Therapists Sittingbourne, England
Job description
Music and Arts Therapy
Steve Carley, Rocksteady Care’s Director founded and ran an award winning
charity for vulnerable and at risk young people for over twenty years. This
experience has led to Rocksteady Care utilising music and arts therapy as part
of its support package for children and young people at its home.
We are always looking for qualified and experienced music and arts therapists
to work with our children and young people in our dedicated outside creative
learning hub in the grounds of the home.
Additionally we also invite experienced musicians and artists who enjoy
teaching their skills to children and young people to get in touch as well.
We will require and enhanced DBS check (which we will pay for), references,
completed application form and interview before you can start working with
the children and young people we support.
Please do get in touch with us if you are keen to chat further about providing
your services for Rocksteady Care.
Music Therapy
Music Therapists use music to help their clients achieve therapeutic goals
through the development of the musical and therapeutic relationship. There is
no pre-requisite to 'be musical' or know how to play a specific instrument in
order to engage in Music Therapy. Music Therapists work with the natural
musicality of each client to offer appropriate, sensitive and meaningful musical
interaction.
Music can be a social process involving others and it can also provide the
sanctuary of a more private experience. Depending on the individual needs of
the clients, Music Therapists offer individual or group sessions. For a child with
autism, this could be helping them to find a way to communicate with others.
For a learning disabled adult, this could be helping them to find a way in which
to express their emotions in a safe and supported environment. For an older
person with dementia, this could be helping them to feel valued and heard.
The work of a Music Therapist takes place not only in sessions but also around
the sessions. In thinking about a client and their needs, Music Therapists will
liaise with other professionals working with the client to provide a holistic,
joined-up approach to their care. This can include offering assessments,
attending meetings, weekly telephone calls with the client's family or carers,
providing joint sessions with other professionals, writing reports, and making
recommendations for further treatment.
Arts Therapy
Art therapy is a form of psychotherapy that uses art media as its primary mode
of expression and communication. Within this context, art is not used as
diagnostic tool but as a medium to address emotional issues which may be
confusing and distressing.
Art therapists work with children, young people, adults and the elderly. Clients
may have a wide range of difficulties, disabilities or diagnoses. These include
emotional, behavioural or mental health problems, learning or physical
disabilities, life-limiting conditions, neurological conditions and physical
illnesses.
Art therapy is provided in groups or individually, depending on clients' needs. It
is not a recreational activity or an art lesson, although the sessions can be
enjoyable. Clients do not need to have any previous experience or expertise in
art.
Although influenced by psychoanalysis, art therapists have been inspired by
theories such as attachment-based psychotherapy and have developed a broad
range of client-centred approaches such as psycho-educational, mindfulness
and mentalization-based treatments, compassion-focussed and cognitive
analytic therapies, and socially engaged practice.
