Job summary
- Main area
- community mental health service
- Grade
- NHS AfC: Band 4
- Contract
- Fixed term: 12 months (Short term contract)
- Hours
- Full time - 37.5 hours per week
- Job ref
- 334-NUR-7354361-MU
- Employer
- South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Jeanette Wallace House
- Town
- Croydon
- Salary
- £32,199 - £34,876 per annum inclusive of HCAS
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 11/09/2025 23:59
Employer heading
Community Outreach Worker
NHS AfC: Band 4
South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust has a rich history, well-established community links and an international reputation. We deliver specialist services in the London boroughs of Croydon, Lambeth, Lewisham and Southwark, Bexley, Bromley, Greenwich, Wandsworth and Richmond.
We are committed to provide a high quality and specialist care to our service users and we are recognised for our care and treatment we provide. The Care Quality Commission already rates our services as ‘good’.
We launched our five-year strategy, Aiming High; Changing Lives in 2021 together with Our Care Improvement System as our quality management system methodology to make a positive impact on patient care, outcomes and staff experience. By joining SLaM, all staff will get the opportunity to be part of this exciting improvement journey supported with learning and development to harness everyone’s potential as change makers.
The trust recognises the unique and valuable contribution that people with lived experience of mental illness can bring to a role. We therefore welcome applications from people with lived experience and consider them as an asset to the Trust.
Our Values
We take pride in providing specialist care to our service users where our Trust values and our promise to be caring, kind, polite, prompt, honest, listen and do what I say I’m going to do is at the heart of everything we do. When you join us, you’ll be part of something special.
As a Trust we are happy to talk flexible working.
Job overview
START is a community mental health service located within The South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust working with homeless people across Southwark, Lambeth, Croydon and Lewisham.
The teams provide multi-disciplinary, integrated (apart from Lambeth) health and social care for people experiencing homelessness in our area. Clients may be rough sleeping or living in hostels in our boroughs and will have a variety of needs, primarily mental ill health but also substance use or physical ill health. They will be unable or unwilling to engage with mainstream care and require an assertive outreach approach aimed at initial building of relationships due to previous trauma or adverse childhood experiences. This will allow formal interventions to later be delivered more effectively. The teams work closely with third sector agencies and statutory colleagues to provide advice and support to the former and advocacy and liaison with the latter to ensure the best care pathway to service users.
Main duties of the job
This is a new role in the Croydon START Team, aimed at supporting clients in the community and playing a key role in developing and facilitating collaborative and therapeutic relationships with the team. This will involve person centred support in a planned and coordinated manner with other team members, including practical help with activities of daily living, accompanying to appointments to maximise contacts as well as social support and meaningful occupation activities.
We are looking for a forward-thinking, creative and responsive support worker who has a passion for excluded populations, inclusion healthcare and outreach support. You will be enthusiastic, creative, resilient and be able to respond to others in a flexible manner. This varied role offers excellent opportunities to gain experience and skills in community mental health care in an award-winning team. We particularly welcome applications from people with lived experience of homelessness or mental ill health.
Working for our organisation
South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust (SLaM) provide the widest range of NHS mental health services in the UK as well as substance misuse services for people who are addicted to drugs and alcohol. We work closely with the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience (IoPPN), King's College London and are part of King's Health Partners Academic Health Sciences Centre. There are very few organisations in the world that have such wide-ranging capabilities working with mental illness. Our scope is unique because it is built on three major foundations: care and treatment, science and research, and training.
SLaM employ around 5000 staff and serve a local population of 1.1 million people. We have more than 230 services including inpatient wards, outpatient and community services. Currently, provide inpatient care for approximately 5,300 people each year and treat more than 45,000 patients in the community in Croydon, Lambeth, Lewisham and Southwark; as well as substance misuse services for residents of Bexley, Bromley and Greenwich.
By coming to work at SLaM, you will gain experience of being part of an organisation with a rich history and international reputation in mental health care. You will have access to professional development and learning opportunities, and have the chance to work alongside people who are world leaders in their field.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Key Responsibilities:
1. To work as part of the multi-professional team supporting the planning,
implementation and evaluation of service user care needs in collaboration with the service
users, carers and families, and other community/inpatient services.
2. To support personalised care planning within the multi-professional team, working
closely with service users and their carers; to assist service users in their recovery goals
which may include supporting them with practical/daily living tasks and engagement in
social inclusion activities: working to a high standard and ensuring that as needs change
care plans are updated.
3. To demonstrate risk awareness with respect to risk assessment and ongoing risk
management, practising safely and according to individual service user needs and risk
management plans. Working alongside qualified staff to anticipate the individual needs of
service users, showing risk awareness and communicating to relevant parties as required.
4. To provide relevant support to carers and families.
5. To work in close partnership and maintain effective communication links with other
Borough mental health services and community agencies in order to ensure the continuity of
quality clinical care for service users.
6. To ensure maintenance of clinical records in accordance with good practice and the
Code of Conduct for Non-Regulated Clinical Workers. To maintain confidentiality by
ensuring information is shared in accordance with Trust standards and guidelines. To take
responsibility for keeping the team mental health resources up to date. To record and
report untoward incidents, taking appropriate action and ensuring relevant staff are
informed.
7. Take part in regular supervision and appraisal, and contribute to the well-being of
the team by supporting other team members and treating all colleagues with dignity and respect. To undertake all mandatory training requirements of the role.
8. To contribute towards work with service development initiatives involving service
users and carers where appropriate. To participate in audit, service evaluation and research
undertaken by the team.
9. To be physically capable of fulfilling the role, travelling around the local community and being able to respond rapidly to crises if required.
10. To be able to work with distressing and emotional issues remaining caring,
courteous and compassionate in line with SLaM’s 5 Commitments.
11. To promote service user involvement in partnership with SLAM’s Peer Support Network and to take a lead on a user involvement project relevant to the service.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- • NVQ 3 plus short courses to Diploma level or Equivalent Experience or NVQ 4 in appropriate field (A)/or degree in relevant field
Experience
Essential criteria
- • Experience working in a mental health, addictions or homelessness setting (A,I)
Knowledge
Essential criteria
- Able to work with wide variety of professionals and agencies
- Commitment to working using assertive outreach approaches
- Understanding of the needs of people with mental illness
- Ability to work with carers and families
- Ability to engage service users who are hard to reach
- Self-motivated and able to prioritise and work independently
- Willingness to work flexibly according to changing priorities
Skills
Essential criteria
- Ability to use information technology systems to input and access data, use word processing systems and Email
- Ability to use and understand the supervision process
- Ability to communicate effectively verbally and in writing.
- Ability to maintain appropriate records, according to Trust guidelines.
Employer certification / accreditation badges
Applicant requirements
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Fran Busby
- Job title
- Homeless Service Lead
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Telephone number
- 0203 228 5911
- Additional information
Maria Queally Croydon START manager
0203 228 5908
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