Clinical Specialist - Complex Emotional Needs

NHS; Harrogate; On-site; GBP 47,000 - 55,000; Part time

Job summary

A leading NHS mental health trust is seeking a part-time Clinical Specialist for Complex Emotional Needs in Harrogate. The role involves supporting the development of psychologically informed community care for individuals with complex emotional needs, delivering training, and working with various service providers. Candidates should have a postgraduate diploma in a relevant subject and significant experience in mental health, particularly with trauma-informed practices. The annual salary ranges from £47,810 to £54,710 pro rata.

Qualifications

• Demonstrable experience working with people with complex emotional needs.
• Knowledge of structured clinical management and trauma-focused care.
• Ability to work collaboratively in multi-disciplinary teams.

Responsibilities

• Promote psychologically informed care across services.
• Deliver training in relational complexity and trauma-informed practices.
• Develop and deliver group interventions and training across services.

Skills

Experience with complex emotional needs

Knowledge of Trauma-Informed Care

Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT)

Mentalisation Based Therapy (MBT)

Motivational Interviewing (MI)

Multi-systemic Therapy (MST)

Education

Postgraduate diploma in a relevant subject

Registration with relevant professional body

Job description

Tees Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust

Clinical Specialist - Complex Emotional Needs

The closing date is 21 January 2026

To support North Yorkshire & York Community Mental Health Transformation and improve the care of people with complex emotional needs, we have a challenging yet exciting and dynamic part time position for a Band 7 clinical Nurse Specialist to work within the Harrogate and Rural District area.

The post holder will be clinically supervised by the Personality and Relational Specialist Clinicians. We require someone with drive and compassion to work predominantly in a co‑working capacity to increase access to psychologically informed care across local community systems within a new integrated ‘place‑based’ service delivery model. This involves supporting the development and implementation of high‑quality evidence‑based interventions and support for people with complex emotional needs, who present with severe and multiple disadvantages, including substance misuse.

It is an essential requirement that applicants have demonstrable experience working with people with complex emotional needs and knowledge of Trauma‑Informed Care and Structured Clinical Management (SCM).

Desirable training includes Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT), Mentalisation Based Therapy (MBT), Motivational Interviewing (MI) or Multi‑systemic Therapy (MST).

As this post is relatively new to the Trust there will be multiple opportunities for the successful candidate to be involved in developing the service and role.

Main duties of the job

To promote psychologically informed care across systems for people presenting with complex emotional needs, supporting services to increase access to high‑quality specialist interventions. The post holder will deliver and support local mental health teams, hospital staff, voluntary, community and social enterprise providers and PCNs in providing interventions, including supervision, case consultation and liaison. This post will increase the resilience of the ‘place‑based’ system and improve the care and support of people who lead chaotic lives, presenting with multiple challenges to several services.

You will co‑work with other providers to enable early intervention and least restrictive practice, embedding care within the person's community. You will develop and deliver group interventions to system partners and provide supervision/consultation to secondary care staff delivering Structured Clinical Management to service users.

You will support the local ‘place’ and strengthen links across the whole system, offer consultation and support the assessment and engagement of individuals who present with substance misuse, high‑risk behaviours and emotional and interpersonal difficulties. You will increase the community's knowledge and skills by providing training across services, including VCSE.

You will promote positive attitudes towards service users with complex needs, to maintain responsive and non‑stigmatising services.

About us

We are the Mental Health & Learning Disability NHS Trust for County Durham and Darlington, Teesside, North Yorkshire, York and Selby.

From education and prevention to crisis and specialist care – our talented and compassionate teams work in partnership with our patients, communities and partners to help the people of our region feel safe, understood, believed in and cared for.

We nurture the recovery journey of anyone in need of our help. In Our Trust, everyone has a say in how they are supported and treated because we listen to every person in our care until they feel understood. Our patients, their families and carers work together with us towards better mental health.

We're committed to new thinking that improves the wellbeing of our region. We connect with our communities and partners to get mental health care right, in areas that really need it.

We won't rest until everyone in our region has the mental health care they need, to lead their best possible life.

Job responsibilities

System Responsibilities as part of the Community Mental Health Transformation Programme:

• Develop and enhance relationships within the local mental health system, including with Peer Support Workers, First Contact Mental Health Practitioners, GPs and other Practice‑based staff, Secondary Healthcare Providers, Service users, Local Authority staff and Voluntary and Third Sector organisations. Connecting colleagues and service users to enhance care.
• Deliver training in working with relational complexity, SCM awareness, Knowledge and Understanding Framework (KUF), Trauma‑Informed Care and the management of risk to wider teams, PCNs and external agencies (e.g. housing providers).
• Provide focussed indirect support to people presenting with highly complex needs in a leadership role through the FOCUS and High Intensity User Group (HIUG) networks, helping them receive the most appropriate care that they need within the community they live.
• Work across the interface of social, community, mental and physical health services, providing liaison and support to acute hospital liaison services in the Acute Hospital to target those that present with alcohol or substance misuse issues and relational difficulties.
• Co‑work alongside other agencies to identify practical barriers to engagement with services, whilst providing psychoeducation or stabilisation and grounding for individuals to allow them to access or engage the most appropriate services to support their needs.
• Contribute to increasing awareness on a local level of the presentation and prevalence of emotional dysregulation, risk to self and others and complexities such as co‑morbidity substance misuse issues in local populations; using this insight and intelligence to inform future investment decisions as part of community mental health transformation and the NHS Long‑Term Plan.
• Encourage proactive outreach for people struggling to engage with support and services, identifying and proactively engaging with vulnerable and hard‑to‑reach groups, including offering home visits where necessary and linking with peer support workers and VSCE partners (such as North Yorkshire Horizons and Changing Lives) to increase opportunities for engagement.
• Provide specialist advice to, or obtain advice for, community‑based partners on appropriate interventions and on‑going person‑centred care and management.
• Develop and deliver early intervention support, including consultation, psychoeducation, self‑help materials and links to service user groups within the wider community system, including the delivery of appropriate SCM/problem‑solving psychoeducational/intervention groups with VCSE services (Horizons, Changing Lives etc).
• Promote positive working environments/relationships within MDT settings across the wider community system, assisting with the design, development and delivery of local opportunities for closer partnership working (including Wellbeing/Social Hubs); ensuring continuity of care and a robust place‑based approach to the physical health management and psychological wellbeing for people over the age of 18 who present with complex emotional needs and additional complexities at a local population level.
• Show flexibility; able to work within a variety of environments and settings. Daily work will be largely undertaken within community settings, including primary care, emerging community hubs and Community Mental Health Teams, with access to robust clinical supervision from the Personality & Relational clinicians and support structures as defined by NHSE and the CCGs.

In addition to Lynsey Carmichael listed as Clinical Team Manager, Candidates are strongly encouraged to contact Madaleine Rowlinson to discuss this post and expectations prior to interview.

Person Specification

Qualifications & Experience

• Registration with relevant professional body (e.g. NMC, GMC, HCPC, Social Work England).
• For nursing professions – Recognised Practice Supervisor and/or Practice Assessor, clinical educator or equivalent and trained in providing clinical supervision.
• For other professions – evidence of training in clinical supervision of other staff and ability to demonstrate competence in this area of practice in clinical supervision of other staff and/or students/trainees.
• All professions – Postgraduate diploma (or above) in a subject relevant to the area of practice.
• Within the first year of being in post hold a recognised advanced clinical qualification or Masters level credits (e.g. Intermediate Systemic Family Therapy/Post‑Grad diploma in CBT/British Isles Dialectical Behaviour Therapy/NMP e.g. dysphagia, posture, autism assessment, rebound, social prescribing, sensory processing, Approved Mental Health Professional, Practice Educator (level 3 Independent Prescriber)). * Note any other advanced qualification/masters credits not listed here as an example, must be clearly evidenced and listed as "advanced qualification or masters credits" – within the individual's application form.
• Equivalent clinical experience to that of a Post‑Grad Diploma/master's level such as working as a band 6 (or above) in relevant clinical area with significant experience (see below under experience), together with evidence of relevant CPD.
• Substantial clinical experience of working in relevant specialist area in collaboration with service users, families and relevant others or transferable experience of similar settings and willingness to gain knowledge within first 12 months.
• Experience of assessing and managing risk (harm to self, others and safeguarding).
• Substantial experience of working in a multi‑disciplinary team.
• Involvement in quality improvement activities.

Knowledge & Skills

• Extensive knowledge of current issues relating to health needs of patients in the field of practice, regionally and nationally.
• Experience of application of relevant legislation (i.e. Mental Health Act and Mental Capacity Act, Safeguarding) in practice.
• Extensive knowledge of patients who display high risk behaviours.
• Demonstrate understanding of inter‑agency relationships.
• Excellent written communication skills which are clearly demonstrated.
• Demonstrable leadership qualities – e.g. role modelling of values and behaviour, active listening, use of evidence base and implementation of standards, ability to make complex judgements synthesising information appropriately, including signposting.
• Working collaboratively with service users, their families and carers.
• Understanding of psychological models of care and treatment (depending on specialist area).
• Psychological intervention/counselling.

Personal Attributes

• Ability to travel independently in accordance with Trust policies and service need.
• Ability to work as part of a collective leadership team, understanding own and others' roles, engaging within your professional group and wider service.
• Self‑aware and committed to continual professional and personal development. Able to accept and respond positively to feedback from supervision.

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.

Tees Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust

£47,810 to £54,710 a year pro rata, per annum