meetings to ensure safety and consistency of service and address any issues that arise.
• Liaising and working in partnership with other agencies to ensure clients receive effective and appropriate services.
• Observing the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) ethical framework and other guidance.
• Working as part of the senior management team within Sunderland Counselling Service, participating in team development, training and regular supervision sessions.
• Contributing to the further development and sustainability of the STCCYPMHS Counselling Service.
• Professionally represent Sunderland Counselling Service in all dealings with external agencies.
• Deputise for the Chief Executive when required.
• Assess the needs of children and young people in relation to their emotional and mental well-being and when appropriate provide individual counselling to children and young people.
• Encourage and support children and young people using the service, to enable them to address and manage the issues and associated problems that are affecting their mental and emotional well-being.
• Assist in the provision of an appropriate service for reaching out to children and young people most at risk. This may include working in primary and secondary level education settings and outreach work within South Tyneside.
• Adopt a preventative approach in relation to mental health and emotional well-being.
• Be accountable for personal conduct and professional practice in relation to all relevant legislation, including Safeguarding Children procedures, and according to Sunderland Counselling Service and STCYPMHS policies and procedures. This includes completing necessary reports for any safeguarding conferences and contributing information towards Education, Health and Care Assessments or reviews. Be similarly accountable for the practice and behaviour of counselling staff working within the service.
• Work both effectively and creatively including some evening and weekend work.
• Ensure adequate systems are in place to measure the effectiveness of the services provided.
• Contribute to the compilation of accurate and appropriate records of the work carried out with children and young people.
• Contribute to the provision of accurate statistical information regarding service activity and performance.
• Evaluate service effectiveness and make use of relevant outcome measurement tools.
• Ensure that targets and activity levels set out in the specification for the service are met.
• Undertake any other duties as required within the spirit of the post.

Person Specification

Experience

• Significant and demonstrable counselling experience post qualification working with children and young people.
• Experience of providing counselling supervision.
• Experience of providing operational line management.
• Experience of carrying out assessments of client support needs.
• Ability to produce written and verbal reports.
• Experience of working in a school or educational setting.
• Experience of working within an NHS setting.
• Experience of service and business development.
• Project management skills and experience.

Knowledge and Skills

• Hold individual accreditation as a counsellor with the British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy, or equivalent professional body.
• Competence in and possession of a recognised theoretical model of counselling or psychological therapy.
• Sound knowledge of the mental health system and service provision as well as associated issues facing the services client groups, including relevant legislative frameworks in relation to mental health and child protection.
• Demonstrable knowledge and understanding of the Children and Young Peoples IAPT agenda.
• Willingness to contribute to and assist in the development of strategies that will make the service provision accessible to all clients through centre based and outreach work.
• The ability to engage and work with clients individually and in groups.
• The ability to create, sustain and disengage from productive therapeutic relationships.
• Ability to engage and work with children and young people, affording them the opportunity to influence and shape all aspects of the service and the way in which the service provision will be delivered.
• Ability to make good use of supervisory process.
• Ability to evaluate effectiveness of interventions at an individual, project and service level.
• A clear understanding of and willingness to acknowledge and adhere to, the service philosophy.
• Commitment to working with multi-agency partnerships.
• Good information technology skills.
• Sound knowledge of broader mental health issues.
• Sound knowledge of children and young peoples mental health issues.
• Familiarity with child and family support agencies.

Qualifications

• Hold individual accreditation as a counsellor with the British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy, or equivalent professional body.
• Qualified to Honours Degree, MSc, MA, or Diploma level in Counselling or other relevant psychological therapy.
• Qualification in counselling supervision.
• Full Driving License.
• General education to A Level Standard or equivalent.

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.