Clinical Psychologists, Counsellors & Psychological Practitioners

Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust; Liverpool; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 55,000; Full time

Job summary

A prominent healthcare trust in Liverpool seeks a Team Leader for Talking Therapies. The ideal candidate will support staff in a high-pressure environment and ensure compliance with service standards. Key responsibilities include managing performance, contributing to service development, and leading the team to achieve KPIs. This is an opportunity to foster a positive culture within mental health services and work with diverse populations, delivering high-quality care.

Qualifications

• Previous experience in a leadership role in mental health services is preferred.
• Ability to foster team development and manage performance effectively.
• Commitment to equality and diversity in service provision.

Responsibilities

• Support development of staff in a high-pressure environment.
• Ensure compliance with NICE and health guidelines.
• Manage HR issues within the team.

Job description

Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust celebrates diversity and promotes equal opportunities; we are committed to challenging and eliminating racism and other forms of discrimination and advancing and promoting equality of opportunity in the provision of services and creating an inclusive environment for all employees. We believe that everyone has the right to be treated with dignity and respect. We take positive action to support disadvantaged groups and also particularly encourage applications from ethnically diverse, disabled and LGBTQIA+ people that are under‑represented in our workforce. Furthermore we welcome applications from reservists and ex‑armed forces personnel as we recognise the benefits of the values, skills, training and experience that they bring to their work with us. We encourage all applicants to share their equality information with us.

Role Overview

The post is based at Talking Therapies South Liverpool – Permanent and seconded/fixed‑term posts available. This advert is for the post of Team Leader within Talking Therapies (previously known as IAPT). The post‑holder will deputise for the Clinical Team Manager within the service and has direct line management responsibilities for staff, sitting under the Clinical Team Manager.

Key Responsibilities

• Support the development of staff within a high‑pressured environment.
• Hold a reduced caseload where required and deliver evidence‑based interventions to clients.
• Be familiar with different cultural backgrounds and ages, using interpreters when necessary and be committed to equal opportunities.
• Develop, support and deliver training in innovative practice to staff.
• Raise awareness of the service with colleagues from external statutory and non‑statutory organisations.
• Take a lead role in a key area of service development which may include focus on KPIs; Perinatal; Long Term Health Conditions (LTHCs); Older Adults; BAME / Diversity; LGBTQI+ etc. In line with service, trust, and national focus.
• Support the development of links with Primary Care, Secondary Care, GP's and service users in non‑statutory organisations, especially services supporting minority groups.
• Provide line management and PACE/annual performance reviews.
• Support staff and the service to achieve key performance indicator targets.
• Contribute to Leadership and Team meetings.
• Support the service in improving the quality of service provision.
• Support with complaint resolution.
• Make decisions on suitability of new referrals, adhering to the service referral protocols, and refer appropriate clients on to the relevant part of the service or to external services.
• Ensure the appropriate formulation and implementation of NICE approved specialist psychological treatment occurs within the service, based on current guidance.
• Ensure psychologically based risk assessments and risk management plans are implemented in the service.
• Contribute to the on‑going development of the service, ensuring that a range of interventions are available in line with the current evidence‑base, providing an effective and efficient service, demonstrated by the achievement of KPIs.
• Provide one‑to‑one line management in line with service policies.
• Ensure staff receive appraisals and associated training in line with Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust Policy.
• Manage HR issues within the service.
• Maintain the maintenance of standards of practice according to the employer and any regulating body, keeping up to date on new recommendations/guidelines set by the Department of Health.
• Ensure client confidentiality is protected at all times.
• Stay up to date with advances in the spheres of treatment for common mental health problems.
• Identify, discuss and review clear objectives with management on a regular basis as part of continuing professional development.
• Attend clinical/managerial supervision and individual performance review and respond to agreed objectives.
• Attend relevant conferences/workshops in line with identified professional objectives.
• Contribute to the development of best practice within the service.
• Maintain up‑to‑date knowledge of legislation, national and local policies and procedures in relation to Mental Health and Primary Care Services.
• Ensure the duty of candour and the duty of good governance is followed for all services.
• Complete all requirements relating to data collection within the service.
• Work closely with other members of the team ensuring appropriate step‑up and step‑down arrangements are in place to maintain a stepped care approach.
• Promote and demonstrate a pro‑active management and leadership style to all staff within area of responsibility.
• Ensure that all legal and contractual requirements in relation to all staff are adhered to.
• Support staff in achieving a positive image of Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust and promote mental health positively.
• Engage with service users, families and carers in the treatment and recovery process.
• Maintain accurate and timely collection and recording of data, ensuring personally identifiable information is protected.
• Adhere to health and safety legislation and local policies.
• Operate within any organisational codes of practice or those from a relevant professional body.
• Respect equality and diversity across all areas of working practice and communication.
• Adopt and promote Just & Learning and Civility & Respect culture within the team.
• Support staff and the service with performance elements, including monitoring booked appointments/productivity and looking at recovery rates using reports.

Personal Attributes & Commitment

• Commit to the vision of supporting Mersey Care in becoming a leading organisation in the provision of community services, mental health care, addiction services and learning disability care.
• Role‑model the values of the Trust – Continuous Improvement, Accountability, Respectfulness, Enthusiasm and Support – in all activities and interactions.
• Challenge the stigma associated with mental health and learning difficulties.
• Work across professional and organisational boundaries to improve services for all.
• Maintain current knowledge base and develop new skills.
• Value the contribution of the patient/service user voice.
• Adhere to the NHS Constitution and organizational policies.
• Participate in Just & Learning Culture events and training.
• Communicate concerns in a safe and respectful manner, supporting an open culture.
• Encourage sharing of concerns about safety and quality of care with senior leaders.

Application & Contact Information

Please ensure you check the email account from which you apply for all correspondence. All information regarding your application will come from apps.trac.jobs, not NHS Jobs. Only those applicants who demonstrate clearly how they meet our person specification will be shortlisted for interview. We reserve the right to close any vacancies from further applications when we have received a minimum number of applications from which to make a shortlist. Please ensure you apply without delay if you wish to be considered for this role.

We offer a guaranteed interview scheme for applicants who consider themselves to be disabled and meet the minimum criteria for the role. If you would like your application to be considered under this scheme, indicate this in the personal information section of your online application form. If you require a reasonable adjustment to our recruitment process, email [email protected] to ensure measures can be put in place to support you.

Flexible working requests will be considered for all roles. The use of Artificial Intelligence on applications is monitored and must be declared on your application form. New entrants to the NHS will commence on the first pay point of the relevant band.

About Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust

Mersey Care is one of the largest trusts providing physical health and mental health services in the North West, serving more than 1.4 million people across our region and are also commissioned for services that cover the North West, North Wales and the Midlands. We offer specialist inpatient and community services that support physical and mental health and specialist inpatient mental health, learning disability, addiction and brain injury services. Mersey Care is one of only three trusts in the UK that offer high secure mental health facilities. At the heart of all we do is our commitment to ‘perfect care’ – care that is safe, effective, positively experienced, timely, equitable and efficient. We support our staff to do the best job they can and work alongside service users, their families, and carers to design and develop future services together. We’re currently delivering a programme of organisational and service transformation to significantly improve the quality of the services we provide and safely reduce cost as we do so.