Specialist Autism Practitioner | Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust

Lancashire Care Foundation Trust; Preston; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 48,000; Full time

Job summary

Lancashire Care Foundation Trust is seeking an enthusiastic Autism Practitioner to join our Specialist Autism Team. You will manage a diverse caseload of autistic adults with complex needs across community and inpatient settings, delivering specialist autism-informed assessments, interventions and tailored support.

You will participate in the team’s duty system, respond to urgent referrals, and contribute to discharge planning and risk management.

Qualifications

• Professional qualification in Nursing, Social Work or Occupational Therapy.
• Registered with NMC, Social Work England or HCPC.
• Experience with autistic adults and complex needs.
• Confident in assessing and managing risk.
• Excellent communication, report writing and organisation.

Responsibilities

• Manage a caseload of autistic adults in community and inpatient settings.
• Deliver specialist evidence-based interventions.
• Undertake assessments and develop person-centred care plans.
• Complete urgent assessments as part of the duty function.
• Support hospital admission avoidance and discharge planning.
• Assess and manage risk in various environments.
• Contribute to multidisciplinary formulation and case discussions.
• Build strong relationships with service users, families, carers and partners.
• Produce high-quality assessments, reports and clinical documentation.
• Support service development, quality improvement and learning initiatives.

Skills

Autism experience

Risk assessment

Multidisciplinary teamwork

Education

Nursing qualification

Social Work qualification

Occupational Therapy qualification

Job description

Specialist Autism Practitioner | Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust

Company:

Company: Lancashire Care Foundation Trust

Salary: £39,959 - £48,117 per annum (subject to confirmation)

Are you passionate about improving the lives of autistic adults and their families? Do you thrive in a role where no two days are the same?

We are looking for an enthusiastic and motivated Autism Practitioner to join our Specialist Autism Team. This is an exciting opportunity to become part of a highly skilled multidisciplinary team dedicated to delivering specialist autism support across community and inpatient settings.

Working collaboratively with mental health services, local authorities, inpatient teams, and partner agencies, you will play a key role in preventing unnecessary hospital admissions, supporting safe and timely discharges, and helping autistic adults achieve positive outcomes.

About the Role:

As an Autism Practitioner, you will manage a varied caseload of autistic adults with complex needs across both community and inpatient settings. You will provide specialist autism-informed assessments, interventions, consultation, and support tailored to individual needs.

You will also participate in the team's duty system, responding to urgent referrals and supporting acute mental health services through timely assessments and intervention planning.

This role offers excellent opportunities to develop specialist skills in autism, risk assessment, formulation, discharge planning, and multidisciplinary working. We understand that not everyone has specialist experience however we keen to develop people who have a strong interest and motivation to work with autistic people.

What You’ll Be Doing:

• Managing a caseload of autistic adults in community and inpatient settings.
• Delivering specialist evidence-based interventions.
• Undertaking assessments and developing person-centred care plans.
• Completing urgent assessments as part of the duty function.
• Supporting hospital admission avoidance and discharge planning.
• Assessing and managing risk in a range of environments.
• Contributing to multidisciplinary formulation and case discussions.
• Building effective relationships with service users, families, carers, and partner agencies.
• Producing high-quality assessments, reports, and clinical documentation.
• Supporting service development, quality improvement, and learning initiatives.

About You:

• Holds a professional qualification in Nursing, Social Work, or Occupational Therapy.
• Is registered with the NMC, Social Work England, or HCPC.
• Has experience working with autistic adults and individuals with complex needs.
• Is confident in assessing and managing risk.
• Has excellent communication, report-writing, and organisational skills.
• Enjoys working collaboratively within a multidisciplinary team.
• Is committed to delivering person-centred and evidence-based care.
• Is passionate about continuous learning and professional development.

LSCFT values diversity and inclusion, recognising that talent from varied backgrounds creates a flexible, creative, and effective workforce. We actively challenge discrimination and welcome applications from all, regardless of age, disability (including those with experience of accessing or caring for someone who has accessed mental health or learning disability services), ethnicity, gender, religion, belief, or sexual orientation.

Our aim is to reflect the communities we serve, so we particularly encourage applications from under-represented groups. If you'd like to discuss your application, please ask.

We also welcome individuals with lived experience relevant to the role or service area, as your insight brings authenticity to our services.

LSCFT support flexible working, we believe that a positive work/life balance benefits NHS employees through improved health and wellbeing. We would consider working patterns such as term time, part time, compressed hours and flexi-time.

The wellbeing of our people is at the heart of everything we do. We offer a wide range of resources, tools and support to help you thrive both in and out of work.

Explore our full wellbeing offer here:Keeping our workforce well

Please see attached the job description and person specification for more information about this role.

This advert closes on Wednesday 28 Oct 2026