Child & Adolescent Psychotherapist

• To be professionally and legally responsible and accountable for all aspects of clinical work and care. To maintain high standards of care in all areas of practice in accordance with ACP Standards, professional guidelines and Trust Policies and Procedures. To act within the Mental Health Act and Mental Capacity Act (2005). To be aware of and implement Safeguarding Adult and Safeguarding Child policies, procedures and legislation.
• To provide specialist individual or group child and adolescent psychotherapy, parent/child psychotherapy and psychodynamic parent interventions to families referred to the service, incorporating complex information from other professionals. To make decisions about treatment options considering evidence -based research, theory, practice and highly complex factors concerning historical and developmental processes which have impacted on the child and their family.
• To assess, formulate and implement plans for the treatment and/or management of the full range of children and young peoples mental health problems based upon an appropriate conceptual framework and employing methods based upon evidence.
• To work in ways which are sensitive to and appropriate for the needs of families from a wide range of racial, cultural and religious backgrounds.
• To actively involve people in developing and agreeing their own care plan, to act as an advocate and ensure that there is proper regard for their dignity, choice, self-esteem, racial, cultural, sexual and religious needs and preferences.
• To undertake comprehensive risk assessments and develop effective risk formulations and risk management plans.
• To provide advice, guidance and consultation to other professionals contributing to a care plan.
• To provide training, supervision or consultation as appropriate to multi-disciplinary team colleagues working with patients, their families and professional networks.
• To provide advice, consultation and training to other members of the multi- disciplinary teams and for staff working the client group across a range of services and agencies, where appropriate.
• To contribute to conducting clinical audit, quality assurance and research, maintaining current knowledge of research findings in accordance with ACP guidelines.
• To use theory, research and evidence based literature, e.g. NICE guidelines, to inform evidence-based practice in work with patients, families and their networks.
• To undertake and initiate project management including complex audit and service evaluation with colleagues within the services to help develop service provision.

Essential

• Doctoral Level ACP Child & Adolescent Psychotherapy Training
• Registration with the Association of Child Psychotherapists

Desirable

• Additional trainings in adjunctive therapeutic models

Essential

• Professional experience working with children, adolescents and their families where children are experiencing complex mental health difficulties
• Experience of exercising clinical responsibility for child and young people's care within a mental health context
• Experience of clinical practice within NHS mental health services
• Experience of supervision and consultation
• Experience of completing routine outcome measures
• Experience of audit and research
• Experience of undertaking parent/child psychotherapy
• Experience of working with children of all ages and with parents