Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner

Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 30,000 - 44,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

27 days annual leave

NHS discount

Career progression

Probation period support

Job summary

Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust is seeking a qualified Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner to join the Brent Talking Therapies service. The role involves delivering low-intensity interventions, conducting assessments, and providing psychoeducation across face-to-face, Teams, and telephone formats.

You will work within a stepped care model and collaborate with a multidisciplinary team. Ideal candidates will have PWP training or equivalent and experience in IAPT/Primary Care,

Qualifications

• High level communication skills: written and verbal, including telephone skills.
• Experience with mental health problems and IAPT/Primary Care services.
• Ability to work within a stepped care model delivering low intensity interventions.

Responsibilities

• Provide low intensity psychological interventions within stepped care.
• Carry out assessments and self-management support for common mental health problems.
• Deliver psychoeducational workshops and build community links.
• Maintain electronic records and contribute to data collection and governance.

Skills

Communication skills

Telephone skills

Empathy

Teamwork

Stress management

Education

PWP training or equivalent

Tools

IAPTUS

PCMIS

Job description

Qualifications

Essential criteria

Experience

Essential criteria

• Research / audit experience.

Job Overview

We are looking for enthusiastic and motivated qualified Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner (PWP) to join our team at CNWL Talking Therapies Service Brent. We are a large, well established service based in a diverse borough of London. Our service provides low and high intensity therapies at Step 2 and Step 3, alongside our Step 3 counselling service. We are passionate about the work we do and care provided to service users, and work by the trust values of compassion, respect, empowerment and partnership. Our team is key in the work we do and service provided to the population of Brent.

We are looking for Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner with excellent communication and interpersonal skills, who are adaptable, enjoy challenges and diversity and demonstrate an enthusiasm for primary care work. We particularly welcome applicants who speak other languages and who have enthusiasm for and experience of working with diversity.

Main duties of the job

You will be working within a stepped care model, providing assessments and delivering evidence based low intensity interventions for people with common mental health problems. Assessments and interventions may be delivered face to face, via digitals platform (Teams) or via the telephone. You would also be expected to deliver psychoeducational workshops and become involved in working within the local community and establishing links with voluntary service organisations to promote the service.

You will receive regular clinical supervision and support from a qualified therapist and work closely with other clinical practitioners within the team. The Brent Talking Therapies service has close links with other IAPT teams in CNWL, as well as, wider links with other mental health teams within Brent. We have a strong tradition of supporting staff development and further progression onto higher training.

Working for our organisation

The catchment area of the post is the London borough of Brent. The main hub for the service is based at Fairfields House in Kingsbury and there is a satellite hub at Bell House in Willesden Green. You will be required to work across both hubs and in other parts of the borough, e.g. GP surgeries and community settings.

We operate an agile working policy where staff combine remote working and being on-site to deliver face-to-face appointments and other service commitments that require a hub-based presence. The post-holder will work full-time hours and may be required to work at any times between 8am and 8pm on weekdays including an evening clinic as required by the service. Wellbeing is important within our service and we are a collaborative and cohesive team. We have a dedicated wellbeing group within the service to help support individuals' and the wider team wellbeing.

Benefits of working for CNWL include:

• 27 days of annual leave, plus bank holidays, with an increase to 33 days with continuous service
• NHS discount
• Opportunities for career progression
• New starters will have a 13-week probation period which is a supportive process to allow individuals to learn and work within the key aspects of their role over a period of time

If you would like to see what it's like to work for CNWL please have a look at https://www.cnwl.nhs.uk/work

Detailed Job Description And Main Responsibilities

CLINICAL

• To accept referrals via agreed protocols within the service. This includes participation in the teams duty and triage rota to screen referrals along with a high intensity therapist and a senior clinician.
• To assess and support people with a common mental health problem in the self management of their recovery.
• To undertake patient-centred interviews which identify areas where the person wishes to see change and or recovery and makes an accurate assessment of risk to self and others.
• To make decisions on suitability of new referrals, adhering to the departments referral protocols, refer unsuitable clients on to the relevant service or back to the referral agent as necessary or step up the persons treatment to high intensity psychological therapy.
• To provide a range of information and support for evidence based high-volume low-intensity psychological treatments. This may include guided self-help computerised CBT, information about pharmacological treatments. This work may be face to face, telephone or via other media.
• To educate and involve family members and others in treatment where necessary and appropriate.
• To adhere to an agreed activity contract relating to the overall number of client contacts offered, and clinical sessions carried out per week in order to minimise waiting times and ensure treatment delivery remains accessible and convenient.
• To attend multi-disciplinary meetings relating to referrals or clients in treatment, where appropriate.
• To complete all requirements relating to data collection within the service.
• To keep coherent records of all clinical activity in line with service protocols and use these records and clinical outcome data in clinical decision making.
• To 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.
• To assess and integrate issues surrounding work and employment into the overall therapy process.
• To operate at all times from an inclusive values base which promotes recovery and recognises and respects diversity.
• To prepare and present clinical information for all patients on their caseload to clinical case management supervisors within the service on an agreed and scheduled basis, in order to ensure safe practice and the clinical governance obligations of the worker, supervisor and service are delivered.
• To deal with a range of clients and clinical situations, including those involving highly emotive communication and the need to apply initiative, tact and persuasion in the face of psychological resistance

Person specification

Qualifications

Essential criteria

• Qualification from PWP Training Course (Post Graduate Certificate or Level 3 undergraduate course) OR equivalent ,e.g. Experienced and Qualified Graduate Mental Health Worker with relevant Primary Care experiences and competences as required.

Desirable criteria

• Further post graduate training in relevant areas of professional psychology, health, social science, and/or research design and analysis.
• Evidence of working in a service where agreed targets were in place to demonstrate effective clinical outcomes.

Experience

Essential criteria

• Evidence of working with people with mental health problems.
• Experience of working in IAPT/Primary Care Services and delivering low intensity interventions.
• Evidence of having worked in a service where agreed targets were in place to demonstrate effective clinical outcomes.
• Experience of using electronic patient management systems such as IAPTUS or PCMIS or similar.
• Evidence of experience and knowledge of risk assessment and management.

Desirable criteria

• Research / audit experience.
• Evidence of working in the local community.

Knowledge and skills

Essential criteria

• High level communication skills: written and verbal, including telephone skills
• An ability to communicate and work in settings in which the atmosphere may be highly emotive.
• Ability to communicate sensitive information to patients, carers and colleagues in a way that addresses psychological resistance.
• An understanding of the needs and difficulties of people with mental health problems.
• An ability to apply existing psychological knowledge to a mental health context
• An understanding of psychology applied to health care.
• An ability to evaluate and put in place the effect of training
• Computer literate.
• Ability to work under pressure.

Desirable criteria

• Fluency in an additional (to English) locally relevant priority language
• Experience of delivering group based interventions.

PERSONAL

Essential criteria

• An interest in working with people with mental health problems.
• Ability to work within a team and foster good working relationships with staff from all disciplines.
• Able to develop good therapeutic relationships with clients
• Ability to work independently, flexibly, reliably and consistently with work agreed and managed at regular intervals.

Other Requirements

Essential criteria

• Ability to accept and use supervision appropriately and effectively