Band 6 Specialist Practitioner - Devizes

Job overview

The postholder will be an autonomous practitioner, able to evidence sound clinical judgement and clear clinical rationale in decision-making. The role involves providing initial mental health assessments and supportive conversations for people who may require access to secondary mental health services.

Working closely with GPs, voluntary sector organisations, and colleagues across primary and secondary care, the postholder will help ensure individuals receive timely, tailored, compassionate, and effective support aligned to their needs.

This post is open to newly qualified social workers. In line with trust policy, all newly qualified social workers will be recruited initially at Band 5 level, regardless of advertised role banding. All NQSWs are expected to successfully complete their ASYE within 2 years of employment, unless there are exceptional circumstances in which case it may be agreed to extend this for a further 2 years.   On successful completion of the ASYE, for which you will be given full support of an experienced Social Worker as well as Divisional Social Work Lead, and peer support from other ASYE candidates, you will then be eligible to progress to a Band 6 position.   If you have been appointed to an advertised Band 6 role this will be an automatic progression, following confirmation of your successful completion. If you have been appointed to a Band 5 you will then be eligible to apply for a subsequent Band 6 vacancy.

Main duties of the job

The postholder will undertake both routine and urgent mental health assessments, including triage, to support individuals presenting with a range of needs. They will be required to work flexibly across pathways, responding to fluctuating demand in a fast‑paced environment.

The role requires a creative and solution‑focused approach to problem‑solving, with the ability to make timely, well‑reasoned decisions informed by a strong understanding of local care pathways and service options. The postholder will use sound clinical judgement to coordinate appropriate onward care and support.

Accurate, timely, and high‑quality documentation is essential, as is the ability to manage competing priorities while maintaining a compassionate, person‑centred approach.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Primary Care focus

• Contribute to delivering and co-developing the primary care mental health service model. This includes care pathways for the provision of integrated physical and mental health care in a designated Primary Care Network within the Division.
• Be the point of contact for patients that are directed from primary care via an agreed route, promote early assessment / treatment, and ensure robust relationships and links with other community-based services.
• Work closely with and become a part of the primary care team, including social prescribers and recovery navigators, to support adults (18+) with mental health needs, whose mental health needs can be best met within primary care and whose difficulties are best understood within a biopsychosocial model.
• Work closely with colleagues in specialist community mental health services to ensure smooth transitions between teams and services and facilitate an ‘easy in, easy out’ approach to improve access to evidence-based interventions.
• Connect people to appropriate community and voluntary sector support working alongside Social Prescribers.
• Facilitate mental health and ‘strengths-based’ assessments in Primary Care and support the Primary Care Team in accessing appropriate level of services.
• Build and facilitate closer links between Primary Care Networks (PCNs) and Community Mental Health Teams (CMHTs), Social Care teams, community services and a wide range of voluntary sector organisations, to achieve seamless transitions and support for people with mental health challenges.
• Promote understanding and confidence in the delivery of mental health care and collaboration with all agencies involved in the care of service users.
• Provide targeted formal and informal learning opportunities for all staff within the primary care teams to develop their knowledge and capabilities within the mental health component of holistic care.
• Provide information, ‘sign posting’ and support for service users and their relatives/carers with mental health needs.
• Foster strong collaborative and trusting working relationships with the referring agent/Primary Care Health Professionals underpinned by an educative and solutions focused philosophy whilst providing credible clinical expertise.
• Facilitate the development of safe and effective mental health care practice within the primary care setting.
• Where required, train and supervise AWP junior staff in line with own role.

Clinical practice

• Promote the importance of working with strengths and aspirations of the person referred.
• Provide succinct formulations and recommendations (inclusive of risk management advice) to support patient safety planning.
• Assess and advise on the impact of culture and diversity alongside colleagues from Primary Care.
• Give best practice advice and support in a broad range of conditions for people with both functional and organic mental health needs.
• Promote the needs of family and carer/s, including various support networks and third sector agencies.
• Advise and support on evaluating risk from a positive risk-taking perspective.
• Support and advise within safeguarding and public protection procedures where the issues are complicated by mental health problems, alongside Primary Care colleagues.
• Provide a prompt response to all contacts following jointly agreed procedures and within agreed time frames.
• Ensure, where needed, that people experience a seamless transfer into AWP provider/treatment services via trusted assessment processes.
• Following assessment, provide short- term follow up of patients where appropriate.
• Contribute evidence-based expertise to multi-disciplinary team processes.
• Promote positive attitudes, mutual understanding and collaboration between non-mental health staff and mental health services, users, carers, voluntary agencies, primary care and social services.
• Demonstrate responsibility for developing own practice in line with professional qualifications and for contributing to the development of others, by making use of and providing, effective feedback, supervision, coaching and appraisal.
• Adhere to the relevant professional code of conduct ensuring required skills and competencies required are maintained.
• Monitor and maintain health, safety and security of self and others, undertaking assessments and taking appropriate action where required.
• Develop own knowledge and practice, and contribute to the development of others, making use of available feedback, supervision and appraisal to identify appropriate areas of development for this work role, taking responsibility for accessing identified learning and training opportunities.
• Maintain appropriate health record, in accordance with professional and organisational standards.
• Participate in clinical audit and service evaluation programmes as required.
• Participate in local arrangements, where required, to manage unexpected staff absences.