Education Mental Health Practitioner

Job description

Job responsibilities

Alliance is a leading local childrens mental health provider delivering psychological support and emotional well-being services in primary and secondary schools and supporting a whole school approach to improving childrens mental health and wellbeing. We also provide psychological therapies to children and families with multiple and complex needs. Through the Children and Young Peoples Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (CYP IAPT) Programme our service transformation is through the delivery of evidence-based therapies, use of routine outcome measures and in full collaboration with children, young people, and families.

Job Purpose

The post holder will be part of a Mental Health Support Team (MHST) delivering evidence-based interventions to children, young people, parents & carers in an educational/community setting who are experiencing mild to moderate mental health difficulties. Helping children and young people within these settings who present with more severe problems to rapidly access more specialist services. The post holder will also be responsible for supporting and facilitating staff in education settings to identify and where appropriate manage issues related to mental health and wellbeing.

DBS Check required (level of disclosure): Enhanced

Main Duties and Responsibilities

Therapeutic practice

Deliver a range of outcome focused, evidence-based interventions in educational settings to children, young people experiencing mild to moderate mental health difficulties.

Undertake and complete assessments including accurate assessment of risk to self and others.

Supporting children and young people experiencing mild to moderate mental health difficulties and their families and educators in the self-management of presenting difficulties.

Working in partnership with children, young people, their families, and educators in the development of treatment plans for specific interventions.

Demonstrate an inclusive values base, which recognises and respects diversity.

Identify/accept appropriate referrals for children and young people in educational settings, according to agreed treatment pathways, processes, and procedures.

Adhere to the policies and protocols within Alliance and the educational service to which the postholder is attached.

Have knowledge and understanding of the local services and be able to signpost children and young people with more complex needs to the relevant service.

Engage in robust managerial and clinical supervision, identifying the scope of practice of the individual postholder within the role, and working safely within that scope.

Deliver a range of interventions related to the provision of information and support for evidence based psychological treatments, primarily guided self-help.

Ability to manage ones own caseload in conjunction with the requirements of the team.

Attend multi-disciplinary and multi-agency meetings relating to referrals for children and young people in treatment.

Keep coherent records of all clinical activity in line with Alliances service protocols and use these records and outcome data to inform decision making.

Complete all requirements relating to data collection.

Show evidence of working within a collaborative approach, involving a range of relevant others when indicated. Specifically, work in collaboration with teachers and other educational staff, parents, children, young people and the wider community to enhance and broaden access to mental health services.

Contribute to the development of individual or group clinical materials or training materials and go on to develop further such materials as falls within own degree of competence.

Training and supervision

Prepare and present case load information to supervisors within the service on an agreed and scheduled basis, to ensure safe practice and the governance obligations of the trainee, supervisor, and service.

Engage in and respond to personal development supervision to improve competences and practice.

Professional

Ensure the maintenance of standards of own professional practice according to Alliance Psychological Services Ltd.

Ensure appropriate adherence to any new recommendations or guidelines set by the relevant departments.

Ensure that confidentiality is always protected.

Ensure that any risks or issues related to the safety and wellbeing of anyone the postholder comes into contact within the course of their professional duties are communicated and shared with appropriate parties, in order to maintain individual safety and the public interest.

Ensure clear objectives are identified, discussed, and reviewed with supervisor and senior colleagues on a regular basis as part of continuing professional development.

Participate in individual performance review and respond to agreed objectives.

Keep all records up to date in relation to Continuous Professional Development and the requirements of the post and ensure personal development plans maintains up to date specialist knowledge of latest theoretical and service delivery models/developments.

Attend relevant educational opportunities in line with identified professional objectives.

To work within Data Protection Act 1998 and Alliance Information Governance policies and procedures

Partnership Working

To create and maintain effective working relationships with Headteachers, Deputy Heads, SENCOs, Pastoral Team, and wider teaching staff by providing advice and consultative support on emotional and mental health issues, and in relation to appropriate referral pathways for children, young people and families with mental health needs.

To liaise effectively with other local providers, including statutory, voluntary sector organisations and on behalf of the child, young person, or family.

To build effective working relationships with other local childrens mental health providers including CaMHS and support the development of pathways of support.

Attend multi-disciplinary and multi-agency meetings relating to referrals for children, young people, and families in treatment.

With support ensure information sharing is achieved within partnerships to ensure young people and their families receive appropriate and timely support.

Safeguarding

Responsible for safeguarding children and always promoting the welfare of children & young people and operating within local policies and procedures.

Taking appropriate safeguarding action to protect children & young people at risk of significant harm.

To identify and support families in accessing Early Help Services

To share appropriately information with parents/carers or other agencies regarding the childs wellbeing and progress keeping within the boundaries of Confidentiality and Information sharing protocols.

This job description is designed to identify principal responsibilities only. The post holder is required to be flexible in developing the role in accordance with changes in Alliances organisational objectives and priorities.

Person Specification

Experience

Essential

• 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 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 assess risk and to record and communicate it appropriately.
• Ability to take appropriate action to mitigate or manage risk.
• Knowledge of educational environments
• Knowledge of safeguarding issues
• Knowledge of capacity and consent issues including Gillick competence.
• Knowledge of the functional operation of specialist CAMHS teams
• Experience of working with children and their families in an educational setting.
• Experience of working and liaising with a wide variety of agencies and stakeholders
• Experience of working with children who have social, emotional and/or behavioral difficulties.
• Experience of working with anxiety disorders.
• Experience of working with affective (mood) disorders.
• Experience of monitoring and recording outcome measures for childrens emotional wellbeing.
• Experience of the delivery of specific therapeutic interventions to children, young people, or their families (e.g., CBT, Parent Led CBT, Parent Led Conduct Difficulties)
• Full, enhanced, and current satisfactory DBS disclosure for the role
• Ability to personally manage a sensitive, traumatic, and potentially emotionally distressing caseload.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills
• Member or willing to be a member of a registered Professional Body eg. BABCP, BPS

Desirable

• Ability to teach others about mental health issues.
• Ability to conduct group therapeutic interventions with children and their families
• Experience of navigating complex social systems and environments, who may have conflicting priorities or agendas.
• Experience of working with looked after children.
• Experience of working with other vulnerable groups
• Experience of being involved in multi-Agency meetings
• Proven commitment to continuous professional development.

Qualifications

Essential

• Successful completion of the HEE commissioned 1yr Education Mental Health Practitioner course.

Desirable

• Teaching qualification
• Youth Mental Health First Aid trained

Other Skills & Qualities

Essential

• Self-motivated
• Full Clean Driving license required-Able to travel to meet the requirements of the post.
• Team player
• Excellent time management and organisational skills
• Able to meet the physical requirements of the role after reasonable adjustments have been made for any illness or disability.

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.

Employer details

Employer name

Alliance Psychological Services Limited

Address

Alliance Psychological Services Ltd

24 Yarm Road

Stockton-on-tees

Cleveland

TS18 3NA

Employer's website

https://www.alliancepsychology.com/ (Opens in a new tab)