Mental Health and Wellbeing Practitioner

Aneurin Bevan University Health Board; Pontypool; On-site; GBP 33,000 - 40,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible working

Training and development opportunities

Job summary

Aneurin Bevan University Health Board is recruiting a Mental Health and Wellbeing Practitioner (Band 5) to support people experiencing mental health issues or distress. You will rotate shifts to cover a 24/7 service and complete initial training before operating in a full shift pattern.

Welsh language skills are desirable and recruitment emphasises equality and inclusion. Successful candidates will act as first points of contact for urgent mental health support, delivering psychosocial

Qualifications

• Educated to degree level or equivalent experience.
• Awareness of social determinants of mental health & wellbeing.
• Understanding of common mental health and neurodevelopment conditions.
• Proficient in telephone and video-based emotional support.

Responsibilities

• Provide mental health/wellbeing support to people calling the 24/7 service.
• Conduct triage, risk assessments and brief psychosocial interventions by phone/video.
• Deliver compassionate conversations and guide self-management where appropriate.
• Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams and adapt to culturally diverse service users.

Skills

Mental health support

Telephone assessment

Communication skills

Cultural competence

Education

Degree level or equivalent

Job description

Mental Health and Wellbeing Practitioner

Band 5

Main area Mental Health Grade Band 5 Contract Permanent Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week (Full rotation of shifts to cover 24/7) Job ref 040-NMR350-01026

Site Ty Clarence House Town Pontypool Salary £32,557 - £39,631 per annum Salary period Yearly Closing 20/10/2026 23:59

We encourage applications from all with protected characteristics, including disabled and neurodiverse candidates and from those in the Armed Forces Community. Applicantsare invited to apply in Welsh, any application submitted through the medium of Welsh will not be treated less favourably than applications made in English.

Each job advert includes the relevant manager’s contact details, and you are encouraged to discuss any adjustments you may require directly with them. There is no obligation to disclose any personal or medical information—simply let us know what support would help you to participate fully.

Please let us know if you have any particular requirements to enable you to participate in the application and selection process. We will be pleased to discuss any reasonable adjustments or support needed. If you need any documents in a larger font or a different format (such as braille) please either contact the recruiting manager named in the job advert or alternatively contact the Aneurin Bevan University Health Board recruitment team on 01495 745805 option 3 or email [e-mail]

If you are successful at interview for this post you will receive your conditional offer of appointment and information pack via email.

We reserve the right to close this vacancy at any time. Therefore we encourage early applications to ensure consideration for this post. If you are short listed for this post, you will be contacted via your email account you used to apply for this post, therefore please check your account regularly.

Please check your email account regularly . Successful applicants will receive all recruitment related correspondence via the email account registered on the application form.

Health Board grounds are required to be smoke-free by law. Smoking is not permitted anywhere on ABUHB sites. This applies to all staff, contractors, patients and visitors. More details are available in our Smoke-Free Environment Policy . For help to quit smoking please contact our Help Me Quit Team About Help Me Quit - Aneurin Bevan University Health Board

Please note that this vacancy may be withdrawn at any time should it be filled via the internal redeployment process

Job overview

We currently have an amazing opportunity for anyone experienced in providing support to people who experience mental health issues or emotional distress to get involved in the development of a brand-new service.

At the start of employment, successful candidates will be required to complete a comprehensive training package during the daytime. The service will be operational 24/7 and so successful candidates will be required to work a full shift rotation on completion of the training period.

If you have experience of supporting people, whether that be face to face or over the telephone, and you have a passion for improving and shaping services, we would really like to hear from you.

Please note that the selection process for these roles will include an assessment of competence in managing a difficult phone call.

Main duties of the job

This post is a key role within the 24/7 Mental Health 111 service and will be the first point of contact for people who may require urgent mental health support.

• Mental Health & Wellbeing Practitioners provide effective mental health support to people calling the service who may be experiencing a mental health crisis. This may include triage and risk assessments, and brief psychosocial interventions.
• Working via telephone and video calls, Mental Health & Wellbeing Practitioners will provide effective emotional support for people through the use of compassionate conversations and, when appropriate, encourage and guide effective self-management of emotional distress.
• Mental Health & Wellbeing Practitioners will be able to recognise when a person requires more support than is possible to be delivered over the phone.
• Post holders will work with people from different cultural backgrounds and of all ages and should be committed to culturally competent practice and aware of issues relating to equality, diversity and inclusion.

As this role will be evaluated to understand whether it needs to adapt, successful candidates will also be required to engage in regular reviews, e.g., completing questionnaires, giving feedback, in addition to their usual supervision.

The ability to speak Welsh is desirable for this role; Welsh and/or English speakers are equally welcome to apply.

Working for our organisation

Aneurin Bevan University Health Board is a multi-award winning NHS organisation with a passion for caring. The Health Board provides an exceptional workplace where you can feel trusted and valued. Whatever your speciality or stage in your career, we have opportunities for everyone to start, grow and build your career. The health board provides integrated acute, primary and community care serving a population of 650,000 and employing over 16,000 staff.

We offer a fantastic benefits package and extensive training and development opportunities with paid mandatory training, excellent in-house programmes, opportunities to complete recognised qualifications and professional career pathways including a range of management development programmes. We offer flexible working and promote a healthy work life balance, provide occupational health support and an ambitious plan for a Wellbeing Centre of Excellence to support you at work.

Our Clinical Futures strategy continues to enhance and promote care closer to home as well as high quality hospital care when needed. Join us on our journey to pioneer new ways of working and deliver a world-class healthcare service fit for the future.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Person specification

Qualifications/Knowledge

• Educated to degree level or equivalent experience
• Evidence of CPD in relevant field
• Awareness of social determinants of mental health & wellbeing
• An understanding of common mental health and neurodevelopment conditions
• Good understand of barriers that people with mental health issues face
• Understanding of the issues affecting people from BAME community and those with protected characteristics
• Good understanding of the impact of stigma and discrimination
• Understanding of the services that are available to support people in mental health crisis
• Understanding of the need to use evidence-based psychosocial interventions

Experience

• Experience of providing mental health or wellbeing support to people
• Experience of working autonomously and using own initiative
• Experience of prioritising tasks within a busy and pressured environment
• Experience of utilising evidenced based psychosocial interventions
• Experience of working within a multi-disciplinary team, and/or collaboratively with other organisations/agencies
• Experience of providing mental health and wellbeing support to people in mental health crisis or experiencing emotional distress
• Experience of providing telephone assessment/support
• Experience working in a service where agreed targets are in place, demonstrating clinical outcomes
• Evidence of working in the local community
• Experience of working in NHS Primary Care Services/mental health settings/ care homes/ in‑patient services
• Able to adapt skills to working remotely (i.e. via telephone/video calls)
• To be reflective and self‑aware whilst working with people
• To work well within a team and foster good working relationships
• To develop positive therapeutic relationships with people experiencing mental health issues
• Strong and adaptable communication skills to suit varying environments and situations (written and verbal)
• Ability to think laterally and prioritise effectively
• Able to demonstrate commitment to high quality care and service provision
• High level of analytical and judgement skills
• Ability to work without direct supervision
• Competent assessment and/or support skills
• Excellent telephone and IT skills
• Ability to communicate and work in settings in which the atmosphere may be highly emotive
• Ability to recognise own wellbeing needs and utilise skills to ensure wellbeing needs are met
• Ability to speak Welsh
• Knowledge of NHS policies, procedures and guidelines
• Knowledge of outcome measures and their use in clinical audit
• Ability to work effectively with interpreters
• Knowledge of different mental health models and research/evident based treatment
• Competent in assessment of risk
• Ability to work independently within the boundaries of clinical supervision
• Ability to appropriately