CAMHS Initial Assessment Practitioner

· To provide a quality specialist service to clients (and their families/carers) referred to CAMHS across all sectors of care · To promote the reputation of CAMHS · To provide specialist assessment and intervention for complex mental health needs and to work autonomously within professional guidelines and exercise systematic governance of practice within CAMHS · Effectively assess and prioritise clinical complexity and risk · Liaise with referrers and professionals in relation to clinical concerns and queries · Be a clinical point of contact for children, young people and families · Effectively liaise with referrers, professionals, partners and agencies in relation to referrals and/or assessments, · To provide specialist systematic process for the assessment of children and young people referred into CAMHS. To assess, triage and prioritise referrals ensuring an equitable system and that those with urgent needs are clearly identified and needs are addressed in a timely manner. The post will require independent management of caseload with appropriate supervision and professional management, as per professional body guidelines. · To provide highly specialist assessments of clients referred to CAMHS based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex information from a variety of sources including self-report measures, rating scales, direct and indirect structured observations and semi-structured interviews with clients and their families/carers. · To provide effective and safe assessment of safeguarding concerns. Liaising and reporting to other agencies where appropriate, including the completion of safeguarding referrals and safety planning. · To consider the appropriateness of CAMHS referrals in relation to agreed referral criteria and organise safe signposting as appropriate to the needs of the child/young person referred. · Ensure pathways into CAMHS are accessible for children, young people and families with additional needs e.g., a learning disability. · To exercise professional responsibility for the assessment, treatment, signposting and discharge of clients. · To undertake risk assessment and risk management for individual clients and their families/carers. · To gather comprehensive information from a range of community children/young people's services and to liaise with services around assessment outcomes and safeguarding concerns. · To communicate in a skilled and sensitive manner in both written and verbal form, information concerning the assessment and treatment plans of clients referred to CAMHS. · To maintain and develop skills in the area of professional pre- and post-graduate training and clinical supervision. · To provide advice, consultation and training to staff working with the client group across a range of agencies and settings, where appropriate. · To participate as a clinician in the development of a high quality, responsive and accessible service, including advising both service and professional management on those aspects of the service where professional and/or organisational matters need addressing. · To undertake any other duties of a similar nature consistent with the responsibilities of this post in order to provide a quality CAMHS service.

• Please Note that Internal at Risk Employees will be given preference for this position
We reserve the right to bring the closing date forward for this vacancy at any time should we receive an overwhelming response of applications. We therefore encourage applicants to apply early if you wish to be considered for this post. If you do not hear from the recruitment 4 weeks within the advertised closing date please assume that you have been unsuccessful at the shortlisting stage. Please ensure that you check your emails on a regular basis for any recruitment updates regarding this vacancy. If you are not successful at the shortlisting stage and would like feedback, please contact the Recruitment Team directly for feedback. The salary range quoted is as per NHS Agenda for Change pay structures. This is based on the number of years' working directly within the NHS at the advertised pay band. Experience gained with other NHS Trusts will apply, but candidates without prior experience working direct for the NHS would normally be appointed at the lowest point unless they can demonstrate the equivalent experience and then be eligible for incremental increases in future years. Successful applicants for clinical posts up to and including Band 4 are expected to hold the national Care Certificate qualification and will be supported to attain this once in post. The Trust is committed to equal opportunities, providing opportunities for flexible working and is a non-smoking organisation. As a Trust we are passionate about Anti-Racism, Disability Inclusion, and LGBTQ+ Equality, and are committed to diversifying our staff team in all areas and at all levels of seniority to better reflect the diverse communities we serve. Therefore, we particularly welcome and encourage applications from people who belong to a minority or marginalised community, including from Black and Asian, Disabled (including hidden disabilities such as Neurodiversity, Mental Health, etc), or Lesbian, Gay, Bi, Trans or Queer (LGBTQ+) people. Furthermore, Disabled applicants have the option of requesting that their application is considered under our Guaranteed Interview Scheme (GIS). Please indicate your intention to apply under the GIS in the relevant section of your application. Regardless of whether you participate in the scheme or have shared a disability, you will be provided the opportunity to request reasonable adjustments to the interview process at each stage of the recruitment process. Due to the nature of the work some posts may be subject to a Standard Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check, through the Disclosure and Barring Service as stipulated under part V of the Police Act 1997. Having a criminal record will not necessarily bar you from working with us; this will depend on the nature of the position and the circumstances of your offences.

An exciting opportunity has arisen for two fixed term contracts to support initial assessments in Sandwell CAMHS. The successful candidate will have an appropriate professional registration with a governing body such as NMC, HCPC or Social Work England and will have substantial experience in working in CAMHS or similar health/social care settings.

Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust provides specialist mental health, learning disability, and community healthcare services for the population of the Black Country. Across the whole of the region we provide: + Adult and older adult mental health services + Specialist learning disability services + Mental health services for children and young people + Community healthcare services for children, young people and families in Dudley Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust was formed on 1 April 2020, with the merger of Black Country Partnership NHS Foundation Trust and Dudley and Walsall Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust. Combining resources, strategies and talented workforce enables us to deliver a wider variety of outstanding services that are based on best practice and are continually improving. We currently employ over 4,000 people and just like the population we serve, we are made up of diverse cultures and backgrounds. Whatever your role, working in a NHS Foundation Trust, like ours, is a demanding and extremely rewarding experience. Knowing that every day you can help to make a positive difference to someone's life is a very powerful feeling. We know that our Trust runs on this desire to help and support people, and our Trust vision expresses this. Our vision is to improve health and wellbeing for everyone, especially our colleagues to achieve the best possible work/life balance.

Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust provides specialist mental health, learning disability, and community healthcare services for the population of the Black Country. Across the whole of the region we provide: + Adult and older adult mental health services. + Specialist learning disability services. + Mental health services for children and young people. + Community healthcare services for children, young people and families in Dudley. We are also the Lead Provider for mental health, learning disabilities and autism across the Black Country. As Lead Provider we work in partnership with health, social care, voluntary services and community organisations to collectively develop and deliver mental health, learning disability, and autism services that helps people to live their best lives as part of our Black Country community. The approach has a focus on prevention, health equity and inclusion.