Senior Mental Health Practitioner

The Methodist Church in Britain; Peterborough; On-site; GBP 45,000 - 55,000; Full time

Job summary

Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust seeks a Senior Mental Health Practitioner to deliver urgent assessments and home treatment within the CRHTT, providing clinical leadership and managing high-risk cases. The role covers a 24/7 service with on-call duties and county-wide travel.

The post requires registration as a nurse, OT or social worker, prior leadership experience, and ability to supervise junior staff and contribute to teaching programmes within a community setting.

Qualifications

• Registration as a nurse, occupational therapist or social worker.
• Experience in community settings.
• Experience in leadership roles.
• Experience in developing and delivering teaching programmes.
• Experience in managing and training staff.

Responsibilities

• Provide urgent mental health assessment and home treatment.
• Carry out comprehensive assessments and plan care collaboratively.
• Manage high-risk presentations with risk management and safety planning.
• Write high-standard assessment reports and letters; supervise juniors.
• Lead clinical governance and monitor workloads.

Skills

Communication

Leadership

Teaching

Staff development

Decision making

Education

Registration in nursing/OT/social work

Tools

System One

Job description

This Senior Mental Health Practitioner post sits within the Peterborough Crisis Resolution and Home Treatment Team at Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust, which provides acute crisis care. The work centres on urgent assessment, collaborative care planning and managing high-risk presentations, with clinical leadership of junior staff. The post carries flexible shifts covering a 24-hour, seven-day service, with on-call duties and independent travel across the county by own vehicle. Registration as a nurse, occupational therapist or social worker is required, and visa sponsorship is not available.

What the job involves

• Provide urgent mental health assessment and home treatment for people referred to the team
• Carry out comprehensive assessments and plan care and treatment collaboratively
• Manage high-risk presentations through risk management and safety planning
• Identify the appropriate intervention or management, or recommend the most suitable referral agency
• Write high-standard assessment reports and letters, and check junior staff reports to the same standard
• Contribute to team objectives by monitoring and evaluating workloads through clinical leadership
• Provide urgent assessment and intervention outside core team hours
• Cover flexible shifts across a 24-hour, seven-day service, including on call where required
• Travel independently across the county to meet strict time deadlines
• Keep up to date with the Mental Health Act, Mental Capacity Act, Crisis Care Concordat, NHS Plan and clinical governance
• Maintain effective communication with statutory and non-statutory partner agencies
• Record accurately and promptly on the trust's clinical systems, including System One

What’s required

Registration & licences

• Registered nurse, occupational therapist or social worker

Experience

• Experience of working in a community setting
• Experience in a leadership role
• Experience of developing and delivering teaching programmes
• Experience of managing and training staff

Skills & knowledge

• Strong written and verbal communication, organisation and time management
• Safe, effective decision making and problem solving
• Ability to contribute to service development, manage change and work under pressure
• Working knowledge of the Mental Health Act
• Therapeutic skills for supporting people in acute illness, and clear understanding of CRHTT practice and objectives
• Commitment to and understanding of IT

Checks & eligibility

• Full UK driving licence and use of a vehicle

Other

• Able to cover 24-hour, seven-day shifts
• Able to travel across a large geographical area
• Committed to empowering service users and carers in service delivery
• Provides and promotes non-discriminatory care

Nice to have

• Post-qualification specialist mental health training
• Qualification in leadership
• Ability to deliver mental health awareness and concise information
• Mental Health Act training
• Additional training relevant to CRHTT intervention
• Ability to develop and lead new initiatives in clinical care

What’s offered

• Opportunities for personal growth and development