An exciting opportunity has arisen to help improve the mental health care and support offered for people experiencing homelessness in Waltham Forest. The post holder will work with local homeless hostels to provide Psychologically Informed Environments, developing and delivering specialised training and support to staff to formulate residents' presentation, behaviour and difficulties from a psychological perspective. This will include understanding the impact of trauma, and environmental factors on residents.

The post holder will work with VCSE partners to support and facilitate access to psychological therapy for homeless people and will work with the psychology leads to ensure pathways into psychological therapies do not exclude people because of their housing status.

The post holder will work with local hostels, but also in liaison with stakeholders such as LBWF, NELFT Rough sleepers team, housing associations, GPs, mental health services, and local CVSEs.

The post holder will work with the GP lead for homelessness and the Homelessness Liaison Nurse to provide a holistic offer of support to hostels and their residents.

The post holder will join a group of Psychological professionals in WF working with marginalised groups and across institutional boundaries, this includes specialist psychological services for refugees and Community psychologists attached to MDTs.

Main duties of the job

• To provide consultation and supervision to local providers of homelessness services in the borough
• To provide specialist consultation and clinical input to complex cases experiencing homelessness across the directorate, as appropriate and as agreed with the Directorate Lead for Psychological Professions.
• Working in close collaboration with other psychology services to ensure a smooth pathway for service-users and their families.
• Leading the homelessness offer in line with national best practice, NICE guidance and in line with expectations from professionals across the Trust and other agencies (including the Integrated Care System)

The post holder will join a supportive and dynamic group of psychological professionals in Waltham forest working across systems to address health inequalities and improve our offer to marginalised people. The group includes people using community psychology informed approaches to work with communities, and a specialist refugee pathway. The latter has an outreach arm and the expectation is that the Refugee lead and Homelessness lead will work closely together where these groups overlap.

About us

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 focusing on 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. Internal applicants are exempt from the probationary period (unless you are an internal applicant currently part way through a probationary period or currently a bank member of staff).

High-CostArea Supplement

This post also attracts payment for High-Cost Area Supplement of 15% of the basic salary (minimum payment of �4,313 and a maximum payment of �5,436 per annum pro rata).

Job description

Job responsibilities

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 closely to this when completing your application.

We welcome your application even if you do not meet all the criteria listed in the person specification. Any development needs to help you succeed in the role, can be discussed at the interview stage.

Person Specification

Essential

Essential

• HCPC registered Clinical or Counselling Psychologist

Essential

Essential

• Post qualification experience of teaching, training and consultation to psychology and non-psychology colleagues and stakeholders

Essentail

Essential

• Experience of leading initiatives addressing inequalities

Essential

Essential

• Experience of psychological assessment and treatment of clients with a range of psychological needs of a complex nature in adult mental health (e.g. Addictions, homelessness, complex trauma, psychosis, personality disorder, mood disorder).

Essential

Essential

• Experience of working with high levels of risk and severe mental health difficulties.

Essential

Essential

• Experience of working with hard to engage populations and familiarity with principles of assertive outreach

Employer details

Employer name

NELFT North East London Foundation Trust

Address

Jane Atkinson centre

714 Forest Road, Walthamstow

Waltham Forest London

E17 2TH

Any attachments will be accessible after you click to apply.

395-PP220-24