Functional Family Therapy - Gangs Supervisor/Supervisor-in-training

Job responsibilities

Job Summary

The postholder will oversee the delivery of a high-quality specialist service for families with young people who meet the criteria set down by the research trial in accordance with the Youth Endowment Fund's expectations and conditions of the grant. Referrals will be identified primarily by reviewing MASH data in collaboration with an identified lead in the Borough and offering case consultations with referrers in social care, YOT, and early help services. The postholder is expected to work autonomously within agreed professional guidelines and exercise responsibility for the effective governance of psychological and systemic practice within the service. In particular, the postholder is expected to ensure that all FFT-G Workers adhere to the principles of the FFT-G model in how case interventions are conceptualised, devised and delivered, including how risks are managed and mitigated. The postholder will be responsible for securing and maintaining a clear referral pathway in collaboration with Borough stakeholders. A requirement of the job is to carry out audit, policy and service development activities. As part of the efficacy RCT, you will be responsible for facilitating data collection and liaising with the research team at the University of Greenwich.

The postholder will be responsible for securing and maintaining a clear referral pathway in collaboration with Borough stakeholders. A requirement of the job is to carry out audit, policy and service development activities. As part of the efficacy RCT, you will be responsible for facilitating data collection and liaising with the research team at the University of Greenwich. The postholder will hold a caseload of up to 3 families and carry out multiple consultations with referrers to assess eligibility for the intervention and the RCT. In accordance with performance reviews, the postholder will be responsible for suggesting and implementing policy and service development changes within the organisation, in line with the RCT, and will oversee the change processes to ensure a decrease in extra-familial risks.

Working Environment

The FFT-G team will be co-located within participating Boroughs. Supervision will be carried out in a dedicated room with a conference call set-up for group supervision each week with the FFT-LLC consultant. Other work will be carried out in shared office spaces to support interagency working. The post involves sessions carried out in the home environments of clients, which may result in exposure to unpleasant conditions, associated with offending behaviour, abuse and/or neglect. This involves possible exposure to difficult family situations, verbal aggression and violence or abuse of all kinds. Working hours can vary, and some evening sessions will be required to meet the availability of families.

Skills and Abilities

Essential

• Ability to apply a clinical model of systemic theory and intervention and the ability to achieve adherence to a clinical model.
• Ability to coach others in the delivery of a specific intervention (FFT-G) to achieve high levels of fidelity.
• Ability to work in community and family settings, managing the highly complex emotional relationships within and between the component parts of the family and how it interacts with the professional system in ways which maximise the potential for therapeutic outcomes.
• Ability to work with a racially and culturally diverse community in a wide variety of contexts including working therapeutically in family homes.
• Ability to interpret the model of intervention so that pragmatic and goal specific and measurable steps can be set out for young people and their families.
• Planning and organizing skills for referral and caseload management.
• Skills in self-management, including time-management.
• Ability to multi-task and manage competing demands and pressures whilst maintaining support and leadership of the FFT-G team.
• Well-developed skills in the ability to communicate effectively, orally and in writing, highly technical, and clinically sensitive information, including contentious and highly distressing information, to clients, their families, carers and other professional colleagues.

Desirable

• Ability to manage crisis and apply safety practices.
• Formal training in supervision of professional staff.

Experience

Essential

• Experience of being an FFT supervisor for at least 6 months for the FFT-G Supervisor post.
• Experience of being an FFT therapist for at least 6 months for the FFT-G Supervisor-in-training post.
• Experience of teaching, training and/or professional and clinical supervision.
• Experience of planning and delivery of specialist systemic services.
• Experience of self-harm assessment and intervention with both individuals and their families.
• Experience of risk assessment, risk management and safety planning.

Desirable

• Experience of assessing and treating clients within the community.
• Experience off working within a multicultural framework.
• Experience and knowledge relating to young people in the Criminal Justice setting and care setting.
• Experience in the use of systemic based interventions with adolescents and their families. Implementation of interventions within or between systems in the youths natural ecology.
• Experience of managing staff.
• Experience of running a service.

Qualifications

Essential

• Post-graduate doctoral level training in clinical and applied (forensic or counselling) psychology (or its equivalent for those trained prior to 1996) as accredited by the BPS and HCPC registered and some post qualification systemic training.
• or
• Masters level qualification (or its equivalent) in Family and Systemic Therapy and eligibility for UKCP Registration.
• or
• Professional qualification in mental health nursing or social work.
• FFT Clinical Supervision training for the Supervisor post.
• FFT therapist training for the Supervisor- in-training post.
• Other evidence of continuous professional development.

Desirable

• Undertaken post-doctoral training in systemic or cognitive behavioural therapy or in forensic practice.
• AFT Supervisor Registration
• Evidence of post-qualifying training relevant to Child and Family Mental Health & Child Protection.

Knowledge and Understanding

Essential

• Knowledge of legislation in relation to the client group and its implications for both clinical practice and professional management in relation to the client group.
• Knowledge of youth offending and social care systems.
• Well-developed knowledge of the theory and practice of FFT as an intervention model.
• Knowledge and understanding of adult mental health issues.
• Knowledge of methodology consistent with systemic practice.
• Knowledge and ability to formulate methods of audit and evaluation and produce reports about collected service data.
• Highly developed ability to think strategically and develop collaborative plans in relation to service development.
• Advanced skills in applying systemic theory to work with individuals, couple, families, using a variety of approaches within systemic practice.
• Advanced knowledge of child and adolescent development.
• Up-to-date knowledge of relevant legislation, ethical issues, safeguarding and strategic frameworks including The Children Act 1989, and its implications for both clinical practice and professional management of services for children and young people.
• Evidence of continued professional development as required by the UKCP/AFT or HPCP guidelines.

Desirable

• Knowledge of current psychological evidence base and best practice in working with children and young people.
• Knowledge of behavioural parent training programmes and systemic practices.

Other Requirements

Essential

• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, enabling formation of networks with professionals from other agencies to promote effective team working with clients.
• Able to contain and work with high levels of distress from clients.
• Able to contain and work with organisational stress and ability to hold the stress of others.
• Good organisational skills.
• Ability to work under pressure and tight deadlines.
• Able to defuse difficult, volatile situations.
• Able to tolerate ambiguity and take decisions in situations of incomplete information.
• Ability to exercise appropriate levels of self-care and to monitor own state, recognising when it is necessary to take active steps to maintain fitness to practice. Encourage self-care in the staff who you supervise.
• Motivated towards personal and professional development with a strong CPD record.
• Committed to evidence-based practices and evaluation of services.
• Ability to tolerate ongoing constructive feedback with the aim of improving adherence to the model.
• Ability to identify, provide and promote appropriate means of support to carers and staff exposed to highly distressing situations and challenging behaviours.
• Ability to develop and use complex multi-media materials for presentations in public, professional and academic settings.
• Ability to work flexibly outside working hours and see clients in the home.

Travel Requirements

Essential

• Ability to travel across the London Boroughs involved in the RCT to attend professional and business meetings and undertake home visits.
• Ability to attend sessions in the clients home or other settings across the Borough.

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.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).