Clinical Lead

Criminal justice charity Belong provides hope, rehabilitation and recovery for victims and perpetrators of crime. We provide mentoring, restorative justice and psychotherapy interventions, in UK prisons and communities.

Me Time is a new service for people with criminal convictions from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic backgrounds, which aims to improve wellbeing and reduce re-offending amongst participants. Me Time offers short-term emotional well-being support and medium-term community and through the gate creative psychotherapy to people who are under probation supervision in Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire. The programme is open to male, female, gender diverse, and transgender individuals of all ages, from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic backgrounds. Priority will be given to referrals for people facing multiple and complex disadvantages.

We are seeking an inspiring, empathic leader with solid experience of delivering psychotherapy in the criminal justice and/or related sectors, to lead the delivery and expansion of the Me-Time psychotherapy service. As Lead Psychotherapist, you will take forward Belong's ethical, person centred and thorough approach to supporting individuals, championing innovations to improve our work whilst identifying and developing opportunities for growth and expansion. You will work with our CEO, Head of Development and Head of Programmes to ensure that Me Time's effectiveness is well-evidenced and clearly demonstratable to prospective and current funders. With line management responsibility for one employed psychotherapist and one placement psychotherapist, you will model our values of perseverance, respect, inspiration, restoration and empowerment. You will also hold a case load of up to 5 one to one psychotherapy participants who are accessing Me Time at HMP The Mount, Hertfordshire Probation Units, Bedfordshire Probation Units, or remotely.

Applications for this position are particularly welcomed from people from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic backgrounds, with lived experience of the criminal justice system, and/or with current enhanced prison security vetting.

Please apply for this position via CharityJob with a detailed covering letter outlining how you meet the skills, experience and knowledge requirements outlined in our Job Description and Person Specification document. Please also send us your CV. We are unable to consider applications received without a detailedcovering letter. The deadline for applications is 11.30pm on Sunday 11th February.

Interviews for this position will be held during week beginning 19th February.

Place of work: HMP The Mount, Hertfordshire or Bedfordshire Probation Units, and from home,

depending on participant locations.

Hours of work: 14 hours per week, including occasional evening and weekend work

Pay scale: 50,500k per annum pro rata, plus travel expenses to/from community locations.

Contract term: Fixed term for 18 month, from March 2024 to October 2025, with potential for renewal subject to excellent performance and funding being available.

Reports to: CEO

National Security and DBS Vetting Required: Enhanced

Responsibilities

- Support and line manage one employed psychotherapist and one placement psychotherapist as part of Me-Time, ensuring the safe and effective delivery of the Me-Time service.

- Provide specialist one to one psychotherapy interventions, over 12 weeks, and tailored well-being support sessions over 3 weeks, as part of the Me Time service to people with criminal convictions from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic backgrounds.

- Report on the delivery, growth and sustainability of Me-Time to Belong's Trustee Board and Me- Time current and prospective funders.

- Be a proactive, flexible and committed member of Belong's Senior Leadership Team, participating in 5 trustee meetings annually and subcommittee meetings as required.

- Work flexibly at HMP The Mount and/or Herts/Beds probation units, depending on participant locations, holding a case load of 5 participants.

- Maintain detailed, high quality records of psychotherapy sessions in accordance with Belong, HCPC and UKCP guidelines and standards.

- Build excellent working relationships and communicate effectively with other members of Belong’s team, and with key stakeholders in prisons, probation, and other voluntary sector organisations.

- Ensure that risk and safeguarding information is shared appropriately with other professionals during the delivery of Me-Time.

- Model and encourage the use of non – verbal, creative methods e.g. visual arts, music, movement and writing as part of psychotherapy to enable participants to process their thoughts and feelings.

- Manage difficult and demanding clinical situations including exploring complex, sensitive and disturbing personal issues with participants, integrating several approaches to psychotherapy including psychodynamic and psycho-educational models and if appropriate, a mentalization - based approach in order to meet participant's needs.

- Apply evidence based practice in being attune to and assisting participants to process transference and counter-transference feelings, for example in relation to daily experiences, creative work produced, the therapist, and others.

- Write progress reports at the end of each participant's engagement with psychotherapy, for reference during participants parole hearings and sentence planning process

- Assess participant's mental state and identify any significant risk and protective factors, collaboratively undertaking and contributing to risk assessments with other professionals.

- Actively participate in relevant meetings e.g. team meetings, line management meetings, clinical supervision meetings, service reviews with participants.

- Ensure that participant's records and any art work produced are adequately stored and, if necessary, transported in line with Belong, Prison and Probation Service, and HCPC guidelines.

- Carry out and support other Me-Time psychotherapists to complete administrative and evaluation tasks as required for the sustainability and smooth running of the service, actively encouraging participants engagement in evaluation and service development activities.

- Maintain registration with the Health Care Professionals Council (HCPC) and adhere to and implement the professional standards and policies of Belong, the Prison and Probation Service and the HCPC.

- Keep abreast of new developments and research in Psychotherapy and Forensic Psychotherapy.

- Undertake any other duties as may be appropriate to the level and nature of the post as determined by Belong’s Management and Trustee Board.

Required Qualifications

- Good honours degree (2.2 or above) in psychology or equivalent.

- State Registration as an Psychotherapist.

- Training at Masters Level in Psychotherapy.

Required Experience and Knowledge

- Significant post qualifying experience of delivering one to one psychotherapy to people with criminal convictions or facing other disadvantages.

- Experience of supervising or line managing other psychotherapists

- Track record of working effectively within the criminal justice sector, the prison service or a related sector.

- Solid experience of integrating several approaches to psychotherapy including psycho-dynamic and psycho-educational models.

- Demonstrable understanding of and commitment to Belong’s strategic aims and values.                                                                                                               

- Significant and varied experience of managing difficult and demanding clinical situations including exploring complex, sensitive and disturbing personal issues with individuals.

- Excellent understanding of the issues faced by people who have committed offences.

- Understanding of the specific issues faced by people from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic Backgrounds in contact with the criminal justice system.

- Excellent knowledge of peoples' emotional and mental health needs.

- A strong understanding of the principles of confidentiality and of instances when this should be breached.

- Strong awareness of appropriate boundaries to be maintained with service users and of personal safety issues.

Required Skills and abilities

- Ability to effectively support and line manage other psychotherapists.

- Ability to form therapeutic relationships with people who have committed offences and are serving prison sentences or sentences in the community, applying a variety of models and theories to work with individuals.

- Ability to work with participants psychological, non-verbal and symbolic expression and be competent in interpreting these as meaningful communications where appropriate. This includes the ability to translate this knowledge so that it can be used by other professionals in the formulation of risk and needs assessments.

- Ability to maintain appropriate boundaries with participants and to manage personal safety whilst working in prisons and probation units, as well as to support colleagues in doing this.

- Ability to be attune to and process transference feelings and work with emotional projections from young people to aid young people's understanding and communication of conscious and unconscious processes.

- Ability to work effectively under pressure of the psychological impact of highly charged situations eg. disclosure of sexual or emotional abuse and maintain the capacity to think clearly in these conditions.

- Ability to work independently and appropriately use own initiative.

- Excellent organisational, interpersonal, communication and listening skills.

- Artistic skills in using a variety of art materials and media in a variety of styles.

- Ability to work well with members of Belong’s multi-disciplinary team, members of the Probation and Prison Service and key stakeholders.

- Ability to produce and file high quality, detailed records of work completed, and support others to do so.

Required Personal attributes

- Honest

- Resilient

- Hard working

- Organised

- Self-motivated

- Confident

- Non-judgmental

- Flexible

- Reliable

- Committed to confidentiality and equal opportunities

- Willing to learn and develop