Job summary
- Main area
- Mental Health
- Grade
- NHS AfC: Band 7
- Contract
- 12 months (fixed term)
- Hours
- Full time - 37.5 sessions per week (8am-8pm)
- Job ref
- 334-CLI-7793924
- Employer
- South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Southbrook Road Community Mental Health Team
- Town
- Lewisham
- Salary
- £56,276 - £63,176 per annum Incl. of inner HCAs
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 29/03/2026 23:59
Employer heading
Senior Mental Health Practitioner Assertive Outreach Carestream
NHS AfC: Band 7
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 provide a high quality and specialist care to our service users and we are recognised for our care and treatment we provide. The Care Quality Commission already 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
Are you passionate about reshaping mental health care? Do you believe in the power of community, collaboration with community partners and local voluntary care sector, inclusion, and peer support to transform lives? We’re launching an innovative community care centre inspired by world-class models like the Trieste Mental Health Community Network, Navigo in Grimsby, and Clubhouse models in New York and Brixton.
We have an incredibly exciting and rare opportunity to be part of a new community mental health pilot. This centre will hold a major national profile with NHS England who are hoping that the pilot will radically transform how we deliver mental health care in the UK.
We are looking for dedicated staff to help us pioneer this revolutionary approach to care.
What We Offer
· A Unique Care Model: Join a programme focused on community, social inclusion, and holistic recovery.
· Supportive Environment: Collaborate with peers, contribute to a recovery-oriented care system, and make a real difference.
· Development Opportunities: Be part of a pioneering team shaping the future of mental health care, with training and career growth built-in.
Lewisham Community Mental Health Services are undergoing widespread and innovative transformation developing a more holistic, recovery oriented, biopsychosocial approach to supporting people with Mental illnesses, in partnership with primary care, other community NHS providers and the voluntary sector.
Main duties of the job
The post holder will facilitate case formulation and direct clinical contact sessions, offering short term interventions based on psychological therapies or other specialism and offer professional advice to service users and their carers who require an assertive approach to engagement, other professionals, statutory and voluntary agencies.
The post holder will be responsible for supporting the provision of clinical supervision to band 6 practitioners and lower grade staff where appropriate.
The post holder will provide clinical leadership in their specific area of practice and may deputise for the team manager in their absence.
The post holder will take on specific responsibility for the management of identified areas of the local service ensuring that clinical and management procedures are carried out to a standard that ensures safe and effective care and complies with the relevant codes of conduct.
To co-ordinate multidisciplinary working, maintaining excellent communication and working relationships with all team members, and other services within the Trust and ensure effective interface and continuity of care between disciplines and services.
Working for our organisation
South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust (SLaM) provide the widest range of NHS mental health services in the UK as well as substance misuse services for people who are addicted to drugs and alcohol. We work closely with the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience (IoPPN), King's College London and are part of King's Health Partners Academic Health Sciences Centre. There are very few organisations in the world that have such wide-ranging capabilities working with mental illness. Our scope is unique because it is built on three major foundations: care and treatment, science and research, and training.
SLaM employ around 5000 staff and serve a local population of 1.1 million people. We have more than 230 services including inpatient wards, outpatient and community services. Currently, provide inpatient care for approximately 5,300 people each year and treat more than 45,000 patients in the community in Croydon, Lambeth, Lewisham and Southwark; as well as substance misuse services for residents of Bexley, Bromley and Greenwich.
By coming to work at SLaM, you will gain experience of being part of an organisation with a rich history and international reputation in mental health care.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Service and Team responsibilities
Participate as a multi-disciplinary team member in the setting and reviewing of therapeutic aims, objectives, standards and strategies to provide a high standard of care to clients.
Ensure that all recording and reporting of client contact are accurate, up to date and of good quality and within professional requirement standards of record keeping. To collect and collate information about individual clinical activity on ePJS.
Work with the team and clients to maintain a safe therapeutic environment
Work to assure the quality of care through achieving high operational standards in clinical systems.
To maintain and ensure good professional standards and attitudes towards the care and treatment of service users and their families.
To link with other statutory and voluntary agencies and professionals
Maintain good relationships and clear lines of communication with other professional agencies and departments providing specialist advice and support according to your area of expertise.
Contribute to the effective functioning of the service through attendance at relevant meetings, taking responsibilities within the service as appropriate and negotiated with the service manager.
Supervise junior members of the teams or trainees.
Clinical Individual
Assume responsibility for own case list and case management of patients with mental health disorders who are determined to be at medium/high risk and complex.
Work in the community settings as required.
Work with wider MDT and Adult psychiatrists to make a clinical diagnosis and formulation from a standard assessment, including risk assessment, on which to recommend a treatment intervention. Design, write and share a copy of the care plan with parents/carers and patients. Carry out the planned intervention with minimal supervision.
Assess safeguarding issues for own cases and refer concerns to the Adult Safeguarding team.
Deliver evidence based treatment interventions based on NICE guidelines for assertive outreach. Use individual, group work, advice and supervision according to the needs of patients and have a flexible and innovative approach to packages of care.
Participate and lead in joint complex assessments with other disciplines and other agencies and provide reports for referrers, families and other agencies as required.
Maintain good relationships and clear lines of communication with other professional agencies and departments, providing specialist advice and support where appropriate.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- First level nursing qualification/registration [RMN or RSCN, or first level qualification in social work, psychotherapy, clinical or counselling psychology. All applicants will require professional registration with a statutory body: the Nursing Midwifery Council, Social Work England, Health Professional's Council, Chartered Clinical Psychologists by BPS, Child Psychotherapists by ACP or UKCP
- A good working knowledge of the following: The aetiology, emergence and course of mental disorders including differentials in mental states and sub-types of diagnoses. The skill to undertake mental health assessments to ascertain differential diagnosis
Desirable criteria
- MSc level qualification associated with adult mental health, e.g. clinical psychology, psychotherapy or equivalent, with a strong portfolio of post- registration clinical professional development.
- Training in Clinical supervision
- Further post qualifying training and education in working with adults with mental health problems.
Knowledge and Skills
Essential criteria
- A good working knowledge of the following: The aetiology, emergence and course of mental disorders including differentials in mental states and sub-types of diagnoses.
- The skill to undertake mental health assessments to ascertain differential diagnosis
- Aggravating and maintaining factors in all mental disorders.
- The principles of clinical governance and practice. The principles underlying confidentiality and information sharing.
Desirable criteria
- Ability to work as part of a team offering support to those with different professional backgrounds.
- Evidence of working autonomously
- Relevant research and its application to assessment, treatment and case management.
Experience
Essential criteria
- Experience and ability to function as a specialist practitioner in Mental Health & Wellbeing assessments and specific interventions with patients with various mental disorders.
- Working in collaboration with supervisor, service user, carers and MDT in assessing needs, planning and implementing care.
- Taking responsibility for care delivery in a specific area and maintaining a safe therapeutic environment. Evidence of experience of clinical governance and audit and the process of clinical supervision.
- Experience of working as a care co- ordinator or community practitioner in Adult Mental Health or Wellbeing settings.
Desirable criteria
- Experience of working with people with - A history of trauma - Personality disorder - SMI - Facilitation of case formulation
Employer certification / accreditation badges
Applicant requirements
You must have appropriate UK professional registration.
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.
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Claire Ferguson
- Job title
- service manager
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Telephone number
- 07969 587 558
- Additional information
Sarah Moodie
General manager Lewisham
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