Counsellor (Employee Support Officer)

Hours of Work: Monday – Friday with a requirement to work outside office hours when necessary to meet the demands of the role.  37 hours net per week (42 hours gross)  

Salary:  £29,258 - £29,859 plus environmental allowance (under review)

Location: Seapark, Carrickfergu

Main Activities: 

The main duties and responsibilities associated with the role include the following:

• Provide a counselling, advice and support service to all employees on work related issues.
• Promote the emotional and physical well-being of police officers and support staff through counselling and support.
• Contribute towards a member of staff's continual availability for work.
• Help the Service comply with relevant legislation in particular the Disability Discrimination (1995) Act and Health and Safety at Work (1974) Act.
• Act as a local Employee Support advisor providing guidance and information on Employee Support issues.
• Advise and support management in the provision of Employee Support services to all staff.
• Provide input into organisational training.
• Assist with development and delivery of group interventions. 
• Plan opportunities for the development of the Employee Support service within the Police Service of Northern Ireland in accordance with identified need and organisational change.
• Act as a representative of the Occupational Health and Welfare Branch (OHW) and the Police Service on working parties.
• Establish and maintain appropriate partnerships and service level agreements with key internal departments and external organisations to achieve the most specialised treatment for clients.
• Develop a working knowledge of the state benefits and external support organisations. 
• Organise allocated case-load, taking into account own specialist knowledge/experience and needs of the client, making referrals where appropriate.
• Maintain case notes and records to an agree format and standard, to allow for quality audit.
• Assist in the co-ordination of post trauma management.
• Participate in clinical supervision and training opportunities for professional development, in order to keep abreast of new thinking, innovation and change within the Police Service and the field of Employee Support.

This Job Description reflects the main duties and responsibilities associated with this position.  It is not intended to be exclusive or exhaustive.

Person Specification   Essential Qualifications 

• Intermediate Certificate (or equivalent) in counselling from a recognised awarding body.
• Current Accreditation with the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP); or the United Kingdom Council of Psychotherapists (UKCP); or the British Association of Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapists (BABCP).

Essential Skills and Experience 

• 1 years' experience gained in the last 5 years of supervised counselling practice in Adult Mental Health setting.
• Presentation Skills
• Candidates must be able to demonstrate experience in:

1. Planning and Organising
2. Effective Communication

Essential Other

• Applicants must have a valid driving licence and a car available for official business use, or access to a form of personal transport that will enable you to meet the requirements of the post in full. 
• IT literate specifically in the use of the Microsoft Office suite (including MS Word, MS PowerPoint, MS Excel and MS Outlook).

Desirable Qualifications   

• Advanced Certificate/Diploma (or equivalent) in counselling from a recognised awarding body.

Desirable Skills and Experience 

• Previous experience providing counselling within an Occupational Health setting.

Note - Shortlisting will be carried out based on the essential criteria.  Please note in some instances, for example, where there are a high level of applicants, desirable criteria may be applied.

Successful applicants will be retained on a merit list for future opportunities arising.  

We would encourage you to check the spam within your email system for any relevant correspondence.

Selection Methodology

PSNI uses the Competency and Values Framework (CVF) which sets out nationally recognised behaviours and values to support all policing professionals.  You will be assessed against the values and at the competencies level as indicated below.  This will include both past and future focused questions.  Further guidance and information about the Competency and Values Framework (CVF) is available here on our website.

Applicants meeting the eligibility criteria and essential qualifications, skills and experience will be required to demonstrate their experience for the following criteria:

Competency and Values Based Interview    Values   

• Public Service
• Transparency

Competencies – Level 2 

• We are emotionally aware
• We are collaborative