CAMHS Senior Mental Health Practitioner for GP - Primary Care

Berkshire Healthcare Foundation Trust

The closing date is 27 April 2025

Job summary

The Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust has an exciting opportunity for a CAMHS Senior Mental Health Practitioner for GP in the East of Berkshire (Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme - ARRS) join our Child & Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) to enhance joint working across primary care and the network of emotional wellbeing and mental health services within the locality, improving patient journeys and making it easier for children, young people and their families to obtain the help they need.

To enable robust access to clinical supervision, professional development and to facilitate recruitment and retention, we will seek to recruit the role that are shared across the PCN and locality Getting Help or Mental Health in Schools Team.

Post holders will spend 2.5 days in the PCN and 2.5 days in the identified CAMHS Team.

This is a unique opportunity to be part of and contribute to a newly developed and innovative service. This is an important post, at the interface with partner agencies and specialist CAMHS. The posts require enthusiastic and self-motivated individuals who are passionate about delivering duty interventions and contributing to team working.

The post holder will be an integral part of this team, holding a small caseload of Getting Help level cases accepted via triage and assessment in their PCN role.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will be an experienced child and adolescent mental health practitioner who will work as part of the PCN MDT to deliver the following:

  • Clinical triage and assessment of patients requesting appointments for mental health issues including challenging behaviour. This includes same day appointments and planned appointments.

  • Signpost/navigate to other sources of information and local support including peer support, social prescribers, VSCE services e.g. youth counselling, youth workers, GEMS; within the Thrive framework/stepped care approach.

  • Identify any onward referral pathways and make appropriate referrals, undertaking screening and ensuring provision of required information to support the referral

  • Help people to develop coping strategies and draw on their own strengths and resources

  • Liaise with CAMHS to enable crisis support and admission avoidance where necessary

  • Facilitate appropriate representation in practice-based MDT's to support clinical management of identified patients

  • Provide specialist advice to GP's and other members of the MDT on the particular needs of children and young people and their families including advice on symptoms, risk or the need for a referral.

About us

Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust is a specialist mental health and community health services trust. Rated 'outstanding' by the CQC, we're committed to providing the best possible care to people across Berkshire. As an employer, we're committed to offering an inclusive and compassionate environment where our people share in a sense of belonging and are supported to flourish.

Our values at Berkshire Healthcare are:

  • Caring for and about you is our top priority
  • Committed to providing good quality, safe services
  • Working Together with you to develop innovative solutions

Your wellbeing is important to us. Some of the benefits of working for us include:

  • Flexible working options to support work-life balance
  • 27 days' annual leave rising with service + opportunity to buy and sell
  • Generous NHS pension scheme
  • Excellent learning and career development opportunities
  • 'Cycle to Work' and car leasing scheme including electric vehicles
  • Access to a range of wellbeing tools and services
  • Discounts at hundreds of popular retailers and restaurants
  • Staff networks for race, diversity, disabilities, the environment and armed forces community to support equality
  • Generous maternity, paternity, adoption and special leave
  • Free parking across Trust sites

Date posted

19 March 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 6

Salary

£39,205 to £47,084 a year per annum (inc. of HCAS)

Contract

Fixed term

Duration

12 months

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

371-CFS473

Job locations

Upton Hospital

Slough

SL1 2BJ


Job description

Job responsibilities

The must haves for this role:

  • Experience of working with young people with mental health difficulties
  • Passion for providing collaborative and evidence-based mental health care
  • Enthusiasm for multi-professional and multi-agency working
  • Ability to travel between multiple sites

For further information about the role, please see attached job description and person specification.

We strongly encourage you to review how you meet the criteria in the person specification and write about this point-by-point in your supporting statement for the best chance of being shortlisted.

Were committed to equal opportunities and welcome applications from all sections of the community. Our commitment to inclusion is reflected in our accreditations: Race Equality Matters Silver Trailblazer, Neurodiversity in Business Corporate Member, Disability Confident Leader, Carer Confident Level 2, and the Armed Forces Covenant Gold Award. Reasonable adjustments will be provided to candidates as needed.

We welcome a conversation about flexibility and any other questions you may have. Please dont hesitate to email: Vicki Livingstone on Vicki.Livingstone@berkshire.nhs.uk wholl be delighted to help.

Please note, if we receive a high number of applications, we may close this role earlier than the advertised closing date, so please submit your application as soon as possible

Job description

Job responsibilities

The must haves for this role:

  • Experience of working with young people with mental health difficulties
  • Passion for providing collaborative and evidence-based mental health care
  • Enthusiasm for multi-professional and multi-agency working
  • Ability to travel between multiple sites

For further information about the role, please see attached job description and person specification.

We strongly encourage you to review how you meet the criteria in the person specification and write about this point-by-point in your supporting statement for the best chance of being shortlisted.

Were committed to equal opportunities and welcome applications from all sections of the community. Our commitment to inclusion is reflected in our accreditations: Race Equality Matters Silver Trailblazer, Neurodiversity in Business Corporate Member, Disability Confident Leader, Carer Confident Level 2, and the Armed Forces Covenant Gold Award. Reasonable adjustments will be provided to candidates as needed.

We welcome a conversation about flexibility and any other questions you may have. Please dont hesitate to email: Vicki Livingstone on Vicki.Livingstone@berkshire.nhs.uk wholl be delighted to help.

Please note, if we receive a high number of applications, we may close this role earlier than the advertised closing date, so please submit your application as soon as possible

Person Specification

Education/Qualifications/Training

Essential

  • Qualification in appropriate mental health core profession. i.e./ relevant professional qualification
  • Current professional registration with an approved regulatory body (NMC, HCPC, ACP, UKPC etc.): e.g. Registered Mental Health Nurse, Registered Social Worker, Occupational Therapist
  • Additional training in CYP Mental Health / Specialist training in skills relevant to child & adolescent mental health
  • Evidence of continuing professional development as recommended by the relevant professional body.

Previous Experience

Essential

  • Demonstrable experience of working in CYP mental health services
  • Skills and experience of working with children, young people and families around a range of emotional/mental health, behavioural/additional health/developmental needs
  • Ability to meet agreed /specified service targets
  • Ability to manage competing demands / manage a caseload
  • Experience with routine outcome monitoring
  • Experience of working within a multicultural framework.

Desirable

  • Experience of teaching and liaising with other professional groups
  • Experience of running / co-running groups
  • Experience of supervising others

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

Essential

  • Knowledge of the theory and practice of specialised psychological therapies with clients with mental health problems
  • Knowledge of legislation in relation to the client group and mental health.
  • Well-developed skills in the ability to communicate effectively, orally and in writing, complex, highly technical and/or clinically sensitive information to clients, their families, carers and other professional colleagues both within and outside the NHS.
  • Skills in providing consultation to other professional and non-professional groups.
  • Good organisational and time management skills, ability to plan and prioritise own workload
  • Ability to teach and train others.

Additional Requirements

Essential

  • A positive approach to working with children and young people with mental health difficulties.
  • Ability to work as part of a team and independently.
  • Ability to identify and employ mechanisms of clinical governance as appropriate, to support and maintain clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive material and challenging behaviour.
  • Willingness to work flexibly.
  • An awareness of own strengths and limitations.
  • Ability to travel between sites and to locality meetings (preferably valid UK driving license
  • Commitment to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults.
Person Specification

Education/Qualifications/Training

Essential

  • Qualification in appropriate mental health core profession. i.e./ relevant professional qualification
  • Current professional registration with an approved regulatory body (NMC, HCPC, ACP, UKPC etc.): e.g. Registered Mental Health Nurse, Registered Social Worker, Occupational Therapist
  • Additional training in CYP Mental Health / Specialist training in skills relevant to child & adolescent mental health
  • Evidence of continuing professional development as recommended by the relevant professional body.

Previous Experience

Essential

  • Demonstrable experience of working in CYP mental health services
  • Skills and experience of working with children, young people and families around a range of emotional/mental health, behavioural/additional health/developmental needs
  • Ability to meet agreed /specified service targets
  • Ability to manage competing demands / manage a caseload
  • Experience with routine outcome monitoring
  • Experience of working within a multicultural framework.

Desirable

  • Experience of teaching and liaising with other professional groups
  • Experience of running / co-running groups
  • Experience of supervising others

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

Essential

  • Knowledge of the theory and practice of specialised psychological therapies with clients with mental health problems
  • Knowledge of legislation in relation to the client group and mental health.
  • Well-developed skills in the ability to communicate effectively, orally and in writing, complex, highly technical and/or clinically sensitive information to clients, their families, carers and other professional colleagues both within and outside the NHS.
  • Skills in providing consultation to other professional and non-professional groups.
  • Good organisational and time management skills, ability to plan and prioritise own workload
  • Ability to teach and train others.

Additional Requirements

Essential

  • A positive approach to working with children and young people with mental health difficulties.
  • Ability to work as part of a team and independently.
  • Ability to identify and employ mechanisms of clinical governance as appropriate, to support and maintain clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive material and challenging behaviour.
  • Willingness to work flexibly.
  • An awareness of own strengths and limitations.
  • Ability to travel between sites and to locality meetings (preferably valid UK driving license
  • Commitment to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults.

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

Berkshire Healthcare Foundation Trust

Address

Upton Hospital

Slough

SL1 2BJ

Employer details

Employer name

Berkshire Healthcare Foundation Trust

Address

Upton Hospital

Slough

SL1 2BJ

For questions about the job, contact:

Team Lead

Jade Hens

jade.hens@berkshire.nhs.uk

01753821441

Date posted

19 March 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 6

Salary

£39,205 to £47,084 a year per annum (inc. of HCAS)

Contract

Fixed term

Duration

12 months

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

371-CFS473

Job locations

Upton Hospital

Slough

SL1 2BJ


Supporting documents

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