Senior CAMHS Mental Health Practitioner - Duty & Assessment Team

NHS; Sale; On-site; GBP 49,000 - 57,000; Full time

Job summary

Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT) invites applications for a Senior CAMHS Mental Health Practitioner within the Duty & Assessment Team based at The Bridge, Sale. You will join a multi-disciplinary team to assess and manage children and young people with complex mental health needs.

The role emphasises autonomous practice, risk assessment, safeguarding, and evidence-based interventions, with most time spent in direct clinical work and face-to-face contact with service users and

Qualifications

• Experience of managing high-risk mental health cases in CAMHS.
• Ability to assess complex mental health needs and risk levels.
• Experience of working within a multi-disciplinary team.

Responsibilities

• Manage own caseload with mental state and risk assessments.
• Provide interventions and formulate next steps in care.
• Work majority of time in face-to-face clinical practice.
• Collaborate with Pathway Lead, Service Manager and CAMHS consultants.

Skills

Autonomous caseload management

Experience of safeguarding

Mentoring and supervision experience

Excellent communication with families

Job description

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Senior CAMHS Mental Health Practitioner - Duty & Assessment Team

NHS AfC: Band 7

Main area Mental health Practitioner Grade NHS AfC: Band 7 Contract Permanent Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week (Mon-Fri 9-5pm) Job ref 349-SHCG-8284369-RL4

Site Trafford CAMHS Town Sale Waterside Salary £49,387 - £56,515 Per Annum (Pro Rata) Salary period Yearly Closing 04/11/2026 23:59

Job overview

The Clinical Support Unit for CAMHS within Manchester Foundation Trust was awarded an "Outstanding" rating by the Care Quality Commission both in 2016 and 2019. This is an exciting time to join the trust to be part of the Greater Manchester footprint committed to dynamic and responsive engagement with our community.

This is a brilliant opportunity for a dedicated healthcare professional to join our Duty & Assessment team and promote and improve the mental health and well-being of Children, Young People and those who care for them. North Manchester Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) work with Children, Young People and Families aged up to 18 years and who present with a wide range of complex emotional and behavioural difficulties. We are seeking to permanently appoint a committed professional to join our experienced and highly motivated Initial Assessment & Duty Team, based at The Bridge.

We are looking for an experienced Senior Mental Health Practitioner who is able to work autonomously at Band 7, within a multi- disciplinary team. You must have demonstrable experience of working with vulnerable people and families, who present with complex mental health needs and may present as risk to self and or others.

Main duties of the job

You must have a working knowledge of CAMHS and or adult mental health and have an understanding of assessing complex mental health needs and levels of risk, including safeguarding and self-harm.

You will manage your own caseload, providing a range of high quality care appropriate to the child or young person's needs which will include; mental state assessment, risk assessment and management, family and social assessment, consultation and interventions. You will receive support from the Pathway Lead, Service Manager, Consultant Clinical Psychologist and Consultant CAMHS Psychiatrists.

This post is a clinical post and the expectation of time management is that the majority of time will be spent in face to face clinical practice. The majority of your working time is to be targeted towards initial assessments of mental health disorders and duty based mental health risk assessments. You will then formulate these cases and decide on the next steps in the case. This could be, for example to move them through to longer term treatment. There is scope in this role to hold a small portion of the job plan to provide treatment via Evidence Based practice and providing effective clinical supervision.

Working for our organisation

Join Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT) and become part of a 30,000 plus strong team, delivering exceptional care to over 1 million people every year. As the largest provider of specialist services, and our Oxford Road Campus in Manchester, the largest health academic campus in Europe, we are forward-thinking, committed to clinical excellence and driven to deliver innovation, and continuous improvement.

Whether you’re beginning your career or taking the next step, MFT offers a stimulating and supportive environment where your contribution truly matters. Our Hive Electronic Patient Record system enables safer, smarter, and more efficient ways of working - empowering you to deliver the best possible outcomes for our patients.

You’ll be part of a collaborative, multi-disciplinary community, working alongside professionals from a wide range of clinical backgrounds. Together, we push boundaries, share knowledge, and deliver care that transforms lives.

At MFT, you’ll find a workplace where everyone is respected, supported, and encouraged to thrive. We offer clear clinical pathways for professional development, helping you grow your skills and achieve your ambitions.

Your journey at MFT is more than a job - it’s an opportunity to make a lasting impact. We’ll support you as you shape the future of healthcare, one patient at a time.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

To find out more about the key responsibilities and the specific skills and experience you’ll need for this role, take a look at the Job Description & Person Specification attachments under the ‘Documents to download’ heading.

Explore ‘Inside MFT – Your Candidate Place’

To help you feel confident, prepared and fully informed before you apply, we invite you to explore Inside MFT – Your Candidate Place. This welcoming one‑stop hub gives you a real sense of who we are, what we stand for, how we reward and support you, and the many ways we care for you as you care for others. You’ll also find practical hints and tips for submitting a great application, along with the essential information you need to know before you apply.

To access ‘Inside MFT – Your Candidate Place’, simply click on the relevant PDF document under the ‘Documents to download’ heading and once opened, you can either scan QR code or click on the link provided.

We welcome applications from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences.

To help us manage applications fairly and give each one the time it deserves, our adverts may close early if we receive a high level of interest. Early applications are therefore encouraged.

Diversity Matters

MFT is committed to promoting equality of opportunity, celebrating and valuing diversity and eliminating any form of unlawful discrimination across our workforce, ensuring our people are truly representative of the communities we serve. All individuals regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation are encouraged to apply for this post. As an inclusive employer, we are here to support you. If you have any special requirements to help you with your application, please contact the manager named below.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in your application

Here at Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, we’re proud to be ALL HERE FOR YOU, for our patients, our communities, and each other.

As part of our commitment to fairness, transparency, and personal integrity, we ask all applicants to ensure that their job applications reflect their own experiences, skills, and motivations. While AI tools can support spelling, grammar, or formatting, we expect that the content of your application, especially personal statements and responses to role specific questions is written by you. This helps us get to know the real you and ensures that our recruitment process remains equitable and meaningful for everyone.

Thank you for helping us uphold the values that make our Trust a place where people belong, grow, and thrive. We look forward to receiving your application.

Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check

As part of our commitment to safeguarding patients and staff, many roles at Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT) require a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check. This is a standard process across the NHS and helps us ensure a safe environment for everyone.

What is a DBS Check?

A DBS check is a background check that reveals any criminal convictions, cautions, reprimands, or warnings. The level of check required depends on the role:

Standard DBS : Checks for spent and unspent convictions, cautions, reprimands, and final warnings.

Enhanced DBS : Includes the above, plus any additional information held by local police that’s considered relevant to the role.

Enhanced with Barred Lists: Includes all of the above, plus checks against the children’s and/or adults’ barred lists.

Who Needs a DBS Check

Most roles involving direct patient contact, working with children or vulnerable adults, or access to sensitive information will require a DBS check. The job advert and recruitment team will let you know if this applies to your role.

The Costs for a DBS

At Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT), roles that require a DBS check are subject to a cost recovery policy. This means that the cost of submitting and processing a DBS application if you are successful and join us, will be deducted from your salary within the first three months of employment. If, however, you withdraw from a conditional offer after the DBS process has begun, you will still be liable for the cost incurred.

Candidates are also expected to register with the DBS Update Service which must be completed within 30 days of the certificate being issued. This helps streamline future employment checks and supports safer recruitment practices. For more information, please visit the DBS Update Service.

Person specification

Registration and Quallicifcations

• You must be registered/accredited with a professional body. e.g. NMC, SW England, UKCP, HCPC, BACP
• You must have a recognised qualification. Recognised qualifications are: Doctoral degree in Clinical or Counselling Psychology (or equivalent) as accredited by the BPS Registered Nursing: RMN/RSCN/RNMH Social Work (CQSW/DipSW) Occupational Therapy
• Additional post graduate training in psychological therapies and interventions

Experience

• Significant experience of working with children and young people with autism and social communication difficulties.
• Relevant experience and training in multi-disciplinary assessments of ASD in children and adolescents.
• Proven experience of working effectively with people with mental health difficulties, including autonomous management of a complex caseload which frequently deals with distressing and emotional circumstances.
• Experience of hard to reach diverse community groups and individuals with emerging complex needs, dual diagnoses, people with additional disabilities and safeguarding
• Experience of assessing and managing risk: including safeguarding
• Experience of developing and providing evidenced based assessments, formulations, and care plans and effective use of ROMS.
• Experience of liaison and working with a range of other relevant agencies and professionals, including managing difficult conversations and differences of opinion
• Experience of mentoring and supervision of others, including supporting the mental health and wellbeing of junior staff and trainees
• Understanding of the principles of Clinical Governance and a willingness to follow Trust Policy and Procedures
• Experience of providing a variety of interventions for children and young people with mental health problems and their families.
• Community mental health experience across a variety of settings.

Knowledge, Skills and Ability

• Up to date knowledge of child mental health and relevant legislation
• Advanced knowledge and skills in delivery of evidence-based practice and the ability to demonstrate how this influences clinical practice.
• The ability to assess, formulate and manage care appropriately, ensuring discharge is timely
• The ability to select, use and interpret assessment tools and outcome measures / ROMs effectively and in collaboration with the child, young person, and family
• Ability to integrate psychological theories and outcome data with clinical practice and service provision.
• Ability to plan, implement and evaluate appropriate therapeutic interventions with children across the age range and their parents/carers
• Highly developed communication skills with the ability to provide and receive highly complex, sensitive or contentious information and overcome barriers to acceptance with children, parents and professionals.
• To be able to function as a part of a multi-disciplinary team and to liaise effectively with other agencies i.e., education, GP’s, maintaining positive working relationships.
• The ability to work with people from a range of different backgrounds, cultures and or different ages
• To be able to provide feedback and constructive guidance to junior members of the team and trainees to facilitate their personal and professional development.
• The ability to reflect on and critically appraise own performance
• To have the ability to manage own caseload and act as lead practitioner
• Ability to manage and organise own time and diary, and work flexibly and creatively in a clinical context and pressurised situations.
• The ability to follow policy and make proposals for change
• The ability to work independently with the support of clinical and management supervision.
• The ability to maintain clinical records both written and electronic.
• The ability to cope with stressful situations including maintaining a high degree of professionalism in the case of highly emotive and distressing problems.
• Experience of delivering training.
• Experience of audit and research
• Delivery of group work and workshops
• Advanced IT skills.
• Experience of supervising junior staff

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.

Name Christian Loney Job title Service Manager Email address [e-mail] Telephone number 0161 549 6800 Additional information

Ashia Malik - Duty & Assessment Team Lead