Counsellor

Job description

Job responsibilities

IMPORTANT PLEASE READ:

All applicants must be willing to undertake National Security Vetting in order to work in a Prison Setting. This will be completed as part of the pre-employment checks through Oxleas and the prison vetting team.

You will need to provide:

Proof of right to work documentation

Proof of ID, needs to include 1 photographicID

Proof of address documentation

Non-UK passport holders will need to have correct documentation (right to work in the UK) and a Home office Share code.

Address History:

5 years address history will be needed.

Applicants that are not UK Passport holders who provide less than 5 years UK address history will need to provide a Police Certificate which must be in English from where they resided previously.

Applicants who are UK Passport holders who have lived abroad for a period of more than six months during the last three years will need to provide a certificate of good conduct or an overseas police check in English from the countries resided in or visited.

In order to assist you in obtaining a Police Certificate, guidance can be sought from:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/criminal-records-checks-for-overseas-applicants

If the country you have resided in is not listed here, you can obtain the necessary information by contacting the relevant Embassy or High Commission for that Country. Their contact details can be found on the Foreign & Commonwealth Office website (http://www.fco.gov.uk/en).

Key Task and Responsibilities

Contribute to the provision of the forensic mental health service, Specialties Directorate, by undertaking counselling/therapy with individual clients, or when appropriate, in groups. Using communication and relationship skills to undertake assessment of clients referred to the service by GPs, probation officers or other professionals including risk assessment, to develop an appropriate model in which to work and, where necessary, to refer on to appropriate services. This client group includes those with diverse and complex psychological and mental health needs and on occasion, clients may present with aggression, hostility or verbally abusive behaviour. To prioritise and manage own client caseload. To exercise professional responsibility for the assessment, intervention and discharge of clients, using highest level of interpersonal and communication skills when presenting and receiving complex, sensitive and contentious information to clients, family, support workers and other professionals To maintain up to date clear client records and case notes in line with the policies and procedures and service standards of the Trust. To provide psychological therapy/counselling, collaboratively with clients including:a) Assessments: Psychometric assessments required of the service ; observational assessment; assessment by interviewing; assessment by analysis of archive material, multi-disciplinary notes and discussions, reviews, and supervision. b) Interventions: Counselling and other psychological therapies as appropriate; c) With a range of presenting problems primarily including Anxiety, Depression, trauma but including the full range of primary and secondary care mental health difficulties.

To provide guidance and advice to relevant significant others (such as prison staff and other criminal justice professionals ) in order to improve the psychological health of clients. To provide advice to other professionals within and external to the multi-disciplinary team, and agencies that provide services to this client group To keep adequate clinical records in accordance with Trust guidelines, the BABCP/UKCP/BACP or BPS Division of Counselling Psychology and DoH guidance To frequently sit in a restricted position for substantial proportion of working time during clinical sessions and meetings, requiring long periods of concentration Dealing with frequent highly distressing situations i.e. clients with severely distressing mental health experiences, past and current abuse. Dealing with unpleasant working conditions i.e. verbal aggression, physical threats from client, family or others.

Management responsibilities1. To provide information and guidance to other primary care and mental health staff on the issues of psychological therapy.2. To attend meetings when required, within the working times of your post.3. To maintain statistical data.4. To liaise, collaborate and communicate with GPs and other criminal justice practitioners in the care and treatment of clients. This may also include the communication of sensitive information requiring knowledge and skills of data protection issues.

Leadership

To provide courses/seminars/workshops/presentations relevant to counselling. To sit on relevant working groups of the service as required.Clinical Governance To implement and maintain the principles of Clinical Governance, including risk management. To implement and maintain good information governance in respect of British Psychological Societys (or other relevant professional bodies) and Department of Healths codes and guidances on the proper management of client information, the Caldicott principles and the Data Protection Act. To maintain up to date clear client records and case notes in line with the policies and procedures and service standards of the Trust, using the electronic clinical record system. To abide by the postholders appropriate Code of Professional Conduct and to follow guidance from NICE and the Department of Health. To engage in ongoing personal professional development. To maintain professional accreditation with relevant professional body eg the BPS, BACP, keep an updated CPD log and attend training to maintain therapy skills and competencies as appropriate. To collect session by session outcome measures.

Research and service development

To use published research and information on good practice regularly to keep clinical practice up-to-date and evidence based Participate in discussion and review regarding the development and evaluation of the locality counseling service. To undertake clinically relevant evaluation within the locality psychological therapy service. To provide information relating to the post-holders clinical and administrative activities as determined by the management of the Trust and the psychological therapy service.

Teaching, Training and Supervision.

To provide when appropriate, induction and clinical supervision to counsellors on trainee clinical placement. Attend for regular supervision as agreed within the locality counseling service and professional ethical framework. To keep abreast of current developments in the professional field of psychological therapy through reading and attendance at appropriate training courses and CPD in accordance with the requirements of your own professional accrediting body.Communication Clinicians within forensic psychological therapies and clinicians within Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust; mental health practitioners within inarch services Senior Trust Officials, when indicated or appropriate i.e. service development General Practitioners and GPs with special interest. Service providers from both statutory and voluntary organisations e.g. Adult Mental Health Services, CAMHS, Social Services, criminal justice system,

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• Professional registration with a recognised body
• Counselling qualification

Experience

Desirable

• Experience of paid or voluntary work counselling in a prison setting.

Skills

Essential

• An ability to accept and use supervision appropriately and effectively

Knowledge

Essential

• Ability to talk knowledgeably about the model of therapy they use

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).

Employer details

Employer name

Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust

Address

HMP East Sutton Park

Workhouse Rd,

Sutton Valence, Maidstone

ME17 3DF

Employer's website

http://oxleas.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)