Perinatal Social Worker

Job overview

Brent and Harrow Community Perinatal Mental Health Team, based at Northwick Park Hospital are recruiting for a Band 7, Permanent post. We are looking for one passionate Perinatal Social Workers who are looking to make a difference whilst working in an environment that promotes staff development and training opportunities. CNWL is passionate about developing its own staff, driving them to go on to become more established practitioners and this post is no different.

Main duties of the job

To be you and to do what you do best in the job you love!

We are looking for a clinician with a special interest in improving care for women, birthing people and their families. Experience of working in the perinatal mental health field is not necessary but a keen interest in this specialist area is essential.

The Perinatal Mental Health service provides specialist, multidisciplinary perinatal mental health care for women from preconception, during pregnancy and up to two years postnatal who live in the boroughs of Brent and Harrow.

To help support you with the above we offer a robust induction and tailored training is given and encouraged. As an employer, CNWL and London Perinatal Network also offer various training opportunities, dependent on how long you are in post and on your development needs. In addition, we offer regular in-house training opportunities to learn from each other with the aim to continuously improve our practice.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please review attached Job description for more information.

To deliver, or support the delivery of, highly specialist evidence-based mental health assessment, care planning, treatment and review for women in the perinatal period.

- To provide specialist consultation, advice and support to both CNWL, local Maternity Hospital in-patient and community services on best practice when working with women with mental health needs; at preconception, pregnant women and women with infants up to one year old.

- To work jointly with care coordinators from CMHTs with a small complex and challenging caseload of pregnant women or those with an infant up to one year old.

- To work in consultation with other professionals making known concerns regarding safeguarding children and/or adults to the appropriate and responsible service. This includes attending Child Protection and Review Conferences as appropriate where the child is at risk because of the mother’s mental illness.

- To work with colleagues to establish a clear process and criteria for receiving referrals to undertake direct work or information for advice and liaison work.

- To assist in setting up structures that allow the dissemination of knowledge and skills regarding working with perinatal women in both in-patient and community services.

- To liaise and work with specialist tertiary services such as Mother & Baby Units, personality disorder services, eating disorder services etc.

- To work with fathers, partners and significant others to provide appropriate education training and support.

- To identify carers and refer/sign post for assessment as appropriate

- To work as a member of the multi-disciplinary team exercising autonomous professional responsibility for managing a clinical caseload independently, providing highly specialist assessments and follow-up for women referred with complex problems, which includes assessment of risk in terms of self-harm, self-neglect, vulnerability, harm to others, domestic violence and safeguarding children.

- To seek consultation where necessary with clinical supervisor and/or line manager on clinical work and participate in regular supervision.

- To be mindful of the needs of women and their families from a wide range of racial, cultural, sexual, religious and social backgrounds and to develop, with colleagues, sensitive and innovative ways of meeting these needs.

- To ensure that all Trust Perinatal service users have a perinatal care plan, which is implemented. This may require attending and contributing to pre and post-birth meetings,

- To work with other professionals insupporting them to implement an agreed parent –infant care plan.

- To attend the CNWL and out of borough Safeguarding Children multidisciplinary meetings and any other relevant multidisciplinary meetings within Maternity services, as appropriate.

- To be responsible for monitoring, recording and reporting on clinical work and communicating highly complex clinical information to a variety of recipients (e.g. patient’s, families and carers, other professionals) orally and in writing.

- To be responsible for developing and maintaining knowledge of local resources and developing excellent working relationships with relevant statutory, voluntary and community groups and organisations.