Mental Health Clinical Support Worker
NELFT NHS Foundation TrustJoining #TeamNELFT means you’ll become part of a welcoming and supportive working environment. We’re CQC rated Good, and we want you to join us on the journey towards an Outstanding rating. NELFT has sites across North East London, Essex, Kent and Medway. We provide community and mental healthcare services to adults and children within these areas.
The Trust has award winning equality and diversity initiatives and staff health and wellbeing activities. We invest heavily in your development, because when you are valued and supported, we provide the best care to our patients. We are a Level 3 Disability Confident Leader, have been featured in the Working Families Top 10 Employers benchmark for three consecutive years, and we have achieved a Carers UK Level 1 Accreditation. Along with our staff networks and training opportunities, we work hard to embed a just and compassionate culture here at NELFT.
Find out more about NELFT careers and what makes our Trust a great place to work, in this video
Job overview
We have vacancies at our Kent and Medway Adolescent Hospital based in Staplehurst, Kent for Band 3 clinical support workers to join our team.
We are a general adolescent hospital, supporting young people admitted informally or under section of the mental health act who present with acute mental health difficulties including eating disorders. We also operate a Health Based Place of Safety, which supports young people who have been detained under section by the police.
Due to an expected high volume of applications, this vacancy may close earlier than the proposed closing date.
This position will not be supported for visa sponsorship, as it does not meet the minimum requirements. All applicants are expected to have valid right to work document to work in the UK when applying for this position.
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The role involves supporting young people who have been admitted and to engage in treatment around managing their mental health and risk. The average length of stay for young people is around 6-8 weeks during which time the young person and their family are offered treatment to support safe discharge back to the community. Young people admitted to the unit may engage in behaviours often associated with mental distress such as self-harm, agitation, suicidal thoughts and intrusive thoughts.
The team operate 24/7 and shifts that will be worked include: Earlies, Lates, Long days and nights.
The focus of the role is on risk assessment, management and treatment in a general adolescent hospital setting and involves interfacing with other agencies and contributing to the therapeutic timetable. This is a collaborative piece of work as, within the hospital we have a wide range of staff groups including nurses, support staff, education, family therapists, music therapists, OT's, psychologists, psychotherapists, medics, social worker, admin, and management.
Working for our organisation
Our Values 2025 - 2030
Working with our colleagues, patients and carers we have co-produced three new values that we aim to embed within our culture here at NELFT.
They are:
We are kind.
We are respectful.
We work together with our communities.
These three values help us to strive to provide the best care by the best people.
Starting with NELFT
NELFT place a great deal of importance on new starters being properly welcomed and inducted into the Trust. All new starters will join the Trust on the first Monday of each month and will undertake a comprehensive induction of up to two weeks which will include mandatory training, systems training and the allocation of equipment. As part of the process new starters will have the opportunity to also meet the executive team, senior managers and attend a number of drop in sessions focussing in engagement, health and wellbeing and key processes. The induction will be held at our head office in Rainham, Essex.
Probationary Period
This post will be subject to a probationary period.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
The post would suit someone who has an interest and/or experience in supporting young people with mental health needs. The right candidate will be able to work well under pressure and in the face of emotional situations and be confident in making decisions in the best interests of children, young people and their families.
As well as a comprehensive induction period to NELFT and our unit we can also offer training opportunities to develop and support the individual within the role.
Please note we cannot sponsor this role.
Please see the attached job description and person specification for more information about this role and working at North East London NHS Foundation Trust. We encourage you to refer to this when completing your application.
We welcome your application even if you do not meet all the criteria listed in the person specification. Please apply as soon as possible as some posts close early to limit the number of applications.
Certificates of Sponsorship
Although we are a registered sponsor organisation, we are unable to offer sponsorship for all job roles. Please check your eligibility under the UKVI points-based system. When calculating the basic salary for sponsorship, HCAS (High-Cost Area Supplement) is not included to ensure fairness and consistency within our Trust.
Use of AI
Please see attached document regarding acceptable use of AI during the recruitment process.
At NELFT, we are committed to building a workforce that reflects
and supports the diverse communities we serve. As part of our
ongoing efforts to strengthen local employment and deliver high-quality, person-centered care, we will prioritise applications from
individuals living in our local boroughs and surrounding areas
Benefits
We believe in bringing your authentic and best self to work, in order to deliver the best care to our patients. We are committed to supporting our employees holistically. Here is a snapshot of what is on offer at NELFT:
- A long-standing and award-winning approach to equality and diversity with supportive networks for ethnic minority staff, staff with disabilities or long term/chronic conditions and LGBT staff.
- A commitment to supporting colleagues to achieve a work life balance, through flexible working opportunities and our efforts to support our working parents and carers. This has resulted in us being recognised as a ‘Top 10 Family Friendly Employer’ from the Working Families Charity.
- Proactive health and wellbeing support, including access to our employee assistance programme, staff psychological support, individual wellbeing conversations and a network of health and wellbeing ambassadors.
- Detailed information about our wellbeing and benefits offer can be found in this link.
As a flexible working friendly organisation, we want to be sure that you can work in a way that is best for us and for our patients, and for you. Speak to us about how we might be able to accommodate a flexible working arrangement whether that’s a job share, part time hours or another flexible pattern.
Supporting our Armed Forces
We recognise the valuable contribution that the Armed Forces community make to our organisation. We have signed the Armed Forces Covenant and achieved Gold Award under the Armed Forces Employer Recognition Scheme. We have supportive policies, guaranteed interview schemes for veterans. reservists and military spouses and give additional leave to our Reservists so that they can attend their annual camp.
Equal opportunities employer
We are committed to equal opportunities and diversity and positively encourage applications from all sections of the community regardless of any protected characteristic.
We are a Disability Confident employer and have made the pledge to commit to employing more people with disabilities. If you require this application in another format i.e. Braille or audio tape please contact the recruitment team on 0300 300 1530 or email [email protected].
Correspondence with us
You are advised to regularly check your emails (including any junk mail/spam folders) for correspondence related to this post.
As part of our recruitment process, we may be required to share information you provide on the application form with NHS Counter Fraud Authority (NHSCFA) and/or other organisations for the purpose of the prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution of fraud or any other unlawful activity affecting the NHS. We also use third party providers to check and verify your qualifications who may be contacting you on our behalf to verify the same.