Apprentice Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner - Basildon

Job description

Job responsibilities

Have you considered training in Low Intensity Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)and getting paid to make a real difference?If so, our Apprentice Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner programme could be the role for you!

Here at Vita Health Group, we support each of our apprentices to become confident, patient-focused clinicians. We work with you to develop your clinical skills throughout your course, celebrating your successes and encouraging your professional development.

We have several opportunities for enthusiastic and committed Apprentice Psychological Wellbeing Practitioners (Apprentice PWPs) to join our expanding Talking Therapies service operating across Basildon and Brentwood.

Getting to know Us

Hello! We are Vita Health Group we are the lead provider of NHS Talking Therapies services across Basildon and Brentwood, providing vital mental health support to clients aged 16+ within the practice area. We are super proud of the work we do at Step 2 and see the life-changing impact of our practice every single day!

The Role

The Apprentice PWP is a new and developing route to train to work within Talking Therapies service, offering an opportunity for applicants without degree qualifications but with other relevant professional and work experience in caring for people, particularly those experiencing mental health difficulties, to train as PWPs. Applicants will come from a range of backgrounds; often applicants have work experience in support workers, care workers, triage assessors and other helping roles, and applicants who have experienced and overcome common mental health problems with career aspirations in mental health are encouraged to apply.

In this role, you will provide Low Intensity CBT-based interventions whilst undertaking the Postgraduate Certificate Psychological Well-being Practice delivered by the University of Essex. This training post will equip you with the skills and knowledge to provide evidence-based treatment to clients with a range of common mental health problems such as anxiety and depression.

You will be joining a motivated team of mental health professionals and experienced supervisors, who will support you to complete both your academic study and your clinical delivery.

This is a full time position with a start date of 17th January 2024. In the first month, you will engage in pre-training support with the University of Essex and service induction, before commencing your PWP training w/c 12th February. The PWP training is 12 months long. In addition to the training and assessments at the University, you will also need to complete an End Point Assessment (EPA) conducted by a third party to assess core practical competencies. Successful completion of all of these elements will enable you to work as a Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner (PWP). The apprenticeship typically takes 15 months to complete.

This apprenticeship will equip you to conduct assessments with patients and deliver Step 2 Guided Self-Help Low Intensity Interventions to people with a range of common mental health problems such as anxiety and depression in primary care, for which CBT interventions are demonstrated to be clinically effective.

A typical working week includes a mixture of University teaching, study day and service days. On your service days, you will be supported in providing high volume low intensity interventions for mild to moderate anxiety and depression. University days will be hybrid training with a combination of remote and face-to-face teaching. Whilst your clinical practice is likely to include some remote working, you will be expected to attend one of the Basildon and Brentwood offices for part of the week.

After successful completion of your Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner Qualification and End Point Assessment, you will be required to apply for your PWP Registration through either the BPS or BABCP.

Why join our team?

• A preceptorship programme to support your continuous learning and development as a qualified PWP, to help you achieve a high quality of care to our service users.
• Excellent clinical supervision in accordance with IAPT Manual and IAPT Supervision guidance
• Opportunities in a variety of roles including digital therapy, online webinars, working with people with LTC needs and champions, with excellent progression route in line with Individual CPD and development plans.
• A friendly and supportive work environment with an overall culture of energy, solution focus and excellence in both our service delivery and support to our team

Requirement:

Applicants must submit a personal statement as part of their application, outlining the reasons for applying and summarising their relevant experience, skills and knowledge as outlined in the Person Specification.

You need to have a level 2 qualification in English and Maths or equivalent and be able to evidence this, this is a requirement of the apprenticeship.

If you are invited to interview, we will ask you to write a short essay to demonstrate your capability to complete level 5 academic work.

Please note:

• If you would like to find out more about the role of a PWP, here is a pre-recorded video: https://healthcareers.live/national-health-careers-conference-2022-ahp-live-stage/
• Shortlisted applicants must be available to attend interviews held on26th 27th October 2023. All interviews will be held remotely via Microsoft Teams.
• A Disclosure and Barring check (DBS, formerly CRB) will be required by the service for appointment to post.
• Applicants who have completed an NHS-funded psychological professions training programme within the last two years are not eligible to apply.
• Applicants will only be offered an apprenticeship post if they meet the eligibility criteria for apprenticeship funding as set out by the Education and Skills Funding Agency. See Eligibility Criteria in Pg 104-114 of Apprenticeship Funding Rules https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1155957/Apprenticeship_funding_rules_2324_Version_1.pdf These rules are set by the UK government and cannot be changed by individual universities or the NHS service provider.

Why Vita Health Group?

Vita Health Group celebrates life. Improving lives physically and mentally drives everything we do.

We are physical and mental health specialists with over 30 years of experience. We work in partnership with the NHS, are engaged by insurers and some of the UKs largest corporate companies to support their workforce and provide a full range of physiotherapy services to private customers.

To achieve our mission of making people better, we recognise the importance of investing in our staff. In addition to a competitive salary, we also offer the opportunity of a flexible work life balance and a comprehensive benefits package which you can view here: https://www.vitahealthgroup.co.uk/join-us/careers/

Vita Health Group is proud to be an equal opportunities employer. We are committed to Equality, Diversity & Inclusion best practice and positively encourage applications from candidates regardless of sex, race, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion/belief, marital status, or pregnancy/maternity. To support this we have a dedicated team of EDI specialists and run a range of active in-house diversity networks.

We are actively seeking to increase the diversity of our workforce, to ensure we are representative of the communities we serve at all levels. We therefore welcome applications from candidates with a wide range of lived experience.

We are committed to equitably support the wellbeing of all employees as demonstrated by:

• Our association with the MINDFUL EMPLOYER Charter for Employers who are Positive About Mental Health.
• Our status as a Disability Confident Employer dedicated to ensuring that all candidates are treated fairly throughout the recruitment process. All disabled candidates that meet the minimum essential criteria will be invited to interview.
• Our Ethnicity Matters Scheme where all applicants for senior roles (£40,000+) from a minority ethnic group that meet the essential criteria will be invited for interview.
• Our sign up to the Armed Forces Covenant.
• Our status as a Menopause Friendly Committed employer.
• Our sign up to the Employer with Heart Charter.
• Our commitment to meet the standards outlined in the NHS Equality Delivery System (EDS). Workforce Race Equality Standard (WRES) and Workforce Disability Equality Standard (WDES).
• The provision of access to health and wellbeing services for colleagues which includes a team of trained Mental Health Advocates and an Employee Assistance Programme.
• An embedded speaking up culture facilitated by Freedom to Speak Up Guardians.

Should you wish to discuss any adjustment or assistance you might need in the application or interview process please contact recruitment@vhg.co.uk and we will arrange.

VHG is committed to supporting transgender individuals with dignity and recognises the potential complications that may arise when taking references. We encourage applicants to contact HR at hr@vhg.co.uk to discuss or amend how we manage reference requests.

Please note, all applicants must be legally entitled to accept and perform work in the UK and all positions are subject to a DBS check.

Any data which you share with us throughout the hiring process will be stored securely within the UK and is accessible only by staff who require it. Should your application be unsuccessful, your data will be securely destroyed after 6 months.

Vita Health Group reserves the right to close this job when sufficient applications have been received.

Person Specification

General Requirements

Essential

• Please refer to job description above

Desirable

• Please refer to job description above

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

Vita Health Group

Address

Basildon, Brentwood

SS16 5SB

Employer's website

https://www.vitahealthgroup.co.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)