Trainee Children's Wellbeing Practitioner

Hertfordshire Community NHS Trust; Watford; Hybrid; GBP 28,000 - 31,000; Full time

Job summary

The Hertfordshire Community NHS Trust is recruiting for a Trainee Children’s Wellbeing Practitioner (CWP) in a 12-month fixed term contract. The role is based at Starfish House, covering Stevenage and surrounding areas, with training via UCL and the CWP Postgraduate Diploma.

You will deliver guided self-help interventions to youths with mild mental health concerns. You will be supported through intensive supervision, study alongside your training, and will start in January 2026 once the

Qualifications

• Undergraduate degree in Psychology or related subject (2:1 or above) or equivalent experience.
• Experience working with children and young people in mental health or education settings.
• Full UK driving licence and access to a car for business use.

Responsibilities

• Study at University College London/Anna Freud Centre as part of the CWP diploma.
• Deliver low intensity mental health interventions under supervision.
• Attend weekly supervision, training sessions and contribute to service development.

Skills

Self-motivation

Excellent communication

Second language proficiency

Written/verbal standards

Mental health risk assessment

Education

Undergraduate degree in Psychology or related field (2:1+)

Experience in CYP Mental Health/Education/Mentorship

Full UK driving licence & car access

Job description

Trainee Children's Wellbeing Practitioner

NHS AfC: Band 4

Main area Children's Wellbeing Practitioner Grade NHS AfC: Band 4 Contract 12 months (Fixed Term) Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week Job ref 812-26-KR-CWP-CYP1143

Site Starfish House, Bowling Road, Sandridge Gate, Peace Children's Centre Town Stevenage, Ware, St Albans, Watford Salary £28,392 - £31,157 per annum pro rata Salary period Yearly Closing 30/09/2026 23:59 Interview date 08/10/2026

Job overview

The Children's Wellbeing Practitioner (CWP) Service at Hertfordshire Community NHS Trust (HCT) has an exciting opportunity to train a new cohort of 2 trainee Children's Wellbeing Practitioners (CWPs), who will cover a variety of areas in Hertfordshire.

Post holders will undertake training with University College London (UCL) alongside working in the HCT CWP service . You will be taught to deliver evidence based guided self-help interventions for children and young people experiencing mild to moderate mental health difficulties. The post holder will use their newly developed skills to support children and young people who are referred into the service. You will receive intensive supervision to support your professional development.

Alongside this job application all applicants need to submit a university application form to UCL for a place on the Postgraduate Diploma in Child and Young Persons Psychological Wellbeing Practice. You cannot be considered for this job without an accompanying university application. Application details are in the attached CWP Recruitment Pack.

Applicants will need to be ready to start work from 11th January 2026.

Interview date: 8th October 2026

Main duties of the job

You will study at University College London/Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families, with tutors that are renowned for their great work with children and families in the area of emotional wellbeing and mental health. The Children’s Wellbeing Practitioner (CWP) Postgraduate Diploma will begin in January 2027 and the course lasts 1 year. As part of your training you will use the theory that you learn to deliver low intensity mental health interventions to adolescents and the parents of children presenting with mild anxiety, low mood and behaviours that challenge.

In service, you will initially shadow intervention and assessment sessions; shadow and take part in triage discussions and partake in clinical skills development and supervision. You will then be expected to complete initial assessments and deliver interventions for anxiety, low mood and behaviours that challenge with the support of your supervisor. Additionally you will attend weekly supervision and training sessions; engage in service development activities and deliver workshops and groups with qualified members of staff.

We expect all our staff to work in an inclusive manner and make reasonable adjustments as required. Our aim is to ensure the service is accessible to all who would benefit from our support and therefore we welcome applications from those from a diverse range of backgrounds.

Working for our organisation

A big thank you for considering joining us at Hertfordshire Community NHS Trust. You’ll find it a great place to work with many benefits offered to you as a member of our staff.
We put our patients, their families and carers at the centre of our vision – Outstanding Services and Healthier Communities
Our staff are proud to be Caring, Pioneering and Inclusive in their work to help achieve the Trust vision
We welcome diversity in our workforce and are interested in applicants from all backgrounds
We don’t want you to miss out so we’d like you to know that if we have a high level of interest in this role, the vacancy may close prior to the advertised closing date, so please make your application as soon as possible.

The Trust is committed to gold standard recruitment. In support of this, please read our ‘Supplementary Information’ document which is attached to our vacancy adverts.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Successful applicants will need to have a full UK driving license, have access to a car and you will need car insurance for business use from the start date of this role (unless you have a disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010).

Please read the Full advert along with Job Description and Person Specification before applying for the role.

Please note that an application to University College London for the Children's Wellbeing Practitioner Post Graduate Diploma needs to be made alongside your application to the HCT CWP Service.

See the following website for course information: https://www.annafreud.org/training/postgraduate-study/ucl-postgraduate-programmes/child-and-young-persons-psychological-wellbeing-practice-pg-diploma/

We cannot make an offer of a job without a successful completed university application.

The use of AI is monitored and if you have used it then you are required to declare this, as well as what type of AI tools you have used and for what purpose. We reserve the right to further test your individual knowledge and skills in relation to the requirements for the post through robust and thorough interview and assessment.

HCT will prioritise recruitment of workers living in England under the new immigration rules for care workers effective from 9 April 2025. Employers must first prove that they have attempted to recruit a worker from within England who needs new sponsorship. This ensures that those who came to the UK to pursue a career in adult social care can do so.

Person specification

Qualifications & Training

• Undergraduate degree, upper second class or above in Psychology or related subject (e.g., Education, Childhood development, Social Work etc), OR any subject with further training or experience in a relevant field (e.g., Teaching/TA; Learning Support; HCA; Youth Work; Counselling etc)


• Or relevant professional experience in CYP Mental Health/Education/Mentorship (to be considered on a case-by-case basis)


• Other relevant undergraduate or postgraduate degree

Experience & Knowledge

• Evidence and experience of working with children and young people


• Experience of working in child and young people mental health or related services e.g., school pastoral support


• Experience working in schools as a teacher, mentor, learning support assistant etc


• Experience of working with diverse populations e.g., ethnic minorities, neurodiverse CYP, those with additional needs and those from LGBTQIA+ communities


• Worked in a service where agreed targets in place to demonstrate outcomes

Skills and Abilities

• Ability to study as a self-motivated learner and implement training with appropriate support


• Demonstrates high standards in written and verbal communication


• Demonstrates ability to work well with other professionals/ colleagues


• Ability to personally manage a sensitive, traumatic and potentially emotionally distressing caseload.


• Ability and willingness to self-reflect, use feedback and adapt accordingly.


• Ability to manage own caseload and organise time across studies and in service practice


• Proficient in a second language


• Experience of assessing mental health risk


• Demonstrate ability to present mental health psychoeducation to non-mental health audiences

Other

• Hold a full, valid, UK driving licence and have access to a car to use for business purposes (unless you have a disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010)


• Eligible to live and work in the UK


• Evidence of a commitment to accessibility, inclusion, and diversity


• Full, enhanced and current satisfactory DBS disclosure for the role. Please note if you do not have a current DBS, you will need to apply for one as part of the recruitment process if an offer is made.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

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.