Advanced Mental Health Practitioner

NHS; Reading; On-site; GBP 50,000 - 57,000; Full time

Job summary

A community health services provider in Reading is seeking an Advanced Mental Health Practitioner to join their specialized CAMHS team. This role involves providing high-quality care to young people with mental health needs, working collaboratively within a multi-disciplinary framework. Candidates should possess a recognized qualification and experience in relevant services. The position offers excellent training opportunities and benefits such as flexible working, generous leave policies, and a supportive community environment.

Benefits

Flexible working options

27 days' annual leave

Generous NHS pension scheme

Excellent learning and career development

'Cycle to Work' and car leasing schemes

Discounts at popular retailers

Qualifications

• Core qualification with registration such as NMC or HCPC
• Experience in Children and Young People's mental health services
• Demonstrable experience in mental health complex needs

Responsibilities

• Deliver high-quality trauma-informed mental health service
• Provide specialist assessment and therapeutic interventions
• Work collaboratively in multi-agency meetings
• Contribute to audit, policy development, and service improvement

Skills

Trauma-informed care

Multi-disciplinary collaboration

Assessment and intervention

Communication skills

Education

Registered Mental Health Nurse

Registered Social Worker

Occupational Therapist

Speech and Language Therapist

Job description

Job Summary

Are you an experienced Mental Health professional wanting to work within a supportive specialist CAMHS team?

Will you thrive working within a multi-disciplinary system to provide a high quality mental health service to young people in West Berkshire?

There is an opportunity to join our specialised CAMHS Children in Care Team as an Advanced Mental Health Practitioner.

You will need to have a recognised professional registration and demonstrable experience working within Children and Young People's mental health services.

You will be knowledgeable and experienced in working with families and systems to meet the needs of the young people in their care is also essential.

There will be excellent in-house induction, high quality supervision and training opportunities including working alongside other highly skilled teams - for example opportunities to work with forensic CAMHS.

You will be based at our Erleigh House office.

Main Duties of the Job

• Deliver a high-quality trauma-informed mental health service to looked after children and young people of Reading, West Berkshire and Wokingham Local authorities.
• Deliver interventions that are systemic in nature and develop the professional family network to support them to work therapeutically with the young people in their care.
• Provide specialist assessment and therapeutic interventions, offer consultation on children’s care to non-clinical colleagues and other non‑professional carers, working within professional guidelines and the overall framework of the team’s policies and procedures.
• Work in a trauma‑informed way, facilitating and collaborating in multi‑agency formulation meetings, devising multi‑agency intervention plans and offering ongoing supervision and coaching to professionals so that interventions are therapeutic, streamlined and developmentally appropriate for the young person.
• Utilise research skills to contribute to audit, policy and service development and research, and propose and implement policy changes within the area served by the team.

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

Details

Date posted: 15 January 2026

Pay scheme: Agenda for change

Band: Band 7

Salary: £50,008 to £56,908 a year per annum (Incl of HCAS)

Contract: Permanent

Working pattern: Full-time

Reference number: 371-CFS647-A

Job locations: Erlegh House, Earley Gate, Whiteknights Road, Reading, RG6 6BZ

Job Responsibilities

The must have's for this role:

• A core qualification and recognised professional registration e.g. NMC, HCPC
• Experienced in working with Children and Young Peoples mental health services
• Demonstrable experience in working with mental health complex needs

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.

We're 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 don't hesitate to call: Liudmila Knowles on her email: [e-mail] or on 01189046780 who'll 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

• Recognised and relevant qualification: Registered Mental Health Nurse OR Registered Social Worker OR Occupational Therapist OR Speech and Language Therapist
• Registration with NMC or HCPC or other recognised professional body

Desirable

• A supervisory qualification in the relevant professional discipline.

Previous Experience – Essential

• Significant post‑qualifying experience of undertaking comprehensive assessment of mental health needs, developing care plans and offering appropriate support based on formulation of presenting difficulties.
• Experience of working with service users with high‑risk presentations and undertaking risk assessment and risk management plans.
• Experience of hard‑to‑reach diverse community groups and individuals with emerging complex needs, dual diagnoses, people with additional disabilities and safeguarding.
• Experience of working effectively in a multi‑disciplinary team and multi‑agency environment

Desirable

• Experience of working within mental health settings supporting children, adolescents and their families.
• Experience of providing supervision or leadership to others.
• Experience of contributing to service improvement initiatives.

Knowledge and Skills – Essential

• Knowledge and skill to assess acute mental health crisis, and deliberate self‑harm at Getting Risk/Tier 3 levels.
• Demonstrates up to date knowledge of legislation and National strategies and requirements for CAMHS.
• 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.
• Ability to motivate and inspire others and to support others to develop key competencies.
• 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.
• Ability to take clinical responsibility for patient care and treatment.
• Ability to work to timescales and comfortably cope in pressurised situations, applying practical problem‑solving skills in everyday and complex situations
• Ability to work autonomously and effectively in a team, reprioritising work and that of others work to reflect changing needs.
• Competent IT skills and the ability to navigate around various systems and software packages (such as Outlook, databases, e.g. RiO MS office and internet)

Additional Requirements – Essential

• Ability and willingness to work in a flexible way including working outside of normal hours to facilitate out of hours clinics as required.
• Able to maintain professional boundaries and conduct.
• Supportive approach towards colleagues and service users.
• Enthusiastic, self‑motivated team player.
• Able to negotiate, be confident and assertive.

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.

Employer Details

Employer name: Berkshire Healthcare Foundation Trust

Address: Erlegh House, Earley Gate, Whiteknights Road, Reading, RG6 6BZ

Employer's website: https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/