Senior Mental Health Practitioner OpCourage

Transformation Unit; Bury St Edmunds; Hybrid; GBP 40,000 - 48,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Generous annual leave

Flexible working

CPD access

Research opportunities

Wellbeing service

Staff discounts

Job summary

Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust is recruiting for a Band 6 mental health role supporting veterans within the Op Courage service. The post involves psycho-social assessments, case management, and delivering evidence-based interventions in a hybrid setting across the North West.

You will work with the MDT to coordinate care, manage risk, and liaise with MoD and local services, contributing to improved outcomes for service users and their families.

Qualifications

• RMN or MHSW qualification required.
• Postgraduate diploma level or equivalent.
• Certificate/diploma in CBT or counselling.
• CPD in Primary Care Mental Health.

Responsibilities

• Duty rota participation and risk management support.
• Case management for veterans' mental health and signposting to services.
• Thorough psycho-social assessments and safety planning.
• Liaison with MoD and local services; MDT collaboration.

Skills

Psycho-social assessment

Risk assessment

Brief interventions

Caseload management

MDT collaboration

Communication skills

Education

RMN or MHSW

Postgraduate diploma level

CBT / counselling certificate

CPD in Primary Care Mental Health

Job description

Employer Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site Arundel House is base - but work is across the whole of North West Town Bury Salary £39,959 - £48,117 PA, pro rata Salary period Yearly Closing 23/11/2026 23:59

NHS AfC: Band 6

If you are Kind, Fair, Ingenious and Determined then we want you to come and join our#PennineCarePeople

To be a Mental Health Nurse or Mental Health Social Worker within the Op Courage service to veterans and “service leavers” with a six month discharge date from Military, within the North West of England.

As part of the OpCourage North collaborative, assist in triage/ screening referrals for the collaborative, alongside specifically NW clients.

The post consists of hybrid working between office, home base, online/ virtual appointments, face to face and community settings.

Responsibilities

• Participation in a Duty rota including liaising with referrers and other services, providing support to members of the Multi-Disciplinary Team in relation to risk management and safeguarding issues
• Case management of veterans, clinical interventions and signposting/ liaising with local services.

The service delivery of clinical interventions occurs within a range of venues (including MoD venues) across the North West or home setting where clients’ needs necessitate this.

Main duties of the job

Senior mental health practitioners would be expected to carry out initial face to face mental health, social care and risk assessments using the OpCourage standard assessment (including collecting outcome measures); case management of an assigned group of clients who require on-going monitoring of their mental health and risk management; emotional and practical support; and the delivery of evidence based interventions supported by the psychological team. The evidence based intervention for the clients identified needs relating to their time in the military with a goal of accessing military attributable therapy.

Working for our organisation

We are proud to provide high quality mental health and learning disability services, both inpatient and in the community across five boroughs of Greater Manchester - Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport and Tameside and Glossop.

Our vision is for a happier and more hopeful life for everyone in our communities and our staff work hard to deliver the very best care for the people who use our services. We’re really proud of our#PennineCarePeopleand do everything we can to make sure we’re a great place to work.

All individuals regardless of race, age, disability, ethnicity, nationality, gender, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, religion or belief, marriage and civil partnership are encouraged to apply for this post. We would also encourage applications from individuals with a lived experience of mental illness, either individually or as a carer.

If you come and work for us we will offer a range of benefits and opportunities, including:

• Generous annual leave entitlement for Agenda for Change and Medical and Dental staff.
• Flexible working opportunities to support your work/life balance
• Access to Continued Professional Development
• Involvement in improvement and research activities
• Health and Wellbeing activities and access to an excellent staff wellbeing service
• Access to staff discounts across retail, leisure and travel

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• To undertake screening and telephone assessment duties including liaison with referrers and other service providers to ensure clients are treated in the most appropriate service for their needs.
• To provide a thorough psycho-social assessment of the client (aged 18+), this will include a risk assessment, safety plan and care plan.
• To deliver individualised interventions to the client based on individual care plan
• Liaison with local services, MDT’s and 3rd sector organisations.
• To manage own caseload by delivering brief interventions to the client, whilst maintaining and allocating new clients.
• Undertaking initial assessments as part of duty tasks and offering an additional face to face assessment slot weekly to support the brief interventions pathway.
• To conduct a thorough psycho-social assessment of clients referred to the OpCourage Service, to identify their needs and develop a collaborative care plan
• To provide case management and brief interventions for clients with moderate and complex mental health problems where required focus is generally around Military attributable needs, risk to self or others.
• Ensuring referrals to safeguarding children or safeguarding vulnerable adults are made where required in a timely manner.
• Have a good working knowledge of medication that is prescribed within Primary Care.
• To work jointly with colleagues within Op Courage MDT where required.
• To assess clients presenting multiple and complex issues and make decisions regarding the appropriate therapeutic intervention required to meet client’s needs. This may include referral on to another service or modality of treatment.
• To assess risk of harm to self / others or property and take action as appropriate. This may involve breaching of client confidentiality in the interest of the clients or others safety e.g. Safeguarding Children / Adults, acts of terrorism etc. This will be assessed in line with Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust policies
• To organise and manage a clinical caseload
• To maintain appropriate electronic records using PC-MIS web based clinical system in line with agreed protocols as directed by Line Manager
• To maintain effective communication and clear and concise documentation for individualised care as per service protocols and Trust policies
• To inform referrer of outcome of assessment and provide a summary of interventions delivered at discharge
• To ensure accurate completion of weekly diary on outlook to ensure following staff safe guidelines in line with trust procedures and policies.
• To co-facilitate therapeutic groups where appropriate and requested by Line Manager
• To act in accordance with requirements for practice- NMC Code of Conduct
• To actively participate in clinical and management supervision
• To provide a resource for discussion for other members of the MDT
• Facilitate communication with colleagues by active participation in team and clinical meetings as required by Team Manager.
• There is an expectation for you to deliver services across the North West. This may include home visits.

Skills and Abilities

• Able to conduct a thorough psycho-social assessment and develop a collaborative care plan with the client
• Ability and skills to deliver a range of therapeutic interventions within a community setting
• Ability to develop and maintain professional relationships within a multidisciplinary team
• Ability to work with the MoD other agencies e.g. SMS, CMHTs and IAPTS in other Trusts; GPs, and Voluntary agencies
• Excellent communication skills both written and verbal e.g. client records
• Able to proactively assess and manage risk
• Excellent organisational skills
• Able to manage a caseload of clients and deliver brief interventions
• Skills in screening and telephone assessment Established skills of being a mentor/assessor of Student Nurses

Knowledge

• Knowledge of Primary Care Mental Health and delivery of brief interventions
• Demonstrate understanding of the mental health needs of Military Veterans and their families/carers
• Excellent knowledge around risk management
• Demonstrate up to date knowledge of current issues/legislation within Primary Care Mental Health including IAPT model
• Excellent working knowledge of Safeguarding Children and Safeguarding Vulnerable Adults
• Knowledge of different types of NICE approved/evidence based psychological therapies available
• Contributed to CPD of a service

Education/ Qualification

• RMN or MHSW
• Short course and experience to post graduate diploma level
• Certificate / diploma in CBT / counselling
• CPD in Primary Care Mental Health

Experience

• Case management of clients who have common/complex mental health difficulties or experience of care coordination including the delivery of brief psychological interventions
• Worked within a community NHS setting
• Worked within a multidisciplinary team
• Previous service within the armed forces communities
• Or, experience of working with the military communities/service charities
• Or, evidence of understanding the veterans’ communities
• Managed a community client caseload
• Delivered a variety of therapeutic interventions within a community setting
• Experience of group work
• Fulfilled role of mentor / assessor for student nurses
• Experience of working with individuals who have drug and / or alcohol problems including models of care and the recovery and abstinence agenda.

We are committed to equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI), and we strive to ensure our workforce reflects the communities we serve. We actively encourage applications from individuals of diverse backgrounds to help us grow, innovate, and improve.

If you wish to be considered under the Disability Confident Scheme, you will be guaranteed an interview if you meet the essential criteria for the role.

If you need reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process, please contact us on 0161 716 3181 as early as possible so we can support you.

Please note:

• We do not accept unsolicited contact from recruitment agencies. Hiring managers should not be contacted directly.

We may close this vacancy early if we receive a high volume of applications. If you have a disability or long-term health condition and need extra time or adjustments to complete your application, please contact us as soon as possible. We will ensure you are not disadvantaged where a reasonable adjustment is appropriate.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

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 Kim Smith Job title Recruiting Manager Email address [e-mail] Telephone number 0300 323 0707

If you have problems applying, contact

Address Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust
225 Old Street
225 Old Street
OL6 7SR
Telephone [phone]