Band 7 Drama therapist

Job overview

The Hope Service is a unique, innovative and exciting jointly funded service offering Health, Social care and Education provision to young people aged 11-18 years with complex mental health, social and behavioural difficulties living in Surrey. It provides outreach as well as a therapeutic day programme within a multi- disciplinary team of teachers, social workers, psychiatrists, community psychiatric nurses, creative Arts therapists, psychologists and activity workers.

An opportunity as arisen to recruit a Drama Therapist for the Hope service Guildford.

We are looking for a flexible, dynamic and motivated Drama Therapist with significant experience in working with challenging young people with mental health needs and complex backgrounds. You will work within a dedicated and supportive multi –professional team to provide group and individual sessions providing specialist Dramatherapy assessments and interventions as well as contributing to the therapeutic ethos and care and planning of all of the young people accessing the service.

In addition to direct work with the young people, the post holder will provide support, advise, therapeutic expertise and consultation to their colleagues within the team including the opportunity to facilitate support groups for colleagues.

You will be a trained Drama Therapist holding full HCPC and BADTH registration with a minimum of 2 years’ experience in a relevant field.

Main duties of the job

To be professionally responsible and accountable for all aspects of the post and to practice within the legal and ethical boundaries of the Arts Therapies professions.  To maintain a high standard of care in accordance with the Professional and HCPC Codes of Conduct.  To manage their own diary and prioritise competing demands.

To work within the Therapeutic Day Programme setting, contributing to the delivery of holistic needs-based intervention for each young person in the service.

To assess young people referred, interpreting and analysing complex sensitive information to form an accurate formulation in a wide range of conditions.  To recommend best practice therapeutic interventions and contribute to comprehensive care and discharge plans.

To plan and provide highly specialised individual and group Drama therapy to young people in HOPE according to need.

To be responsible with colleagues for the development of evidence based effective and appropriate clinical service.

To communicate effectively with young people using methods appropriate to age, cognitive abilities, mood, understanding and culture

To work with young people with highly complex needs who may present with challenging behaviour.

To provide clinical supervision to colleagues, nonqualified staff and students/trainees.

To contribute to multi-disciplinary team meetings, case reviews, timetable planning, young peoples’ reviews and other meetings as appropriate.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The post-holder will be a highly skilled autonomous practitioner, managing an appropriate complex case load, undertaking clinical reasoning, critical thinking, reflection and analysis to support their assessment.  They will use a client centred approach informed by current theoretical advances and evidence base to assess, plan, implement, evaluate and document intervention.

The post-holder will work with young people from across Surrey.  They may be required to travel across service sites and in the community. The post-holder will have knowledge of the safe use, maintenance, transportation and replacement of specialist equipment and materials.

The post-holder will be a member of the Trust Wide Arts Therapies network.  This network promotes CPD opportunities, seminars, workshops and conferences.  Where appropriate the post-holder will be expected to contribute to the ongoing development of Arts Therapies within the Trust.  There will be opportunities via the Arts Therapies forum to develop collaborative enquiry and research.