Mental Health Co-ordinator, Kinship, post-order support team

The role operates on a countywide basis, with regular office attendance at County Hall, Chelmsford, and other sites as business needs required. Children and Families is recognised as a service in which social work can develop and prosper, with a culture of collaboration, integrity and compassion; promoting the development and wellbeing of children, young people and their families; protecting them from neglect and abuse. Working together with partners delivering a range of early help, family support and effective social work interventions which build resilience, remove barriers and enable children and young people to look forward to a brighter future. The team The Kinship post-order support team provides support to children and families with Special Guardianship Orders and Child Arrangement Orders. The focus is on family stability and positive outcomes for children and young people who live in these kinship arrangements. This is a multi-disciplinary county-wide team made up of social workers, support workers, permanency coordinators and mental health coordinators. The role The Mental Health Coordinator will provide assessment, therapeutic parenting support and direct therapeutic support for children and young people who are suffering emotional and mental health difficulties. They will support colleagues in taking a trauma informed approach and will facilitate practice development in the team. They will provide workshops and training for kinship carers. The MHC will provide clinical consultation to workers in the post-order team and in the kinship assessment service., The successful candidate will work three days per week, with standard working days being Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Accountabilities

• Provide a specialist mental health assessment and treatment service for children, young people, their families and carers, using a range of therapeutic techniques.
• Assess children and young people's suitability for mental health and emotional wellbeing services and take part in their planning and review processes.
• Work collaboratively with colleagues to offer advice, support and consultation, in their work with children and carers across the county.
• Initiate and support new and innovative ways of working, projects and groups to engage carers, children, young people and their families in partnership with C&F colleagues, other frontline professionals and third sector partners.
• Raise knowledge and awareness of the mental health issues and preventative strategies for kinship families across C&F colleagues.
• Maintain up-to-date records of activity on case files, produce reports and give verbal presentations as required. Actively participate in case discussions, professionals' meetings, team around the child / placement meetings, Strategy Meetings and statutory reviews (as applicable).
• Build strong working relationships across the Council and with members of NHS CAMHS services, other statutory organisations and voluntary agencies.
• Specific individual and shared targets and objectives are defined annually within the performance management framework.
Skills, Knowledge And Experience

The successful candidate will have an accredited professional qualification and evidence of excellent skills in consultation, assessment, therapeutic practice and recording. Strong partnership working is essential for this role as it will operate in a multi-agency environment.,
• A degree level professional qualification in at least one of the following areas: psychology/ psychotherapy, social work, youth and community, mental health nursing or a level four qualification in counselling.
• Evidence of significant continuing professional development and training in therapeutic work with children and families.
• Current membership of relevant professional body / association such as BACP, HCPC, UKCP.
• Significant experience of working directly with children, parents/carers and families in a recognised model of therapeutic intervention in 1:1, dyadic and/or group interventions.
• Ability to have difficult conversations and address complex situations through reflective practice, supervision and consultation.
• Evidence of capacity to work systemically with professionals and family members.
• Understanding or interest/experience working with children in care, those who are care-experienced and those who live in kinship families.
• Experience of building strong partnerships, which are collaborative and influential.
• Knowledge and understanding of risk, safety planning and safeguarding protocols.
• Strong commitment to practising and promoting trauma-informed care.
• Experience of developing and delivering bespoke training and consultancy.
• Evidence of being a catalyst for change, early in young peoples' lives.
To read more about our business area, please visit: Children & Families Please look at our 'No Magic' Children & Families video Please note that visa sponsorship is not available for this role. Applicants must have a current, unrestricted right to work in the UK.

Why Essex? Essex County Council covers 1,300 square miles from Constable Country to the Thames Estuary. From the dynamic M11 corridor to the traditional seaside resorts of Clacton and Walton. England's oldest town, Colchester, and two of its newest - Basildon and Harlow - are right here. Along with the City of Chelmsford, the county town, they form our major population centres. It means real choice and makes Essex the ideal place for your career. We celebrate difference and work to ensure that no one is disadvantaged when accessing services, employment or public life in Essex. We're proud to be a Disability Confident Leader. We're committed to interviewing all disabled applicants who choose to apply under our Job Interview Scheme if they meet the minimum requirements of the job. We're also committed to interviewing all veterans and care leavers, who meet the minimum requirements of the role for which they are applying. Free to deliver big We recruit creative, ambitious, talented people, and free them up to think - and deliver - big. We've made substantial changes in recent years, reorganising how we're structured and how we work, so we can protect the most vulnerable and enable our economy to grow. Join us and you'll be trusted to take control, manage change and make a lasting impact. You'll be able to call upon external partners and suppliers to help you deliver. More importantly, talented, trailblazing colleagues - including many industry-leaders - will be right by your side to share ideas, knowledge and experience. Find out how Essex County Council is changing, and how you'll fit in. Employee Recognition & Engagement Here are some of the things we have in place to give our employees a sense of belonging, involvement and recognition. Employee Networks:
• Ethnically Diverse Employee Network (EDEN)
• Carers Forum
• Christian Network
• Disabled Employees Network
• Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning Network
• Parents Network
• Women's Network
• Men's Network
• Young People and Apprentice Network.
You Make The Difference' Awards - giving employees the opportunity to nominate individuals or teams who go above and beyond for our residents. Employee Surveys - where we listen to the voices of our people and take action on what we hear. Employee Panels - giving you the opportunity to feed back on a range of policies and initiatives, network with colleagues and influence far-reaching changes., At Essex County Council we are committed to supporting the wellbeing of our people. We work closely with our employees to provide wellbeing support based on their needs. We strive to enable the right environment, conditions, and behaviours so individual and organisational wellbeing is embedded in everything we do.

We have developed diverse learning opportunities to support our people to grow both personally and professionally. This includes:
• A large suite of online training and tools
• Dedicated learning events such as 'LearnFest' - our flagship annual celebration of learning
• Apprenticeships for both new and existing colleagues
• Financial support to achieve professional qualifications
• Support from subject matter experts
• The opportunity to share your own expertise to up-skill colleagues
• Leadership and executive coaching
• Learning on demand
• Career pathways
Rewards and Benefits
• Family Friendly flexible Working
• Generous holiday and special leave allowances (including the option to purchase extra holiday)
• Local Government Pension Scheme
• Life Assurance of three times annual salary
• Volunteering leave (up to 4 days per year)
• Employee wellbeing and counselling
• Travel discounts & season ticket loans
• Learning and Development opportunities/coaching & mentoring
• Payment of professional fees for approved professions
• Eye care vouchers
• Lease car scheme (dependent on business needs)
• Up to £8,000 relocation package (subject to terms and conditions)
You'll also have access to MyReward, a unique platform for Essex County Council employees to gain various discounts and savings. Your Wellbeing