Senior Community Practitioner

NHS; City Of London; On-site; GBP 56,000 - 64,000; Full time

Job summary

A prominent mental health service provider in London is seeking experienced mental health professionals to join the Primary Care Mental Health Team. This senior role involves delivering high-quality care, conducting assessments, and providing psychological interventions. Candidates must have a strong understanding of mental health disorders and experience in therapeutic practices like DBT and CBT. The position offers a competitive salary and opportunities for professional development.

Qualifications

• Relevant experience at Band 6/7 in mental health teams.
• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to build relationships.
• Ability to work autonomously with effective time management.

Responsibilities

• Conduct comprehensive assessments and develop psychological formulations.
• Manage a caseload with appropriate psychological interventions.
• Liaise with crisis services for continuity of care.

Skills

Understanding of mood, anxiety, and personality disorders

Expertise in Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT)

Expertise in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)

Interpersonal skills

Resilience under pressure

Education

Recognised qualification in core mental health professions

Job description

Job Summary

We are pleased to announce a rewarding opportunity for nurses, occupational therapists, and social workers to join the Primary Care Mental Health Team (PCMHT) based at Chaucer Resource Centre. This role offers a unique opportunity as senior member of staff to contribute to an innovative service model, providing high‑quality mental health care within a supportive MDT environment. We welcome applications from passionate and experienced professionals who are ready to make a meaningful impact. We look forward to receiving your application.

Team Composition

• Band 7 Senior Practitioners
• Band 6 Community Psychiatric Nurses (CPNs)
• Occupational Therapists
• CAMHS Transitional Practitioners
• Medical Team (2 Consultants & 2 Junior Doctors)
• Lived Experience Workers
• Psychology and Psychotherapy Professionals

Main Duties of the Job

Clinical Responsibilities

• Conduct expert comprehensive initial assessments and develop psychological formulations for service users.
• Manage a caseload, delivering appropriate psychological interventions for individuals experiencing transitional mental health challenges.
• Exercise autonomous clinical judgment (under supervision) in the assessment, coordination, and transfer of service users to appropriate treatment pathways.
• Provide ongoing assessment and outcome monitoring for all clients on your caseload.
• Participate in the team's duty rota.
• Liaise effectively with crisis services and emergency out‑of‑hours teams to ensure continuity of care.
• Deliver evidence‑based interventions in line with NICE guidelines.

Training & Supervision

• Attend regular clinical and managerial supervision sessions, as well as annual appraisals.
• Contribute to the teaching and training of mental health professionals and other staff within the service.
• Provide mentorship and support to students undertaking placements within the team.

About Us

South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust (SLaM) provide the widest range of NHS mental health services in the UK as well as substance misuse services for people added to drugs and alcohol. We work closely with the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience (IoPPN), King's College London and are part of King's Health Partners Academic Health Sciences Centre. Our scope is unique because it is built on three major foundations: care and treatment, science and research, and training. SLaM employs around 5,000 staff and serves a local population of 1.1 million people. We have more than 230 services including inpatient wards, outpatient and community services. Currently, we provide inpatient care for approximately 5,300 people each year and treat more than 45,000 patients in the community in Croydon, Lambeth, Lewisham and Southwark; as well as substance misuse services for residents of Bexley, Bromley and Greenwich.

Details

Date posted: 03 November 2025

Pay scheme: Agenda for change

Band: Band 7

Salary: £56,276 to £63,176 a year per annum inclusive of HCAS

Contract: Permanent

Working pattern: Full‑time

Reference number: 334-NUR-7565248-SA

Job locations: Chaucer resource centre, London, SE16 2TH

Job Description Responsibilities

• Knowledge and Expertise: Strong understanding of how mood, anxiety, and personality disorders present and affect mental well‑being. Demonstrated psychological skills and knowledge transferable to working with adults experiencing severe, enduring, and psychotic disorders in secondary care settings. Clear understanding of the interface between primary and secondary mental health services. Sound theoretical and practical knowledge of psychological therapies, with particular expertise in Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). In‑depth understanding of psychopathology and the evidence base underpinning relevant treatment approaches. Familiarity with key legislation and statutory responsibilities, including Adult Safeguarding, Child Protection, and Clinical Governance frameworks.
• Professional Skills: Ability to work autonomously while engaging in appropriate clinical and managerial supervision. Effective time management and workload prioritisation skills. Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to build and maintain healthy working relationships within and beyond the team. Skilled in giving and receiving constructive feedback. High standard of written communication, including clear and professional report and letter writing. Ability to work collaboratively within a multidisciplinary team and foster positive team dynamics. Resilience under pressure and capacity to use supervision to support clinical practice. Competence in managing sensitive clinical issues and providing supervision to others. Commitment to ongoing professional development, reflective practice, and partnership working.

Person Specification

• Qualifications Essential: Recognised qualification in one of the core mental health professions; Mentorship Training/other professional development, particularly within psychological modalities; Degree standard or professional equivalent.
• Experience Essential: Relevant experience at Band 6/7 in PCMHT, psychiatric liaison service, home treatment team or community mental health team. Experience of using clinical and managerial supervision to effectively provide safe, evidence‑based psychological interventions across a range of interventions. Experience of supervising and mentoring junior staff and students.
• Knowledge and Skills Essential: Demonstrates an understanding of how mood, anxiety and personality difficulties manifest itself and the impact on mental well‑being. Transferable psychological skills and knowledge relevant to work with working‑age adults with severe and enduring & psychotic disorders in secondary care. Knowledge of modalities of therapy, an understanding of the relationship between primary and secondary care services, and knowledge of the theory and practice of psychological therapies, particularly DBT and CBT.
• Desirable: Willingness to contribute to research and evaluation. IT skills. Group work experience.

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 to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled Worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website.

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants.

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website.

Employer Details

South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust

Chaucer resource centre

London

SE16 2TH

Website: https://www.slam.nhs.uk/