Child and Family Wellbeing Therapist Leeds, England
Job description
Therapist
(Children and Families Wellbeing Project)
JOB DESCRIPTION
Job Title: Therapist
Responsible to: Clinical Director
Hours of work: Negotiable between 3 days and full time
Salary: £35,411 pa FTE.
Duration: Initially a fixed term contract ending 31st March 2024(including 3 month probationary period) but will be extended if funding is confirmed.
Holidays: 36 days per year including bank holidays
Main Purposes of the Post
1. To be part of a team providing a therapeutic service for children and their families who arrive in the area as part of the national Resettlement Scheme. Most families will be originally from Syria or Afghanistan, but not exclusively.
2. The project team will provide family therapy as well as one to one children’s therapy. The post holder will provide a high quality service within the parameters of their own training and specialism so that jointly the team is able to offer a range of specialised therapeutic support interventions based on the assessment of client need.
3. The role will involve working closely with other services, primarily schools, to support their capacity and skill to better understand and support children who have arrived in the area through the resettlement schemes. This may involve delivery of consultation and training to schools both formally and informally.
4. To provide the service to children and families living throughout West and North Yorkshire, Hull, East Riding and North Lincolnshire, travelling throughout the area as required in order to meet the needs of the families. Due to the geographical size, and the time involved in travelling throughout the region, we are specifically looking to recruit therapists who will be based close to where the service will be delivered. We are looking to enhance service delivery in West Yorkshire, North Yorkshire and North / North East Lincolnshire specifically.
5. To contribute to the administration, monitoring and evaluation of the service
which will include amongst other things; maintaining appropriate records on the Solace client database, undertaking an evaluation with every client and to report on client outcomes and satisfaction, and providing reports on outcomes to the funder and our partners.
Professional Responsibilities.
1. To provide systemic based therapeutic assessments for children and families with evidence based interventions for both short and long term clients, the majority of whom will be unable to access therapy in English.
2. To adhere to Solace’s and your professional body’s codes of ethics (UKCP, BACP, AFT)
3. Together with other team members, arrange a suitable location for appointments to take place, either at Solace premises, in school or another appropriate community venue or on zoom.
4. Where appropriate, to provide welcome sessions to groups in “bridging hotels” or with other resettlement services, and if needed to provide them to families in their own homes together with their key worker.
5. To attend when required multi agency meetings regarding support for families.
6. To work closely with pastoral staff in schools to help them welcome newly arrived children and to provide appropriate support for children and their families whilst at the school. This may include providing support for schools and other organisations who have limited experience of working with people from other cultures, or those who have witnessed multiple traumatic events.
7. To work creatively to engage with schools and pastoral staff to develop joint working relationships for the benefit of children and young people which may include individual therapeutic support plans.
8. Provide assessments of children and families, including the assessment of any risk to themselves and others and identification of the most appropriate therapeutic intervention.
9. Make appropriate referrals to other services where required, and to work collaboratively with colleagues in other organisations, and writing clinical letters or reports as required.
10. To work in ways that are sensitive to the needs of people with diverse racial, cultural and religious backgrounds, taking into account the impact of multiple trauma and the fact that clients are recent arrivals in the UK with very different cultural norms and experiences.
11. To work flexibly to meet the emerging needs of the project which may include facilitating therapeutic groups or workshops.
12. To participate in clinical supervision (individual and group) provided by Solace
To maintain appropriate clinical records within the Solace record keeping policy, ensuring all records are kept up to date on the Solace database and that regular outcome measures are used, recorded and reported on as required
14. To adhere to Solace’s and your professional body’s codes of ethics (UKCP, BACP, AFT or equivalent) and to comply with Solace’s policies and procedures.
To comply with any delivery venue’s requirements regarding lone working, safety, security etc
Responsible for regular internal and external reports on client activities and outcomes
To maintain appropriate clinical records and ensure that hard copies and electronic data is stored securely
To promote access to the service by developing good relationships with other organisations
19. Any other duties as may be reasonably requested
- PERSON SPECIFICATION
Detailed below are the types of skills, experience and knowledge which are required of applicants applying for this post. Essential requirements indicate the minimum requirements. Desirable requirements are additional attributes which would enable the applicant to do the job more effectively, and will be used to distinguish between acceptable candidates meeting minimum requirements.
Qualifications
Essential
Desirable
A formal qualification in systemic therapy from a course which is accredited by BACP, UKCP or AFT or equivalent at the minimum of Diploma-level or equivalent. Qualifications may focus on either Family Therapy or Children’s Therapy.
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Training in working with trauma, for example EMDR
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Experience
At least three years supervised clinical experience post qualification, including a minimum of 200 hours of client contact (individual or group), the majority of which involving children and / or families.
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Experience of delivering therapy to families with children of primary and secondary age.
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Experience of delivering therapy face to face, and online, using zoom or similar online platforms.
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Experience of working creatively to integrate non verbal methods of communication into therapeutic practice
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Experience of personal therapy
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Experience of managing a clinical caseload and maintaining boundaries in a pressurised setting, demonstrating understanding of time keeping, confidentiality and the importance of correspondence and administrative tasks.
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Experience of working with asylum seekers or refugees or other minority ethnic groups who have experienced trauma or violence.
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Experience of working remotely (ie a sole therapist in premises used by other organisations and clients)
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Experience of developing or delivering support services in schools.
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Skills, Knowledge & Abilities
Able to demonstrate knowledge and skill in working with families from a range of cultures and backgrounds
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Able to apply therapeutic skills and tailor interventions to needs of non-English speaking clients working alongside interpreters
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Capacity to work with a broad range of emotions in the therapeutic relationship as well as the ability to tolerate confusion and think clearly under pressure.
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Able to recognise and monitor own responses to identify and inform understanding of dynamic processes in the therapeutic relationship.
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Demonstrable knowledge and skill in working therapeutically with children who have experienced trauma, and a commitment to developing further expertise in trauma focussed practice
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Understanding of both primary and secondary age children’s developmental and therapeutic needs
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Ability to use basic IT skills, for example using a database, emails etc.
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The ability to carry out monitoring and evaluation, using a regular measurement tool, and reflecting on its meaning
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Ability to work collaboratively as a member of a team, using initiative to overcome difficulties and promote communication in order to develop the project and it’s services to clients.
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A knowledge of voluntary and statutory agencies supporting refugees throughout the region
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Ability to speak Arabic
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Experience of developing therapeutic services in new settings
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Attitude
A commitment to Solace’s policies, including Equal Opportunities, Confidentiality and record keeping, as well as the BACP Ethical Framework for Good Practice in Counselling and Psychotherapy.
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An understanding of the limits of your capabilities and of what Solace can offer within the constraints of the service
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A willingness to develop and maintain your skills to improve the service.
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A respect for the values and traditions of other cultures
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The ability to work supportively and co-operatively with other Solace staff and with staff from other organisations, including liaising effectively with other professionals, and with refugee communities
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Job Types: Full-time, Part-time
Part-time hours: 22.5-37.5 per week
Salary: From £35,411.00 per year
Schedule:
- Monday to Friday
Ability to commute/relocate:
- Leeds: reliably commute or plan to relocate before starting work (required)
Work Location: In person
Application deadline: 29/05/2023
