Job summary
The post holder will join Waltham Forest CAMHSs Emotional Difficulties Pathway as a band 7 psychological practitioner. They will support their peers and the Emotional Difficulties Pathway Lead and be an effective team member whilst working on their own initiative. They will have a commitment to collaborative working and actively support and liaise with other health and social care professionals and agencies.

Main duties of the job
You will hold a caseload of children and families with complex needs, including supporting children who may be on the edge of inpatient admission. You will have a commitment to collaborative working and actively supporting and liaising with other health, education, and social care professionals in line with a trauma-informed, evidence-based, and inclusive model of practice within the service. You will be passionate about ensuring the child's voice is central to the work we do and work in partnership with families/carers and other agencies to achieve the best possible outcomes for the child. You will actively contribute to our MDT and professional meetings. You may supervise and/or line manage junior staff where appropriate and provide consultation to the wider service. You will support your peers and team leader. You will promote co-production with those with lived experience and contribute to service development. When working in the office you will mainly be based at Wood Street Health Centre and could ideally also use our second base at Hawkwell Court.

About us
NELFT NHS Foundation Trust provides mental health and community services for over 4.9 million people living in the London Boroughs of Waltham Forest, Redbridge, Barking and Dagenham, Havering, and across Essex.

We work to ensure our patients, their friends and family, feel confident that their health needs are well met. With an excellent reputation for research and development, our skilled health professionals are at the cutting edge of evidence-based innovation, opening up the possibilities for better ways of working and delivery of care.

Job responsibilities
Job overview
We have an exciting opportunity to join Waltham Forest CAMHS Emotional Difficulties Pathway as a band 7 Psychological Practitioner. This post would suit either a Clinical or Counselling Psychologist or a CBT Therapist.

The Waltham Forest CAMHS Emotional Difficulties Pathway is needs-led, offering psychological and medical interventions driven by the principles underpinning the national CYP-IAPT programme (Children and Young People’s Improving Access to Psychological Therapies). The service provides evidence based NICE compliant psychological interventions to children, young people and their families experiencing complex mood problems, trauma and PTSD presentations, and complex emotional needs. You would join a multi-disciplinary team of trauma-informed clinicians who are passionate about ensuring the child’s voice is central to the work we do and work in partnership with families, carers and other agencies to achieve the outcomes desired by the child or young person.

This post sits within a large and diverse borough-based Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service which is currently undergoing significant transformation to reduce geographical inequalities and strengthen clinical and operational leadership. You will have opportunities to join the wider community of psychological professionals across London CAMHS and the NELFT patch.

You will need a good understanding of the needs of people with complex mental health difficulties and comorbid health problems. If you are a dedicated CBT practitioner looking to make a meaningful difference in young people’s lives, we would love to hear from you

Main duties of the job
The EDP provides assessment, formulation, and intervention for children and young people with a range of moderate to severe mental health difficulties and/or their networks. You will be part of a large, supportive multi-disciplinary CAMHS team that also has significant psychology presence.

The post holder will support their peers and the EDP Lead and be an effective team member whilst working on their own initiative. They will have a commitment to collaborative working and actively support and liaise with other health and social care professionals and agencies.

You will hold a caseload of children and families with complex needs, including supporting children who may be on the edge of inpatient admission. You actively support and liaise with other health, education, and social care professionals in line with a trauma-informed, evidence-based, and inclusive model of practice within the service. You will be passionate about ensuring the child's voice is central to the work we do and work in partnership with families/carers and other agencies to achieve the best possible outcomes for the child.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• Organise and prioritise own workload in the day to day allocation of work
• Maintain accurate records and ensure compliance with Trust policies.
• Provide specialist psychological assessment of clients referred to the CAMHS team, based on the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of psychological data from a variety of sources
• Complete psychological assessment as part of a multi-disciplinary team
• Active contribution to MDT and professional meetings
• Formulate and implement plans for the formal psychological treatment and/or management of client’s mental health problems
• Employ strong evidenced based practice
• Participate in team meetings and contribute to service improvement initiatives.
• Provide specialist psychological advice and consultation to other professionals contributing directly to client’s formulation, diagnosis and treatment plan
• Supervise and/or line manage Assistant Psychologists as appropriate
• Promote co-production with those with lived experience

Please contact Dr Michelle Fontaine (Principal Counselling Psychologist & Emotional Difficulties Pathway Lead) michelle.fontaine@nelft.nhs.uk for more details about this post.

Starting with NELFT
NELFT place a great deal of importance on new starters being properly welcomed and inducted into the Trust. All new starters will join the Trust on the first Monday of each month and will undertake a comprehensive induction of up to two weeks which will include mandatory training, systems training and the allocation of equipment. As part of the process new starters will have the opportunity to also meet the executive team, senior managers and attend a number of drop-in sessions focusing on engagement, health and wellbeing and key processes. The induction will be held at our head office in Rainham, Essex.

Probationary Period
This post will be subject to a probationary period. Internal applicants are exempt from the probationary period (unless you are an internal applicant currently part way through a probationary period or currently a bank member of staff).

High Cost Area Supplement – Outer London
(B&D, Redbridge, Havering and Waltham Forest, CEME) This post also attracts payment for High Cost Area Supplement of 15% of the basic salary (with a minimum of £4,714 to a maximum of £5,941 p.a. pro rata for part time).

Working for Us
Joining #TeamNELFT means you’ll become part of a welcoming and supportive working environment. We’re CQC rated Good, and we want you to join us on the journey towards an Outstanding rating. NELFT has sites across North East London and Essex. We provide community and mental healthcare services to adults and children within these areas.

The Trust has award-winning equality and diversity initiatives, along with staff health and wellbeing activities. We invest significantly in your development because when you feel valued and supported, we can deliver the highest quality care to our patients. We are a Level 3 Disability Confident Leader, have been recognised in the Working Families Top 10 Employers benchmark for five consecutive years, and hold a Carers UK Level 1 Accreditation. Through our staff networks and training opportunities, we strive to foster a just and compassionate culture at NELFT.

Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential

• ost-graduate
• qualified
• psychological
• practitioner (e.g.
• Clinical/Counselling
• Psychologist or CBT
• therapist)
• Fully registered with
• the appropriate
• professional or
• regulatory body (e.g.
• HCPC/BABCP).

Desirable

• relevant
• to working with young
• people with and
• complex mental
• health problems

Experience
Essential

• Experience of
• specialist CBT
• psychological
• assessment and
• treatment of clients
• with a range of
• psychological needs
• of a complex nature

Desirable

• Experience of
• providing training for
• staff from a variety of
• professional
• backgrounds.

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.