Trainee Early Years (0 to 5s) Practitioner RTT

West London NHS Trust; Hounslow; On-site; GBP 46,000 - 54,000; Full time

Job summary

West London NHS Trust invites applications for a Trainee Early Years Practitioner on the 0-5s pathway. This 12-month, fixed-term role sits within CAMHS, funded through NHSE, and develops clinical skills while you study the PGDip in Infant/Early Years Mental Health.

You will train and work with families of 0-2 and 3-5s, gaining supervision and experience across hospital and community settings.

Qualifications

• Minimum second-class Bachelor's Degree or equivalent in a relevant subject.
• Ability to communicate effectively with young children and their carers.
• Ability to follow policy and clinical governance procedures.
• Ability to balance academic demands with clinical placement.
• Ability to reflect on practice in supervision.

Responsibilities

• Offer high-quality, evidence-based interventions with intensive supervision.
• Work in CAMHS settings and with community Family Hub/Children’s Centre teams.
• Develop clinical skills while studying for a PGDip in Infant or Early Years Mental Health.
• Provide consultation and support to parents, carers and professionals.

Skills

Communication skills

Adaptability

Time management

Record-keeping

Education

Bachelor's degree in a relevant subject

Job description

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Trainee Early Years (0 to 5s) Practitioner RTT

Band 6

Main area Children & Adolescent Services Grade Band 6 Contract Fixed term: 12 months (Business Development) Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week Job ref 222-LS-CAMHS-827

Site Ealing CAMHS, Hounslow CAMHS, H&F CAMHS Town Hounslow Salary £45,953 - £54,254 per annum inclusive Salary period Yearly Closing 02/10/2026 23:59

West London NHS Trust provides a full range of mental health, community and physical healthcare services for children, adults and older people living in the London boroughs of Ealing, Hammersmith & Fulham and Hounslow.

We also provide some specialist services that are commissioned regionally, such as our medium secure services; and nationally, such as the Cassel Hospital for people with complex and severe personality disorder and our high secure services at Broadmoor Hospital.

Job overview

We have an exciting opportunity to join our West London NHS CAMHS 0-5s team as a Therapy Trainee Practitioner on the Early Years and Infant Mental Health Pathway (1 year fixed term), as part of the NHS England (NHSE) funded Recruit to Train Programme in partnership with Anna Freud Centre and University College London.

We are recruiting trainees across West London CAMHS. The post-holders will be training on the Child and Young People’s Psychological Trainings: Early Years and Infant Mental Health Course and carrying out clinical work in our service to complement their studies and use their newly developed skills. We are seeking highly motivated and enthusiastic mental health practitioners with a passion for working with families and children age 0 to 2 or 3 to 5 years old to work and train within our service. This posts may suit a professional with an existing core training who is looking to develop their expertise in clinical, therapeutic practice with children age 0-5 and their families.

This is a training position and so all candidates will need to apply for both the trainee role with our organisation and the UCL Post Graduate Diploma in IEYP Early Childhood Pathway Course in order to be shortlisted.

Please note that this job vacancy may close early due to a high number of candidates.

Main duties of the job

You will offer a high-quality service to children age 0-2 or 3-5 and their families / carers, alongside working effectively with your colleagues and liaising with other professionals in the network. The training will enable you to deliver, under intensive supervision, high quality, focused evidence-based individual and group interventions for children age 0-2 or 3-5 and their parents or carers. The training will equip those in post to develop and operate effectively in an inclusive, value driven mental health service and team working specifically with children age 0-2 or 3-5 years old. The roles will be exciting and varied, including individual and group working in a CAMHS setting and also working in community Children’s Centre or Family Hub settings, offering consultation and support to parents and professionals. The development role enables the post holders to develop a range of clinical skills and experience whilst studying for a Postgraduate Diploma (PGDip) in Infant or Early Years Mental Health. The post provides excellent opportunities for professional development and regular supervision.

Working for our organisation

West London NHS Trust is one of the most diverse healthcare providers in the UK, delivering a range of mental health and physical healthcare and community services. The Trust runs Broadmoor Hospital, one of three high secure hospitals in the country, with an international reputation.

Our high secure services care for patients from South of England and we provide low and medium secure services across eight London boroughs. The Trust also provides mental and physical healthcare in three London boroughs (Ealing, Hounslow and Hammersmith & Fulham). We employ over 5,000 staff, of whom 59% are BME. Our turnover for 2024-25 is over £500m.

The Trust is rated as ‘Good’ overallby the Care Quality Commission. Forensic services are rated as ‘Outstanding’.

The Trust is an established partner and contributor in the development of the evolving North West London Integrated Care System and the Integrated Care Board. The Trust leads the NW London Children and Adolescent Mental Health provider collaborative.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The Candidate Pack provides an overview of the key tasks and responsibilities of the role, and the person specification outlines the qualifications, skills, experience and knowledge required. Please view as attached.

The person specification below is not the full person specification, but outlines the criteria against which your application form will be assessed.

Person specification

Qualifications

• Minimum second-class Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent standard in a relevant subject (e.g. psychology, social work etc); OR Applicants who do not fulfil the academic criteria but have relevant professional experience are still encouraged to apply and will be considered on a case-based basis.
• Include any service-specific requirement for a core professional qualification where relevant.
• Ability to communicate effectively and sensitively with young children and their carers;
• Ability to adapt communication style according to the varying needs of families;
• Ability to personally manage sensitive and potentially emotionally distressing caseload material;
• Ability to reflect on own practice (in clinical supervision and practice tutor groups with course peers);
• Ability to follow policy and clinical governance procedures and make proposals for change;
• Ability to maintain accurate records;
• Ability to complete academic work at postgraduate level and balance the academic demands of the course with clinical placement demands;
• Demonstrates adaptability and able to work with diverse communities;
• Good time management and organisational abilities and ability to work autonomously where required;
• Effective oral and written communication skills;
• Ability to observe, assess, and think about children’s emotional wellbeing and relational needs within their family and caregiving context.

Knowledge

• Knowledge of the importance of the 0-5 years on development and mental wellbeing and understanding of the range of factors that can impact 0-5 developmental and emotional wellbeing;
• Understanding of early child development theory and of 0-5 services (e.g. health visiting, early help, and holistic approaches);
• Knowledge of safeguarding issues relating to very young children.
• Knowledge of the importance of the parent-child relationship and early relational development in supporting emotional wellbeing across the 0-5 period.

Experience

• 2 or more years of experience working with the development and wellbeing of children and young children aged 0-5 and their families.
• Experience of children aged 0-5 and their development in a personal, voluntary or observational capacity.
• Experience of multi-agency working and liaising across internal & external agencies.
• Experience of observing and thinking about children’s emotional wellbeing, relationships, and caregiving contexts across the 0-5 age range.

As an employee of West London NHS Trust, you have a responsibility to maintain a sound understanding of, and a commitment to uphold the National Health Service values and principles set out in the NHS Constitution.

We reserve the right to close adverts prior to the closing date stated should we receive a high volume of applications.

By applying for this post you are agreeing to West London NHS Trust transferring the information contained in this application to its preferred applicant management system. If you are offered a job, you will be required to undergo a pre-employment checks which can take between 4-8 weeks . After which your information will also be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system (ESR ).

West London NHS Trust is committed to safeguarding all children and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.

We encourage the thoughtful use of technology as a demonstration of strong time management and a commitment to innovation. However, we encourage applicants to personalise your recruitment application to showcase your unique skills and experiences.

While AI-generated content can be a helpful tool, relying solely on generic responses instead of highlighting your own strengths and achievements may impact the success of your application. The success of an application will always be assessed against the essential and desirable criteria for the role, so it is important to ensure that your application and any supporting information clearly demonstrate how you meet these requirements.

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.

At West London NHS Trust, we want you to support you to build a career you can be proud of and this starts before your first day with us. Our people live our values every day as they deliver, manage and work to improve our services to patients, carers, families and other professionals.

We’re committed to making our recruitment process clear and efficient. It’s in everyone’s interest that we get the very best people on board as soon as we can.