Job summary
We have an exciting opportunity for an experienced CBT therapist to join our Talking Therapies service in Knowsley. Our professional and supportive team of CBT therapists, PWPs, counsellors and support staff respond to the needs of adults experiencing common mental health difficulties. Working both autonomously and as part of the team, the successful candidate will work with people with a variety of presentations providing high intensity step 3 interventions in accordance with NICE guidelines. The team is involved in leading on projects linking with other teams across the trust, in addition to external agencies. This provides you with an opportunity to support service users from diverse backgrounds such as with long-term conditions and older adults. With a robust CPD offering and encouraged access to further training, the role provides a fantastic opportunity to creatively develop both the service and as an individual.

Main duties of the job
Provide high intensity psychological interventions for people whose needs are complex or chronic.
Provide specialist assessment, formulation and treatment, including consultation and recommendations regarding service users' care to colleagues.
Undertake systemic measurement of clinical outcomes with service users. Work in partnership with service users to achieve the best possible care plans.
Utilise research skills for audit, research, service evaluation and service development.
Provide clinical supervision for staff who are providing High Intensity Therapy at Step 3.
Receive supervision for post holders own work.
Provide advice and support for colleagues whose background is not in Step 3 High Intensity Therapy.

About us
Mersey Care is one of the largest trusts providing physical health and mental health services in the North West, serving more than 1.4 million people across our region and are also commissioned for services that cover the North West, North Wales and the Midlands.

We offer specialist inpatient and community services that support physical and mental health and specialist inpatient mental health, learning disability, addiction and brain injury services. Mersey Care is one of only three trusts in the UK that offer high secure mental health facilities.

At the heart of all we do is our commitment to 'perfect care' - care that is safe, effective, positively experienced, timely, equitable and efficient. We support our staff to do the best job they can and work alongside service users, their families, and carers to design and develop future services together. We're currently delivering a programme of organisational and service transformation to significantly improve the quality of the services we provide and safely reduce cost as we do so.

Flexible working requests will be considered for all roles.

Job responsibilities
Undertake specialist psychologist assessment, formulation and treatment of Step 3 within a stepped care model.
To evaluate and make decisions about treatment options taking into account both theoretical and therapeutic models and any complex factors concerning the clients psychological needs.
To communicate directly with clients, carers, relatives and other health professionals, complex and potentially emotive information regarding clients condition, treatment, prognosis, subject to ethical boundaries of confidentiality.
Utilise and provide line management and clinical case management/supervision to ensure that care and treatment are tailored to service users, family and community needs and that learning needs are identified and acted upon to ensure personal development.
To provide specialist psychological advice and consultation to other professionals contributing directly to clients formulation, diagnosis and treatment plans.
Deliver high quality High Intensity Therapy in the catchment area working with complex Step 3 cases within a stepped care model. Undertake direct clinical work for people whose needs are complex, chronic or involve anxiety, OCD, PTSD, depression, or other clinical problems appropriate for Step 3 HIT therapy.
Participate in multi-disciplinary care planning, risk assessment and risk management.
Supervise qualified and unqualified HIT therapists.
Provide skilled communication in cases requiring a high level of ethical and emotional sensitivity.
Receive appropriate supervision and participate in CPD.

Qualifications
Essential

• For CBT posts: Post Graduate Diploma, or equivalent Post Graduate level CBT Training certificate which confers eligibility for BABCP accreditation
• For Counselling posts: Diploma in Counselling from a recognised course which meets the requirements for BACP Accreditation AND having completed the Talking Therapies Counselling for Depression (CfD) course
• For IPT / DIT / EMDR posts: Completed qualification in an Talking Therapies recognised course which meets the requirements for relevant Accreditation
• AND
• Holds Accreditation by the appropriate body OR be able to achieve Provisional Accreditation within one year
• Significant experience working as a psychological therapy practitioner and can demonstrates the competences as required

Desirable

• Additional qualifications in a Talking Therapies recognised modality - CBT, EMDR, Mindfulness etc
• Long Term Health Conditions Trained
• Supervision qualification

Skills
Essential

• Full range of skills and competencies as laid out in the competence framework for CBT (Roth and Pilling 2007).
• Computer literate.
• Well developed skills in the ability to communicate effectively, orally and in writing, complex, highly technical and/or clinically sensitive information to clients, their families, carers and other professional colleagues both within and outside the NHS.
• Has received training (either formal of through experience) and carried out risk assessments within scope of practice.
• Able to develop good therapeutic relationships with clients.
• High level of enthusiasm and motivation.
• Advanced communication skills.
• Ability to work within a team and foster good working relationships.
• Ability to use clinical supervision and personal development positively and effectively.
• Ability to work under pressure
• Regard for others and respect for individual rights of autonomy and confidentiality
• Ability to be self reflective, whilst working with service users, & in own personal and professional development and in supervision.
• The ability and skills to act as an advocate for a new service, to engage and foster good professional relationships with all health professionals in promoting the good integration of this service with the wider health care system.

Desirable

• Ability and willingness to travel to locations throughout the organisation
• Fluent in languages other than English

Experience
Essential

• Demonstrable experience of working in mental health services
• Ability to meet agreed/specified service targets
• Ability to manage own caseload and time
• Demonstrates high standards in written communication
• Able to write clear reports and letters to referrers
• Experience with routine outcome monitoring
• Experience of teaching and liaising with other professional groups

Desirable

• Experience of working in Primary Care Services
• Worked in a service where agreed targets in place demonstrating clinical outcomes.
• Relevant experience in Primary Care treating anxiety and depression

Knowledge
Essential

• Demonstrates an understanding of anxiety and depression and how it may present in Primary Care
• Demonstrates knowledge of the issues surrounding work and the impact it can have on mental health/ benefits & employment systems
• Knowledge of medication used in anxiety and depression and other common mental health problems
• Demonstrates an understanding for the need to use evidence based psychological therapies and how it relates to this post
• Knowledge of child protection issues and other relevant legislation
• Able to attend supervision training if not already trained, and other training as the post develops
• Good record of Continuing Professional Development and willingness to continue this

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.
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website.