Deputy Centre Lead

NHS; Greater London; On-site; GBP 53,000 - 61,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading mental health service provider in Greater London is seeking a Deputy Centre Lead / Team Leader. This role involves leading the Living Well Centres, ensuring effective delivery of mental health support and adherence to care standards. Candidates should be Registered Nurses, Occupational Therapists, or Social Workers with strong leadership skills. Attractive salary of £53,751 to £60,651 per annum, along with an extensive benefits package. Flexible working options are available.

Benefits

Generous pay and leave

Flexible working hours

Career development opportunities

Keyworker housing available

NHS discounts through various brands

Counselling services

Qualifications

• Proven ability to analyze complex issues and exercise sound judgement.
• Experience managing clinical practice in mental health services.
• Registered professional status as Nurse, OT, or Social Worker.

Responsibilities

• Lead and manage care delivery and team operations.
• Oversee user care pathways and resource utilization.
• Ensure compliance with mental health legislation.

Skills

Leadership skills

Clinical management

Communication skills

Culturally sensitive practice

Project management

Education

Registered Nurse (Mental Health/Learning Disability)

Mentorship Course

Master's degree or equivalent experience

Management course

Job description

Go back South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust

Deputy Centre Lead / Team Leader

The closing date is 23 January 2026

Join Our Team: Exciting Opportunities at Lambeth Living Well CentresWe are recruiting for maternity leave cover for our post as a team leader at the Focused Support (CMHT) based at South-West Living Well Centre - Based at Gracefield Gardens in Streatham, providing medium to long term mental health treatment to residents aged 18 and over regardless of diagnosis.

This service is an integral part of the Lambeth Alliance, closely interfacing with South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust (SLaM), social care, and voluntary sector organisations. As part of our innovative Lambeth Living Well Network (LWN) Alliance, we aim to deliver a fully integrated and coordinated mental health system that prioritises individuals' strengths and supports their whole health and wellbeing.

Our work is rooted in collaboration, bringing together Certitude, Lambeth Clinical Commissioning Group, Lambeth Council, South London & Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, and Thames Reach to transform mental health support across the borough.

We are seeking a dynamic and enthusiastic candidate with strong leadership skills and a commitment to delivering high standards of care. As part of your role, you will contribute to our journey toward a fully integrated system, joining one of our three established Living Well Centres in Lambeth.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will support their line manager in operating and developing the Living Well Centres, to include:

• Leading and managing safe and effective delivery of the care and support for people accessing the centre, within the parameters of delegated responsibility provided by the Alliance partnership organisations.
• Ensuring the centre workforce adheres to the principles, values and outcomes of the Living Well Network Alliance
• Effectively meeting all delegated statutory and regulated duties - with advice and support from relevant partner organisations.
• Improve quality, maintaining safety and leading innovative practice.

To apply for this post you must be a Registered Mental Health or Learning Disability Nurse, Occupational Therapist or Social Worker.

About us

We are committed to ensuring our staff get the most out of their benefits package and understand the importance of a healthy work life balance. There is an extensive range of excellent benefits for you and your family. We want you to feel like you are part of a close knit team at SLaM. It's important to us that you valued and appreciated and that are why we have a comprehensive benefits package on offer

Some of our benefits are highlighted here:

• Generous pay, pensions and leave, we offer a comprehensive pay, pensions and leave package which is dependent on the role and length of service.
• Work life balance, flexible working and support a range of flexible options, such as: part-time working and job sharing.
• Career development, There are plenty of opportunities to progress your career and we support your development through a number of programmes such as mentoring, coaching, positive people management, collective leadership and other talent programmes
• Car lease, our staff benefits from competitive deals to lease cars
• Accommodation, our staff benefits from keyworker housing available which is available on selected sites
• NHS discounts, with discounts up to 10% from a variety of well-known retail brands though Health Service Discounts website.

Other benefits include:

• Counselling services
• Long service awards
• Cycle to work scheme
• Season ticket loan
• Staff restaurants

Job responsibilities

Key Responsibilities:

Management of Care and PracticeEnsure that all clinical practice is developed using up to date evidence base, ensuring that all staff have the appropriate skill base and supporting mechanisms to access training to work with the service user group.Oversee a service user's care pathway, utilising available resources and Patient Journey framework and lead the team in its implementation.Ensure systems are in place to support user and carer-centred involvement in the planning and provision of care.Ensure that staff receives regular supervision and appraisal and are offered essential and developmental training in accordance with their personal development plans, and the needs of the service.Ensure that all service users are made aware of, encouraged, and assisted to use all services available to them.Ensure that the requirements of all mental health legislation are met

Management of Clinical StandardsSet, monitor and evaluate overall standards of care and practice in the team in liaison with the centre lead, Professional Advisors, and other agencies.Ensure that all practices and interactions in the team are based on the preservation and respect of service users dignity, individual and cultural identity, wishes (whenever possible) and are in accordance with the maintenance of individuals independence.Ensure that all staff is aware of the standards of professional behaviour expected by the Trust.Ensure that the service provides continuity out of hours, appropriately relating to the senior manager on-call and out of hours medical team.Work closely with the centres integrated workforce and involve them in all relevant day to day decisions.Management of Human ResourcesMaintain the efficient use of staffing resources in the team, ensuring that staffing levels are safe, appropriate and contain the necessary skill mix, but recognising and supporting Improving Working Lives within the confines of a safe service.The post-holder will ensure that each member of staff is fully aware of their responsibilities and has a personal development plan which is based on a balance between the needs of the individual and the service.Manage the overall development of the team, encouraging staff to contribute their views and ideas as appropriate.Implement all Trust policies and Human Resource Management, and ensure staff are aware of how to access this information.Delegate duties and responsibilities to other staff as appropriate to assist in the operation of the unit and to aid the development of individual staff.

Management of Information and CommunicationDevelop and maintain procedures that result in good communication between the integrated team and other agencies.Arrange and in some instances chair relevant meetings involving other agencies, patients and carers when necessary to facilitate good communication.The post-holder will lead the team in setting, implementing and monitoring realistic and achievable objectives in accordance with the aims and objectives of the service.Attend meetings and forums, representing the team at various levels both within the Trust and with external agencies, ensuring that all staff is kept fully briefed on any new developments etc.The post-holder may be required to participate in specific inter-agency work relevant to the service.Ensure that all communication (verbal or written) between the team and other departments or agencies is of a high standard both in its content and presentation.Ensure that all written and electronically stored information is accessible only to authorised personnel and is stored in accordance with the Data Protection Act.Ensure that administrative staff is aware of the importance of the collection of statistical data and ensure that this is collected and stored in an accurate and timely fashion.

Management of the EnvironmentEnsure that the Health and Safety at Work Act is adhered to by all staff.The post-holder will have particular responsibility for ensuring that all staff receives any training necessary in order to meet the requirements of the Act. (eg. fire training, first aid, etc.).The post-holder will be responsible for taking immediate action to deal with any problem which might affect service user, visitor or staff safety. This will involve liaison with the relevant Health and Safety Co-ordinator.Ensure local response in managing incidents by using the Trust Incident Policy and implementation outcomes to change and improve practice.

Personal Development and Freedom to Act. The post-holder will:Be prepared to physically move between sites as needed.Ensure that they are fully aware of current developments and practice in their clinical area.Acknowledge their own limitations and discuss/identify their training and development needs with their line manager.Make effective use of supervision with their line manager on a regular and agreed basis. Be aware of the need to reflect on their practice both as clinician and manager.Manage own time efficiently.Be aware of and adhere to all Trust Policies and act as a role model to other staff.Meet the required professional standards for ongoing registration.Recognise emotional and mental effort required to fulfil the post.

Other responsibilities. The post-holder will also be responsible for:Deputising for the centre lead as required.Establishing and building on excellent working relationships between other services within and external to the Directorate.Ensuring that systems are in place which invite service users and their carers to comment on the quality of services they receive.Implementation of the complaints procedure including investigation, response, and resolution.Ensuring that their line manager is kept informed of all developments and changes within the team.The safe storage and administration of medications.The creation and maintenance of an environment which is conducive to learning and which meets the educational standards required by Educational Institutions whose students are placed on the ward.The post-holder will be expected to facilitate actively the teams involvement in the training and education of staff from a variety of disciplines.Participating in projects, within the team and Trust as required by the senior management of the Directorate.Other duties as delegated by the Clinical Service Lead.

Person Specification

Qualification/Education

• Registered Nurse (Mental Health/Learning Disability) or other professional registration e.g. Social Work, Occupational Therapy.
• Mentorship Course (or other relevant teaching/assessment course)
• Evidence of continuing professional development
• Master's degree or equivalent experience
• Management course

Experience/Knowledge

• Substantial experience of managing clinical practice in a mental health service
• Experience of implementing and monitoring standards of care
• Experience of providing clinical and managerial supervision
• Specialist clinical knowledge relevant to the service, including evidence-based practice.
• Working knowledge of all relevant legislation associated with acute mental health care, including relevant statutory and regulatory frameworks
• Experience of working in a multi-cultural environment and knowledge of methods to develop culturally sensitive practice.
• Experience of working with different client groups and of using a variety of models and approaches to care
• Experience of managing non-clinical staff and other professionals
• Experience of staff performance management
• Experience of implementing significant changes in working practices
• Experience of project management

Skills and Abilities

• Skills in developing and changing clinical practice
• Ability to build and maintain high standards of professional links and communications channels with a variety of personnel and agencies
• Ability to analyse complex issues/problems, gather relevant information and exercise sound judgement in reaching the most appropriate conclusions
• Ability to organise and plan ahead effectively
• Ability to enthuse others, co-ordinate and motivate a team
• Proven ability to maintain a balance between strategic and operational management
• Ability to support, manage and advise the team through difficult and challenging situations
• Ability to build and lead effectively, a large multi-skilled team
• Ability to manage conflict effectively.
• Ability to manage effectively a revenue budget in the region of £700,000.
• Advanced computer skills and use of spread sheets.

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.

South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust

£53,751 to £60,651 a yearper annum inclusive of HCAs