Band 7 Senior Mental Health Practitioner - Bristol

Job overview

This specialist CAMHS role is dedicated to improving mental health outcomes for Children in Care and Care Experienced Children and Young People (CYP) across Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire (BNSSG). The post holder will provide high-quality, trauma-informed mental health support, including specialist assessment, formulation, risk assessment and management, therapeutic interventions, consultation, and care planning.

The role combines direct clinical work within CAMHS Community Services with one day per week in the CAMHS Getting Advice Triage Team, providing triage, risk screening, consultation and referral management to ensure timely access to appropriate support. Holding a specialist caseload, the practitioner will work collaboratively with children, young people, families, carers and multi-agency partners across health, social care and education to deliver coordinated, relationship-based care, with the child’s voice and lived experience central to decision-making.

As a senior clinician, the post holder will contribute to service development and provide supervision, consultation and support to colleagues, promoting trauma-informed, evidence-based practice and specialist knowledge relating to Children in Care. This is an excellent opportunity for an experienced practitioner passionate about improving outcomes for vulnerable children and young people while helping to shape and develop this evolving specialist CAMHS pathway across BNSSG.

Main duties of the job

Key Responsibilities

• Work across the CAMHS Getting Advice Team and Community Locality Teams, supporting Children in Care and Care Experienced Children and Young People across BNSSG.
• Triage referrals and undertake specialist mental health and risk assessments to ensure timely access to appropriate support.
• Manage a specialist caseload, providing formulation, care planning, evidence-based interventions and ongoing risk management.
• Deliver trauma-informed, child-centred care in partnership with children, young people, carers, families and multi-agency professionals.
• Provide consultation, advice and specialist mental health expertise to colleagues and partner agencies.
• Contribute to safeguarding processes and promote effective risk assessment and management.
• Support transitions between services, including transition to adult mental health services where appropriate.
• Provide clinical supervision, consultation and support to Band 6 Mental Health Practitioners and wider colleagues.
• Share specialist knowledge of trauma, attachment, mental health and the needs of Children in Care to support workforce development.
• Contribute to service development, quality improvement initiatives and the ongoing enhancement of the specialist Children in Care pathway within BNSSG CAMHS.
• Maintain accurate clinical records and work in line with professional, organisational and statutory requirements.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

To assess, develop, implement, and evaluate therapeutic interventions, and to be responsible for the management of your own caseload from referral to discharge.

To carry out specialist and urgent assessments of a young person’s mental health needs and associated risks when required, including deliberate self‑harm assessments.

To work with children, young people, and their families, promoting opportunities for their maximum engagement and involvement in formulations, care plans, and evaluation of the service they receive.

To work jointly with staff from other agencies in direct work with children, young people, and their families.

When appropriate, to engage in joint work with other specialist CAMHS personnel as agreed with the CAMHS Service Manager.

To develop effective liaison with referrers, and those contributing to referrals to specialist CAMHS, and to guide referrers to appropriate resources for children and young people with mental health needs.

To attend CAMHS meetings and case discussions as appropriate.

To work closely as part of the multi‑disciplinary CAMHS team.

To practise within current legislation governing the delivery of services to children and young people, including legislation relating to Looked After Children and the safeguarding of children as defined in the Children Act (1989, amended 2004), as well as local guidelines.

To assess safeguarding issues for each case, to practise within local safeguarding guidelines, to share and directly refer concerns when appropriate, and to participate in multi‑agency safeguarding conferences.

To participate in regular reviews of cases and attend case discussions, conferences, and reviews as appropriate.

To comply with the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) requirements of your professional body.

Please contact Lois Richards (Clinical Service Manager) if you would like any further information.

Please see the attached Job Description for a full list of duties and responsibilities

Applicant requirements

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.