Senior Family and Couples Therapist - PD&CN Specialist MDT

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About Us

EPUT provides community health, mental health and learning disability services to support more than 3.2 million people living across Bedfordshire, Essex and Suffolk. Also:

• We are among the largest employers in the in the East of England region, with more than 10,000 staff working across more than 200 sites.
• We run the COVID-19 vaccination programme across mid and south Essex and Suffolk and north east Essex.

EPUT was formed on 1 April 2017 following the merger of North Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (NEP) and South Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (SEPT). A new leadership team was established at the Trust in 2020.
Our vision and values

Our Vision

"To be the leading health and wellbeing service in the provision of mental health and community care".

Our Purpose

"We care for people every day. What we do together, matters".

Our Values

• We Care
• We Learn
• We Empower

Our strategic objectives

• We will deliver safe, high quality integrated care services.
• We will enable each other to be the best that we can.
• We will work together with our partners to make our services better.
• We will help our communities to thrive.

Our services

• Mental Health Services
• Community Health Services
• Learning Disabilities Services
• Social Care

Find out more about the services we offer in our service directory.

Job overview

It is an exciting time to join Essex Partnership University Foundation NHS Trust as we continue the successful development of treatment pathways, new processes and therapeutic provisions to meet the needs of our clients with a diagnosis or traits of personality disorder.

Systemic Family therapy is considered to be a vital contribution to this client group and to service developments. This post will join the Personality Disorder and Complex Needs (PD&CN) Team with a flexible and unique remit. This post has the ability to provided Family Therapy to clients and families to support them across transitions of care, to engage the locality care team, client and family and offering a more traditional family therapy treatment.

EPUT is embracing a trauma informed care approach. The post holder will support this transformation via direct involvement with clients and colleagues taking a systemic overview to support the understanding of the experience of our clients in our services. The successful candidate will join a group of systemic psychotherapists/family therapists across the Trust who are supported by the new development of lead for this staff group.

Main duties of the job

In addition to delivering clinical sessions the post holder will support other colleagues in engaging the client with their families across the treatment provision, as agreed with the client. The Systemic Family Therapist will be involved in developing carers' education sessions, formulations sessions with clients and families, systemic support for colleagues with their clients and direct family therapy! An exciting and diverse role that will enable and support the continued development of the successful candidate. As a senior position the post holder will support the management of the service.

The successful post holder will need to demonstrate their ability to be client focused, understand what is meant by trauma informed care, use this and their systemic orientation in clinical thinking and interactions with colleagues, carers and other stakeholders at all times.

Working for our organisation

EPUT are looking for motivated staff who shares our Trust values of Care, Learn and Empower. In return, EPUT can offer you a range of benefits and development including;

• Season Ticket Loans
• NHS discounts for staff
• Excellent Training facilities and opportunities
• Buying and Selling annual leave scheme
• The opportunity to work bank shifts and expand knowledge and experience in other areas
• Salary Sacrifice schemes including lease cars and Cycle to Work
• Day One Flexible Employer

The Trust supports and actively encourages flexible working for all employees. We offer many options and you are encouraged to ask the recruiting manager what is possible for this role. If appointed, you will have the opportunity to apply for a flexible working request from the first day of your employment

Join our Staff bank

What is Staff Bank?

Our EPUT NHS staff bank is an entity managed by the trust that hires clinical and non-clinical healthcare professionals to take on shifts at our trust hospitals and community settings. Here at EPUT we maintain our own bank of specialist staff to ensure that we are able offer safe and effective care at all times.

All our permanent staff are automatically enrolled onto the staff bank however this does not mean you have to work any additional shifts, but the option is there for you if you wish.

If you are joining our Trust in a fixed term role, please indicate on your New Starter Paperwork that you wish to join our staff bank.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The Personality Disorder and Complex Needs Team is enthusiastic about and committed to the provision and development of high quality services for clients identified with difficulties that are or could be diagnosed as 'PD.' The team is comprised of a senior psychologist, 2 psychotherapists 1 specialising with young adults, a social worker, 2 assistant psychologists. We have working remit across the Trust. Our networks include closing working with 'PD Leads' from local psychology teams, the 'Transitions Team,' psychological support for discharge, and the community mental health teams via the provision of a Multi-Agency Forum in each locality, to discuss formulation and treatment planning. We are developing valuable closer links with psychotherapy and medical psychotherapists. We are passionate about trauma informed care and support this with clinical and non-clinical colleagues with training, supervision and reflective practice.

Person specification

Education/Qualification

Essential criteria

• Recognised highly specialist formal training to Masters Level or equivalent in Systemic Family Therapy and UKCP Registration.

Knowledge

Essential criteria

• Comprehensive knowledge of systemic theory, that gives a clear and coherent understanding of social constructionist, systemic and other key a theories of interaction, relationship, human systems, development and psychopathology

Desirable criteria

• Knowledge of other psychotherapeutic models in determining choice of treatment, suitability and the indication and contra-indications for different models and modalities
• Knowledge of different pathways of care in terms of mental health provision in statutory and voluntary sectors.

Skills/Experience

Essential criteria

• Experience in providing highly specialist Family and Couples Therapy.
• Experience of assessing patients with complex needs and severe emotional difficulties. Ability to develop a clinical formulation and make recommendations for a treatment plans.

Please note - staff who are formally at risk within the organisation will be given priority in securing alternative employment. Should it come to light that a post being advertised by the Trust is considered 'suitable alternative employment' to an individual who is at risk, the recruiting manager will be advised and the post will be withdrawn from NHS Jobs.

Important Professional References

Make sure that as a part of your application you have professional references with business contract information covering your last three year employment history. We are unable to accept personal or character references.

As a newly appointed employee you are responsible for incurring the cost of your initial DBS check relevant to your post, the amount will be deducted from your first salary with the Trust.

Applications for Job Share are positively welcomed.

Equal Opportunities Employer

Our Trust is an Equal Opportunities Employer. We particularly welcome applications from people with experience of using mental health services. We also hold the Disability two tick symbol and have made the pledge to commit to employing more people with learning disabilities, we encourage people with a disability to apply. If you require this application form in another format i.e. Braille or audio tape etc, please contact the Recruitment Department on 01375 364513 or email epunft.recruitment.adverts@nhs.net and we can arrange for this to be dispatched to you.

The Trust has the right to expire vacancies prior to the closing date if they so wish. The Trust makes every attempt to contact all applicants and we strongly advise that you check the email account which is registered with NHS Jobs regularly, we would advise however due to the high number of applications we receive that if you have not heard from us within three weeks of the closing date your application has been unsuccessful on this occasion.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults, and expect all staff to undertake this commitment. Applicants will be subject to robust safer recruitment processes.

Covid Vaccination

Although Covid vaccinations are no longer a mandatory requirement within the NHS we continue to encourage and support the vaccination uptake as this remains the best line of defence against Covid19. The safety of our staff and patients is a top priority for us at EPUT.

If you would like to book a Covid vaccination or would like more information please contact us by emailing epunft.cv19hr@nhs.net.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

Applicant requirements

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Documents to download

• Job Description (PDF, 720.5KB)
• Person Specification (PDF, 536.3KB)
• EPUT Pledge - Step into Health (PDF, 211.0KB)
• Candidate Privacy Policy (PDF, 336.6KB)
• Right to Work Information (PDF, 293.6KB)
• Employer Recognition Scheme - Gold Award (PDF, 27.7KB)
• Trust Vision and Values (PDF, 168.9KB)
• Values of the NHS Pension (PDF, 151.3KB)