CAMHS UCT Team Lead

Job overview

CNWL NHS Foundation Trust has developed a 24‑hour CAMHS Urgent Care Service as part of its service transformation to support children and young people presenting in mental health crisis at A&E. The service operates through three 24‑hour hospital‑based hubs and provides rapid assessment and response, with access to intensive, time‑limited support via Urgent Care Outreach Support (UCOS) for those up to age 18 experiencing acute mental health or emotional distress.

The CAMHS Urgent Care Team Lead provides clinical and operational leadership to a multidisciplinary team delivering rapid assessment, intervention, and crisis support to children and young people experiencing acute mental health needs. The post holder is responsible for ensuring safe, timely, and effective responses for young people presenting in crisis, including those at risk of harm to self or others.

The role combines direct clinical practice with leadership, supervision, and service development responsibilities. The Team Lead works closely with acute hospitals, community CAMHS, social care, education, and voluntary sector partners to ensure integrated, trauma‑informed, and child‑centred care pathways. A strong focus is placed on risk management, safeguarding, reducing hospital admissions where appropriate, and supporting young people and families through periods of heightened distress.

Main duties of the job

The role involves providing senior clinical leadership and specialist expertise for children and young people with complex mental health needs. This includes leading on risk assessment and management, formulation and delivery of evidence‑based care packages, and offering expert advice, consultation, and guidance to multidisciplinary teams and partner agencies. The post holder ensures high standards of safeguarding practice, maintains robust clinical records, and promotes effective communication with young people, families, and professionals to support safe transitions within CAMHS pathways.

In addition, the role carries significant managerial and leadership responsibilities, including operational oversight of the crisis service, supervision and appraisal of clinical staff, service development, and performance management. The post holder supports policy compliance, contributes to recruitment and workforce development, strengthens interfaces with acute and community services, and evaluates service outcomes to ensure high‑quality, responsive urgent mental health care delivery.

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Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Clinical

• To lead on advice and consultation on care and treatment for the most complex children/young people.
• Provide specialist advice, guidance and consultation to other professionals contributing directly to the care and treatment plan for the child/young person.
• To undertake risk assessment and risk management for individual children and young people and to provide advice to other professions on risk assessment and risk management.
• To formulate and implement care packages for the treatment and management of the clients’ mental health problems. These should be based on an appropriate conceptual framework and evidence-based models of practice.
• To evaluate and make decisions about treatment options in consultation with the multi-disciplinary team, taking into account both theoretical and therapeutic models.
• To act as a co-worker with other members of the multidisciplinary team as appropriate.
• To lead on ensuring team compliance with London Child Protection Procedures on the management of child protection issues as well as Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust internal procedures.
• To provide advice, guidance and consultation to professionals working in other agencies and contribute to multi-agency care planning.
• To work alongside CAMHS colleagues when appropriate
• To maintain clinical records appropriately and in line with the Trust policy.
• To ensure effective verbal and written communication with all staff and clients in order to maximise user involvement in the delivery of care and treatment on transfer to local CAMHS.

Managerial and Leadership

• To provide operational management and leadership of the crisis service working within a multi-disciplinary team.
• To act as Lead Practitioner in local CAMHS (where appropriate)
• To oversee the interface between CAMHS and our relevant acute Trusts
• To provide clinical performance management, appraisals and supervision of other clinicians to ensure the needs of the individual and local service are supported
• To adhere to and implement the Trust Sickness Policy as appropriate.
• To advise both service and professional management on any aspects of clinical or organisational matters that needs addressing.
• In support of the service manager to take a lead for the development and clinical management of the crisis service.
• Providing informal advice, support and consultation as required to UCT and UCOS colleagues.
• Contributing to the supervision of newly qualified staff within the service.
• To ensure all relevant policies are adhered to.
• To support the development of the formal service specifications and protocols for paediatric and A&E liaison to support delivery of services for young people admitted to A&E and hospital wards.
• To be involved, as appropriate, in the recruitment of team members participating in shortlisting and interviewing.
• To evaluate the service and interventions provided using appropriate outcome measures.