Prison-to-Community Substance Misuse Specialist

Nhft; Northampton; Remote; GBP 25,000 - 32,000; Full time

Job summary

NHFT is an NHS Community and Mental Health Foundation Trust delivering physical and mental health services across the county and community settings. This Band 5 role focuses on assessment and planning for people leaving prison, with emphasis on substance misuse or alcohol difficulties, building links with specialist services and supporting colleagues.

The post requires a full driving licence and prison clearance, and we welcome applicants with registered nursing, social work, or occupational

Qualifications

• Experience in substance misuse services or as a registered practitioner.
• Knowledge of recovery-based models in drug/alcohol use.
• Understanding of interfaces with mental health, criminal justice, and other services.
• Experience working in custodial environments.

Responsibilities

• Liaise with statutory and non-statutory agencies to enable early identification of those leaving prison needing access to community healthcare.
• Work independently under the guidance of the team leader.
• Develop robust links with local substance misuse services to aid joint working and referrals.
• Provide specialist mental health/substance misuse assessments for complex needs to identify onward referrals and care pathways.
• Provide brief interventions to service users while awaiting access to identified services.
• Maintain own caseload within scope of practice and escalate concerns as appropriate.
• Collaborate with service users to identify onward community needs and referrals.
• Develop knowledge of third sector agencies and referral procedures.

Skills

Significant experience in SubstanceMis

Recovery-based models knowledge

Mental health and criminal justice lia

Custodial environment experience

Leading interventions in substance use

Education

Registered nurse / Social Worker / OT or related degree

Job description

NHFT is an NHS Community and Mental Health Foundation Trust delivering physical and mental health services across the county and community settings. This Band 5 role focuses on assessment and planning for people leaving prison, with emphasis on substance misuse or alcohol difficulties, building links with specialist services and supporting colleagues.

The post requires a full driving licence and prison clearance, and we welcome applicants with registered nursing, social work, or occupational