Forensic Social Worker

We are looking for applicants for a Forensic Social Worker/ Social Supervisor committed to working collaboratively with individuals and providers in the community to find positive and safe ways of working with people who use these services.

In particular: -

You will work as part of the ground-breaking new team that will improve the lives of forensic mental health service users and their carers. This is a rare chance to be part of shaping a new service, providing opportunities to develop your skills and your career. The applicant must have a qualification in social work and be registered with Social Work England.

At WLNHST we don’t just accept difference we actively celebrate it and support it for the benefit of our staff, our patients and our community. We are proud to be part of an equal opportunity work place.

Working for our organisation

West London NHS Trust is one of the most diverse providers of mental health, community and social care in the UK.

Our 3,982 staff care for people in hospital and in the community, helping them to recover and go on to lead full and productive lives. We aim to be the best organisation of our kind in the country.

We provide care and treatment for more than 800,000 people living in the London boroughs of Ealing, Hammersmith & Fulham and Hounslow, delivering services in the community (at home, in GP surgeries and care homes), hospital, specialist clinics and forensic (secure) units.

We’re rated good overall by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

Together, we’re committed to promoting hope and wellbeing, working with patients, service users, carers, families and partners across the communities we serve.

We are keen to ensure that our workforce reflects the community it serves, particularly in terms of ethnicity, gender, disability, LGBTQ+ and experience of mental illness.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

For the detailed job description and main responsibilities please refer to the file attached to this vacancy.
Person specification
Qualifications and Training
Essential criteria

- Social Work Qualification
- Registration with Social Work England

Desirable criteria

- Evidence of continuing professional development

Experience
Essential criteria

- Experience of working within a forensic or community mental health setting
- Experience of working within a multidisciplinary team
- Experience of liaison with external agencies to support care pathway planning
- An ability to communicate effectively orally and in writing, with evidence of potential to write authoritative and grammatically correct formal reports by the end of the ASYE period
- Experience of working with mental health patients and their families
- Some experience of analysing information and developing a social work opinion and recommendation to external or independent decision-makers

Desirable criteria

- Experience of working with mentally disordered offenders

Knowledge
Essential criteria

- Working knowledge of relevant legislation including Mental Health Act, Care Act, Mental Capacity Act, and child and adult safeguarding
- Personal commitment to developing the wide range of knowledge about the criminal justice and mental health systems required in order to work at Band 6 level soon after the ASYE period.

Desirable criteria

- Knowledge of the wider Criminal Justice System, including courts, probation service and prisons

Personal Qualities
Essential criteria

- Resilience in working with patients, who may be distressed and acutely mentally unwell
- Demonstrate a potential to work independently (at the end of the ASYE) as the sole social worker on a multidisciplinary team, promoting a social work and social care perspective
- Demonstrate core values of social work, including a commitment to anti-discriminatory practice
- Ability to participate in Breakaway techniques training
- Ability to travel to visit patients’ relatives and other contacts in their homes

As an employee of West London NHS Trust, you have a responsibility to maintain a sound understanding of, and a commitment to uphold the National Health Service values and principles set out in the NHS Constitution.

We reserve the right to close adverts prior to the closing date stated should we receive a high volume of applications.

By applying for this post you are agreeing to West London NHS Trust transferring the information contained in this application to its preferred applicant management system. If you are offered a job, you will be required to undergo a pre-employment checks which can take between 4-8 weeks . After which your information will also be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system (ESR ).

Please ensure you include email addresses for your referees which MUST be at supervisory or managerial capacity covering the last 3 years of employment to date to avoid delay in the recruitment process.

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement.