CAMHS Crisis Care Clinical Team Leader

Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust; Manchester; On-site; GBP 47,000 - 55,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading health organization in Manchester seeks a Clinical Team Leader to lead a crisis care service for children and young people. Responsibilities include operational coordination, team leadership, and quality improvement while focusing on trauma-informed, recovery-oriented care. Candidates must have relevant professional qualifications, strong experience in crisis management, and demonstrated clinical leadership. This pivotal role offers a yearly salary between £47,810 to £54,710 pro rata and requires a commitment to ongoing professional development.

Qualifications

• Experience in CAMHS or relevant crisis/care pathways.
• Strong risk assessment and management skills with safety planning experience.
• Demonstrable experience in clinical leadership and supervision.

Responsibilities

• Lead operational coordination across CAMHS Mental Health Crisis Service.
• Support day-to-day service delivery ensuring effective care.
• Provide line management and clinical supervision to team members.

Skills

Clinical leadership

Communication skills

Crisis management

Multidisciplinary collaboration

Risk assessment

Patient-centered care

Time management

Education

Relevant core professional qualification

Educated to masters level or equivalent

Job description

Go back Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust

CAMHS Crisis Care Clinical Team Leader

The closing date is 12 January 2026

Are you ready to lead and shape award‑winning mental health crisis care for children and young people in Manchester? We are seeking an experienced Clinical Team Leader to join MFT's CAMHS Crisis Service – an innovative, responsive and high‑performing service delivering care through our Rapid Response, Home Intensive Treatment and Paediatric Liaison in‑reach pathways.

This role focuses on operational coordination, workforce leadership, service planning and quality improvement while maintaining clinical credibility in complex mental‑health crisis cases. It involves day‑to‑day operational oversight, predominantly Monday to Friday across an extended‑hours service (8 am‑10 pm, seven days a week).

You will lead and develop a multidisciplinary team to deliver timely crisis assessments, risk formulation, safety planning and intensive community‑based intervention. You will champion trauma‑informed, least‑restrictive and recovery‑focused practice, collaborating with Acute, Paediatrics, Social Care, Education and VCSE partners to reduce hospital admissions and enable safe discharge.

We welcome applications from dynamic leaders registered with NMC, Social Work England or HCPC, with strong operational awareness, supervisory experience and a passion for improving mental‑health services.

Main duties of the job

Operational leadership across the CAMHS Mental Health Crisis Service – staff coordination, workflow management, rota oversight, risk escalation and quality monitoring.

Support the Service Manager with day‑to‑day service delivery, ensuring safe staffing, effective triage and responsive care across our Rapid Response, Home Intensive Treatment and Paediatric Liaison pathways.

Lead and support practitioners in delivering timely crisis assessments, safety planning and community‑based interventions, championing trauma‑informed, least‑restrictive and recovery‑focused practice.

Promote collaborative working across acute, paediatric, community, education and social care partners to enable safe discharge and reduce avoidable hospital admissions.

Provide line management, clinical supervision and professional support to team members, contributing to staff development, wellbeing and a positive team culture.

Support governance activity including performance monitoring, data quality, audit, service evaluation and improvement initiatives.

Maintain clinical credibility by contributing to complex case reviews, clinical formulation and decision‑making where appropriate.

Role is predominantly Monday to Friday with occasional flexibility for extended hours service.

About us

Join Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT) – a 30,000‑plus strong team delivering exceptional care to over 1 million people annually. MFT is the largest provider of specialist services and operates from the Oxford Road Campus, the largest health academic campus in Europe. We are forward‑thinking, committed to clinical excellence and continuously improving our services. Our Hive Electronic Patient Record system enables safer, smarter and more efficient work. MFT offers a supportive environment where your contribution truly matters.

Person Specification

Education / Qualifications

• Relevant core professional qualification in nursing, occupational therapy or social care plus evidence of continued professional development in a CAMHS related area
• Educated to masters level or equivalent demonstrable experience
• Evidence of professional registration and continued professional development
• Training in one or more additional specialised areas of practice including children and young people
• Extensive clinical experience in CAMHS or relevant crisis/care pathways, including managing complex cases and exercising full clinical responsibility
• Strong risk assessment and risk management skills, with experience in formulating and overseeing safety plans
• Experience working across multidisciplinary and multi‑agency boundaries, demonstrating effective partnership working and consultation
• Well‑developed assessment, formulation and intervention skills using evidence‑based approaches and complex psychological methods
• Demonstrable experience in clinical leadership and supervision, including teaching, training, coaching and supporting the development of less experienced staff
• Highly developed communication skills, able to convey sensitive, complex information clearly to patients, families and professionals verbally and in writing
• Experience of working with a wide variety of patient groups across the whole life span and presenting with the full range of severity
• Experience of assessing and treating patients across the full range of care settings
• Experience of using outcome measures to evaluate the impact of clinical practice
• Experience of children and young people inpatient mental health care
• Skills in service evaluations and service‑relevant research

Knowledge

• Knowledge of the use and inputting of outcome measures
• High level of working knowledge of the policy guidance and legislation specifically relating to children and young people
• Knowledge of legislation in relation to the patient group and mental health, including the Mental Health Act and issues of capacity and consent
• Detailed knowledge of child safeguarding procedures and responsibilities
• Knowledge of crisis and risk management procedures
• Thorough knowledge of risk assessment and risk reduction strategies
• Sound knowledge of family interventions to boost resilience and improve outcomes
• Knowledge in the practice of specialist therapies in Children and Young People within a stepped model of care
• An understanding of evidence‑based psychological therapies from a range of modalities, including systemic working
• Understanding of the acuity and demands of CYP crisis services

Skills and Abilities

• Strong communicator and collaborator – able to build positive professional relationships, present and negotiate sensitive information effectively with stakeholders and work confidently across multidisciplinary and multi‑agency settings
• Calm, professional and resilient leader – maintains composure in challenging situations, inspires and supports others and contributes to a positive and collaborative team culture
• Flexible, adaptable and proactive – able to manage uncertainty and change, work under pressure, meet service demands (including duty/on‑call when required) and respond to evolving needs
• Organised and self‑directed – strong time management, able to prioritise effectively, work independently and as part of a team
• Clinically credible and improvement‑focused – experience delivering evidence‑based interventions, committed to recovery‑focused practice, service evaluation, performance monitoring and continuous improvement
• Values‑driven – demonstrates commitment to child‑centred, needs‑led, trauma‑informed and least restrictive principles
• Experience of working within a multicultural framework

Work Related Circumstances

• Willingness to participate in an on‑call rota
• Willingness to work flexibly including unsocial, weekend and out of hours working
• Use of a car or access to a means of mobility to travel across the Trust footprint in line with service needs
• Willing to carry out all duties and responsibilities of the post in accordance with the Trust's Equal Opportunities and Equality and Diversity policies

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and a submission for Disclosure to the Disclosure and Barring Service will be required to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust

£47,810 to £54,710 a year (pro rata)