Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist/ Emotional Disorders Team Lead

Job summary

The post holder will be responsible for leading Kensington and Chelsea CAMHS Emotional Disorders Team (EDT) - alongside the team's consultant Psychiatrist - and for providing a highly specialist Child and Adolescent Psychotherapy service to children, young people and families experiencing mental health difficulties. They will deliver specialist psychotherapeutic assessments, formulations and interventions for young people and their families or carers, and offer expert psychodynamic consultation and advice to multidisciplinary colleagues and the wider professional network. The post holder will contribute to generic CAMHS functions, including initial assessments, urgent assessments, risk assessment and management, duty participation and care coordination, applying psychoanalytic understanding to the broader range of therapeutic work undertaken in CAMHS. The role includes providing consultation across partner agencies to promote psychologically informed approaches, and contributing to the supervision and development of trainees and less experienced clinicians, as appropriate to service need. The post holder will utilise research, audit and service evaluation skills to support service development and the implementation of evidence-based practice, working collaboratively with senior clinicians and managers.

Main duties of the job

• Provide highly specialist psychoanalytic/psychodynamic psychotherapy assessment and treatment for children, adolescents and families referred to Kensington and Chelsea CAMHS.
• Formulate and implement psychotherapeutic treatment plans across the full range of Child & Adolescent Psychotherapy modalities, including STPP, longer-term psychotherapy, short-term interventions, parent-child therapy, parent work, adolescent group therapy and consultation.
• Deliver generic CAMHS assessments, including initial assessments, urgent assessments, neurodevelopmental screening and risk evaluations.
• Carry out comprehensive risk assessments and develop robust, evidence-informed risk management plans.
• Provide specialist psychodynamic consultation to MDT colleagues and external professionals.
• Contribute to duty systems, MDT discussions, inter-agency liaison and complex case/network meetings.
• Prepare clear clinical reports and letters and liaise effectively with young people, families and professionals.

About us

[Employer hidden — sign up to reveal] (CNWL) provides Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) across five boroughs - Brent, Harrow, Hillingdon, Westminster, and Kensington and Chelsea - as well as specialist services to regional and national partners. This post is based within Kensington and Chelsea CAMHS's Emotional Disorders Team, which forms part of a large and well-established CAMHS service which includes psychiatrists, child psychotherapists, psychologists, family therapists, nurses and other mental health professionals.

Job responsibilities

Clinical: Provide highly specialist psychoanalytic/psychodynamic psychotherapy assessment and treatment for children, adolescents and families referred to Westminster CAMHS. Formulate and implement psychotherapeutic treatment plans across the full range of Child & Adolescent Psychotherapy modalities, including STPP, longer-term psychotherapy, short-term interventions, parent-child therapy, parent work, adolescent group therapy and consultation. Deliver generic CAMHS assessments, including initial assessments, urgent assessments, neurodevelopmental screening and risk evaluations. Provide skilled, sensitive written formulations and treatment plans. Carry out comprehensive risk assessments and develop robust, evidence-informed risk management plans. Offer specialist psychodynamic risk formulation guidance to the MDT and partner agencies. Provide specialist psychodynamic consultation to MDT colleagues and external professionals (education, social care, voluntary sector). Contribute to duty systems, MDT discussions, inter-agency liaison and complex case/network meetings. Prepare clear clinical reports and letters and liaise effectively with young people, families and professionals. Act as care coordinator where appropriate. Deliver all clinical work with cultural sensitivity. Ensure practice is informed by current evidence and make effective use of Routine Outcome Measures (ROMs). Lead or participate in service evaluation, clinical audit, research and quality improvement projects. Provide reflective practice, teaching and consultation to MDT colleagues. Provide supervision to trainees, assistant psychotherapists or Band 7 clinicians where appropriate.

Teaching, training, and supervision: Receive clinical supervision from the Lead Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist. Participate in annual appraisal. Maintain and develop specialist skills. Provide high-quality supervision to trainee Child & Adolescent Psychotherapists. Contribute to the training and development of MDT colleagues.

Management, policy and service development: Exercise delegated clinical authority. Contribute to the development, evaluation and monitoring of service policies, pathways, and procedures. Participate in service planning meetings, quality improvement initiatives and MDT development activities.

Qualifications: Completion of doctoral-level postgraduate training in Psychoanalytic Child and Adolescent Psychotherapy, ACP accredited. Full membership of the Association of Child Psychotherapists (ACP).

Person Specification

Education and Qualifications

• Essential: ACP-recognised pre-clinical training to Master's level; postgraduate doctoral-level training in Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychotherapy at an ACP-accredited training school; Full membership of ACP.
• Desirable: Training in clinical supervision; additional therapeutic training (e.g., MBT, DDP, systemic therapy).

Previous Experience

• Essential: Post-qualification experience at Band 7+ delivering specialist psychotherapeutic assessment, formulation and treatment within CAMHS; experience with wide range of mental health presentations; experience delivering STPP; providing psychodynamic consultation; experience with parents/carers; work in diverse cultural contexts.
• Desirable: Supervising trainee CAPTs; group therapy facilitation; service development/audit; reflective practice; experience with children in care.

Knowledge, Skills and Professional Competencies

• Essential: Highly developed skills in specialist assessment, formulation and psychotherapeutic intervention across Child and Adolescent Psychotherapy modalities; strong understanding of child development and trauma; excellent communication; knowledge of safeguarding legislation; ability to provide psychodynamic consultation; commitment to anti-racist and culturally attuned practice; experience using ROMs.
• Desirable: Research methodology; pathway development.

Personal Qualities and Professional Attributes

• Essential: Build effective working relationships; emotional resilience; reflective practice; flexibility; good IT skills; commitment to service improvement; sensitivity to culture and diversity.
• Desirable: Contribution to service innovation; conference presentations.

Additional information

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and a DBS check is required. Certificate of Sponsorship: Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome. See UK Visas and Immigration website. UK Registration: Applicants must have current UK professional registration.

Employer details

Employer: [Employer hidden — sign up to reveal]

Address: Kensington and Chelsea CAMHS, 1B Beatrice Place, London, W8 5LP

Website: https://www.cnwl.nhs.uk/work