Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust

Education Mental Health Practitioner

The closing date is 26 May 2025

Job summary

An exciting opportunity has arisen for 2 Qualified Education Mental Health Practitioners (EMHP) to join a dynamic Mental Health Support Teams in schools service in Halton.

Successful candidates will be employed on a full-time basis based within Halton (Runcorn and Widnes) and will play a key role as member of the Halton Mental Health Support Team. They will have the responsibility for delivering the 3 core functions of an MHST to support the mild to moderate mental health and wellbeing needs for children and young people in allocated schools.

Potential candidates will have already successfully completed the HEE commissioned 1yr 'Education Mental Health Practitioner' course or the 'Children's Wellbeing Practitioner' course. Those currently undertaking the EMHP training and are near completion will also be considered. PLEASE DO NOT APPLY IF YOU DO NOT MEET THESE CRITERIA.

Please note that the advert may close early if we receive a significant number of applications.

Main duties of the job

As an Education Mental Health Practitioner, the post holder will provide high standards of evidence-based client centred care to children and young people with mild to moderate mental health needs within the THRIVE Framework for service delivery.

The post holder will be expected to provide interventions to children and young people and their families / carers referred into the service.

As the post is identified within the CYPMH strategy, it is expected the role will continue to develop in line with national and local initiatives.The post holder will demonstrate an attitude which respects and values service users' and their carers.

The post holder will embrace the core values of the organisation and adopt the principles of Recovery and THRIVE. These principles will recognise the need to:

o Promote safe practiceso Value the aims of service userso Work in partnership and offer meaningful choiceo Be optimistic about the possibilities of meaningful changeo Value social inclusion

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.

Details

Date posted

07 May 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 5

Salary

£29,970 to £36,483 a year per annum

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

350-CC6662279-A-A

Job locations

Halton MHST - Wade Deacon High School

Birchfield Road

Widnes

WA8 7TD


Job description

Job responsibilities

PRINCIPAL RESPONSIBILITIES - see attached Job Description

The role aims to promote the early detection and prevention of mental health problems across the whole school, and strengthen links between schools and mental health services.

The post holder will provide direct, ongoing support to schools around mental health and wellbeing. This will include:

Delivering evidence-based interventions for mild moderate mental healthissues.

Support designated school staff to develop a whole schoolapproach.

Give advice to school staffand liaise with other mental healthservices to help children and young people get the right support.

Job description

Job responsibilities

PRINCIPAL RESPONSIBILITIES - see attached Job Description

The role aims to promote the early detection and prevention of mental health problems across the whole school, and strengthen links between schools and mental health services.

The post holder will provide direct, ongoing support to schools around mental health and wellbeing. This will include:

Delivering evidence-based interventions for mild moderate mental healthissues.

Support designated school staff to develop a whole schoolapproach.

Give advice to school staffand liaise with other mental healthservices to help children and young people get the right support.

Person Specification

Knowledge/ Experience

Essential

  • Experience of mental health assessments and therapeutic interventions with children and young people with mental health problems and their families
  • Experience of delivering training
  • Experience in consultation to other professional and non-professional groups
  • Awareness of legislation and strategic frameworks and their implications for both clinical practice and professional management
  • Knowledge of educational environments
  • Knowledge of safeguarding issues
  • Knowledge of capacity and consent issues including Gillick competence

Desirable

  • Knowledge of research design and methodology consistent with practice to at least Degree level or equivalent
  • Knowledge of children services

Qualifications

Essential

  • Successful completion of the HEE commissioned 1yr 'Education Mental Health Practitioner' (EMHP)and or Children and young people's wellbeing practitioner (CYWP) course

Desirable

  • Must have professional qualification and registration with an appropriate accrediting body (i.e., HCPC), or equivalent from the Professional Standards Authority (PSA) approved accredited register
  • A further relevant degree qualification
  • Teaching qualification
  • Youth Mental Health First Aid trained

Skills

Essential

  • Computer literate
  • Ability to identify and employ as appropriate clinical governance mechanisms for the support and maintenance of clinical practice.
  • Ability to personally manage a caseload including sensitive, traumatic and potentially emotionally distressing cases
  • Ability to carry out 1:1 therapeutic mental health intervention with children
  • Ability to carry out 1:1 therapeutic mental health intervention with families
  • Ability to conduct group programmes
  • Ability to work within educational settings to increase mental health awareness within the staff group
  • Ability to conduct mental health assessments of children and young people
  • Ability to make an assessment of risk and to record and communicate it appropriately
  • Ability to take appropriate action to mitigate or manage risk
  • Excellent oral and written communication skills
  • Able to travel to meet the requirements of the post
  • Team player
  • Excellent time management and organisational skills
  • Ability to undertake consultation to school staff to identify children and young people requiring MHST referral or provide advice and signposting to support the CYP.

Values

Essential

  • Continuous Improvement
  • Accountability
  • Respectfulness
  • Enthusiasm
  • Support
  • High professional standards
  • Responsive to service users
  • Engaging leadership style
  • Strong customer service belief
  • Transparency and honesty
  • Discreet
  • Change oriented
Person Specification

Knowledge/ Experience

Essential

  • Experience of mental health assessments and therapeutic interventions with children and young people with mental health problems and their families
  • Experience of delivering training
  • Experience in consultation to other professional and non-professional groups
  • Awareness of legislation and strategic frameworks and their implications for both clinical practice and professional management
  • Knowledge of educational environments
  • Knowledge of safeguarding issues
  • Knowledge of capacity and consent issues including Gillick competence

Desirable

  • Knowledge of research design and methodology consistent with practice to at least Degree level or equivalent
  • Knowledge of children services

Qualifications

Essential

  • Successful completion of the HEE commissioned 1yr 'Education Mental Health Practitioner' (EMHP)and or Children and young people's wellbeing practitioner (CYWP) course

Desirable

  • Must have professional qualification and registration with an appropriate accrediting body (i.e., HCPC), or equivalent from the Professional Standards Authority (PSA) approved accredited register
  • A further relevant degree qualification
  • Teaching qualification
  • Youth Mental Health First Aid trained

Skills

Essential

  • Computer literate
  • Ability to identify and employ as appropriate clinical governance mechanisms for the support and maintenance of clinical practice.
  • Ability to personally manage a caseload including sensitive, traumatic and potentially emotionally distressing cases
  • Ability to carry out 1:1 therapeutic mental health intervention with children
  • Ability to carry out 1:1 therapeutic mental health intervention with families
  • Ability to conduct group programmes
  • Ability to work within educational settings to increase mental health awareness within the staff group
  • Ability to conduct mental health assessments of children and young people
  • Ability to make an assessment of risk and to record and communicate it appropriately
  • Ability to take appropriate action to mitigate or manage risk
  • Excellent oral and written communication skills
  • Able to travel to meet the requirements of the post
  • Team player
  • Excellent time management and organisational skills
  • Ability to undertake consultation to school staff to identify children and young people requiring MHST referral or provide advice and signposting to support the CYP.

Values

Essential

  • Continuous Improvement
  • Accountability
  • Respectfulness
  • Enthusiasm
  • Support
  • High professional standards
  • Responsive to service users
  • Engaging leadership style
  • Strong customer service belief
  • Transparency and honesty
  • Discreet
  • Change oriented

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.

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.

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

Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Halton MHST - Wade Deacon High School

Birchfield Road

Widnes

WA8 7TD


Employer's website

https://www.merseycare.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)


Employer details

Employer name

Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Halton MHST - Wade Deacon High School

Birchfield Road

Widnes

WA8 7TD


Employer's website

https://www.merseycare.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)


Employer contact details

For questions about the job, contact:

Team Manager

Peter Styzaker

peter.styzaker@merseycare.nhs.uk

01925664120

Details

Date posted

07 May 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 5

Salary

£29,970 to £36,483 a year per annum

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

350-CC6662279-A-A

Job locations

Halton MHST - Wade Deacon High School

Birchfield Road

Widnes

WA8 7TD


Supporting documents

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