Job summary
Are you an experienced, highly motivated mental health practitioner and who is passionate about improving health outcomes for those within the Criminal Justice system?
We now have the opportunity to recruit one full time Band 7 Senior Police Liaison Practitioner to join our well established but now expanding team working in MET police custody suites, Acton and Hammersmith. These custody suites serve large diverse boroughs within the West London area.
The police Liaison teams sits within a wider Liaison and Diversion service in West London NHS Trust, including Court Diversion at Westminster and Youth Justice Tri Borough. With this recruitment, we aim to provide a 7-day service to the suites, ensuring access to all those who become involved in the Criminal Justice system.
We are looking for suitably experienced mental health professionals rather than one particular discipline. We are interested in hearing from mental health/Learning disability nurses, social workers or occupational therapists. An experienced AMHP would be desirable.
Main duties of the job
We provide proactive screening and assessment to individuals within Police custody, identifying need/vulnerabilities, signposting to other services and where indicated diverting to health. You will be primarily screening those over 18 but at times will be expected to assess children and young people if our Youth team is not available. Our aim is to improve overall health outcomes, reduce further police contact and re-offending rates, and to avert disorder-related crises.
This scheme, commissioned by NHS England operate to a standard model and similar schemes are now available in every part of the country. It is an all-age service and all women and people under the age of 18 are screened as mandatory due to their vulnerability within the system.
About us
Successful candidates will need to be vetted by the Metropolitan Police and would not be able to begin work until cleared (process takes at least four months). Vetting includes the declaration of criminal convictions or any Police involvement i.e. investigations even if no further action, warnings, cautions (no matter how old), as well as Count Court Judgements and applicants should have a min three-year residency. This process is much more in-depth than an enhanced DBS check and will review family and social associations as well as your own probity.
With new recruits to our service we hope to operate 7 days a week, between the core hours or 8-8 during the week and 10-6 at weekends and Bank Holidays. We offer flexible working and support compressed hours, to support in the well being of staff. We try to accommodate work/life balance and requests as much as possible within this service by having a flexible and respectful attitude to each other. There is no parking facilities at the custody suites, so you will need to use public transport but we provide free parking when on Trust based sites.
Our custody suites are Hammersmith and Acton. You will be expected to work across both with flexibility. As a clinician you will be required to be physically based within custody.
Job description
Job responsibilities
The post holder will work under the remit of the Forensic Community Service providing a proactive assessment, liaison and diversion service in two Police Custody Suites within the West London area.
The post holder will join an established team which already comprises of 6 x Band 7 Police Liaison Practitioners. The post holder will work in partnership with health, social services and the criminal justice system, to ensure that individuals presenting with mental health problems in police custody have their needs addressed and are diverted into appropriate health care services as necessary. Unsocial hours working will be required, including bank holidays.
Job description
Job responsibilities
The post holder will work under the remit of the Forensic Community Service providing a proactive assessment, liaison and diversion service in two Police Custody Suites within the West London area.
The post holder will join an established team which already comprises of 6 x Band 7 Police Liaison Practitioners. The post holder will work in partnership with health, social services and the criminal justice system, to ensure that individuals presenting with mental health problems in police custody have their needs addressed and are diverted into appropriate health care services as necessary. Unsocial hours working will be required, including bank holidays.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Qualified Registered Mental Health Nurse with current registration or similar professional qualification
- Meaningful evidence of continuing professional development and post registration training.
- Competence in relation to clinical information systems, spreadsheets, databases.
Desirable
- Specialist forensic risk assessment training
Experience
Essential
- Experience of working in a multi-disciplinary/multi-agency team.
- A minimum of 2 years' post-registration experience.
- Experience of crisis work and risk assessment/management.
- Application of the Mental Health Act (2007) and the Mental Capacity Act (2005)
- Experience of management and supervising staff
- Lone Working
Desirable
- Experience of working with young people and assessing clients with drug and alcohol related problems
- Experience of service development
- Experience of working in a criminal justice setting and/or another mental health liaison service
Knowledge & Skills
Essential
- Effective written and verbal communication skills.
- Ability to use information technology systems in order to carry out duties
- Ability to make comprehensive psycho-social assessments
- Good report writing skills.
- Ability to make sound and safe risk assessments
- Evidence of effective time management and organisational skills.
- Ability to work independently and to work as a member of a multi-disciplinary/multi-agency team.
- Ability to treat service users with respect and dignity at all times, adopting a culturally sensitive approach that considers the needs of the whole person.
- Ability to build constructive relationships with warmth and empathy, using good communication skills.
Desirable
- Knowledge of current legislation relating to community mental health provision and forensic psychiatry (Mental Health Act and Mental Capacity Act)
- Familiarity with research, reports and publications relevant to liaison and diversion.
- Knowledge of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) 1884 and PACE Codes of Practice 2004.
- Ability to promote service users' involvement
Other Requirements
Essential
- Sickness (or attendance) record that is acceptable to the Trust; to be checked at interview.
- Declared medically fit by the Occupational Health department to perform the duties of the post.
- Capable of completing scrutiny of Police NPPV2 Vetting procedure for both Met and City forces.
- The post-holder must have the ability to understand and implement the Equal Opportunities Policy at a level appropriate to the job.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Qualified Registered Mental Health Nurse with current registration or similar professional qualification
- Meaningful evidence of continuing professional development and post registration training.
- Competence in relation to clinical information systems, spreadsheets, databases.
Desirable
- Specialist forensic risk assessment training
Experience
Essential
- Experience of working in a multi-disciplinary/multi-agency team.
- A minimum of 2 years' post-registration experience.
- Experience of crisis work and risk assessment/management.
- Application of the Mental Health Act (2007) and the Mental Capacity Act (2005)
- Experience of management and supervising staff
- Lone Working
Desirable
- Experience of working with young people and assessing clients with drug and alcohol related problems
- Experience of service development
- Experience of working in a criminal justice setting and/or another mental health liaison service
Knowledge & Skills
Essential
- Effective written and verbal communication skills.
- Ability to use information technology systems in order to carry out duties
- Ability to make comprehensive psycho-social assessments
- Good report writing skills.
- Ability to make sound and safe risk assessments
- Evidence of effective time management and organisational skills.
- Ability to work independently and to work as a member of a multi-disciplinary/multi-agency team.
- Ability to treat service users with respect and dignity at all times, adopting a culturally sensitive approach that considers the needs of the whole person.
- Ability to build constructive relationships with warmth and empathy, using good communication skills.
Desirable
- Knowledge of current legislation relating to community mental health provision and forensic psychiatry (Mental Health Act and Mental Capacity Act)
- Familiarity with research, reports and publications relevant to liaison and diversion.
- Knowledge of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) 1884 and PACE Codes of Practice 2004.
- Ability to promote service users' involvement
Other Requirements
Essential
- Sickness (or attendance) record that is acceptable to the Trust; to be checked at interview.
- Declared medically fit by the Occupational Health department to perform the duties of the post.
- Capable of completing scrutiny of Police NPPV2 Vetting procedure for both Met and City forces.
- The post-holder must have the ability to understand and implement the Equal Opportunities Policy at a level appropriate to the job.
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.
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).
Additional information
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.
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).
