Job summary
- Main area
- Arts therapist (music, dance, drama or art therapist)
- Grade
- Band 6
- Contract
- 23 months (Fixed term until September 2027)
- Hours
- Part time - 18.75 hours per week (9.00am -5.00pm, Tuesday, Wednesday and half Thursday (but flexible))
- Job ref
- 350-TWS7252270
- Employer
- Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Knowsley Resource and Recovery Centre
- Town
- Whiston
- Salary
- £37,338 - £44,962 pro rata per annum
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 22/06/2025 23:59
- Interview date
- 18/07/2025
Employer heading
Arts Therapist
Band 6
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Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust celebrates diversity and promotes equal opportunities; we are committed to challenging and eliminating racism and other forms of discrimination and advancing and promoting equality of opportunity in the provision of services and creating an inclusive environment for all employees. We believe that everyone has the right to be treated with dignity and respect.
We take positive action to support disadvantaged groups and also particularly encourage applications from ethnically diverse, disabled and LGBTQIA+ people that are under-represented in our workforce. Furthermore we welcome applications from reservists and ex-armed forces personnel as we recognise the benefits of the values, skills, training and experience that they bring to their work with us. We encourage all applicants to share their equality information with us.
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Job overview
The post holder will have specialist arts therapies skills that will allow them to undertake recruitment and assessment of children and young people who will be appropriate for participating in the arts therapies project titled ABC-f: Arts for the Blues for Children and young people (9-13 year-olds) with symptoms of depression using mental health services: A feasibility study on an evidence-based creative group psychotherapy compared to treatment as usual.
They will be able to plan and support with the delivery of this arts therapies intervention with children and young people, and to review the feasibility of undertaking a large study as required by the project and guided by post’s line manager.
They will be able to record, store and share client work and research data appropriately following relevant regulations as well as clinical and research agreements.
They will also be able to work closely and effectively with multidisciplinary teams, partner agencies and research partners.
Main duties of the job
Key responsibilities will include:
· To promote appropriate referrals and recruitment of children and young people to the study under the guidance of their line manager and the clinical and research teams.
· To engage in thorough assessment of children and young people using specialised arts therapies understanding and knowledge, and research requirements
· To participate in and support the delivery of a manualised arts therapies intervention in collaboration with other clinicians.
· To set up, input, analyse and present qualitative, quantitative and arts-based data.
· To ensure clear, accurate and concise records are kept for the research project in accordance with all regulatory requirements including the Data Protection Act.
· To ensure that data is appropriately stored and shared with the research team according to the Data Management Plan.
· To work effectively as part of a multi-disciplinary team and across partner agencies and research sites.
Working for our organisation
Mersey Care is one of the largest trusts providing physical health and mental health services in the North West, serving more than 1.4 million people across our region and are also commissioned for services that cover the North West, North Wales and the Midlands.
We offer specialist inpatient and community services that support physical and mental health and specialist inpatient mental health, learning disability, addiction and brain injury services. Mersey Care is one of only three trusts in the UK that offer high secure mental health facilities.
At the heart of all we do is our commitment to ‘perfect care’ – care that is safe, effective, positively experienced, timely, equitable and efficient. We support our staff to do the best job they can and work alongside service users, their families, and carers to design and develop future services together. We’re currently delivering a programme of organisational and service transformation to significantly improve the quality of the services we provide and safely reduce cost as we do so.
Flexible working requests will be considered for all roles.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Please see attached job description and person specification for further details of this role or contact the recruiting manager for more information.
Person specification
Knowledge/ Experience
Essential criteria
- A strong understanding of Arts Therapies theory in relation to clinical area and modality, informed by research and practice-based evidence.
- Understanding of a range of contemporary professional approaches, including the role of manualised interventions and ability to integrate this into professional practice.
- Knowledge and understanding of research methodologies including qualitative, quantitative and arts-based research.
- Experience of working in Mental Health.
- Experience of working with children and young people.
- Experience of working collaboratively with people and teams.
- Experience of managing own caseload and prioritising effectively.
- Experience of Arts Therapies individual assessment and intervention relevant to Mental Health.
- Experience of using clinical supervision effectively
Desirable criteria
- Experience of completing and managing research projects in Arts Therapies.
Values
Essential criteria
- Continuous Improvement
- Accountability
- Respectfulness
- Enthusiasm
- Support
- High professional standards
- Responsive to service users
- Engaging leadership style
- Strong customer service belief
- Transparency and honesty
- Discreet
- Change oriented
Skills
Essential criteria
- Ability to assess patients’ suitability for arts therapies interventions and to make decisions and recommendations based on theoretical knowledge and an understanding of the evidence base.
- Ability to support and engage in shared decision making with patients, including with patients who experience communication challenges.
- Ability to identify, monitor and evaluate Arts Therapies goals with patients to support recovery and wellbeing.
- Ability to offer Arts Therapies interventions to meet the needs of individual and groups.
- Ability to contribute to safety planning using professional theoretical knowledge and skills in risk assessment, which includes maintaining a safe therapy environment.
- Ability to work flexibly and responsively, providing individual or group assessment and interventions according to need.
- Ability to plan and prioritise own workload autonomously, which may include a range of longer- and short-term work.
- Good communication skills, capable of conveying and receiving complex and sensitive information within emotive contexts.
- Ability to provide detailed and complex psychological reports and information to inform and support care planning processes.
- Ability to liaise effectively with a range of professionals, and external services or organisations, regarding sensitive and complex issues relating to clinical work, including issues relating to risk.
- Ability to engage in effective clinical supervision and practice and provide student supervision.
- Ability to provide services in a variety of environments to meet the needs of the patient.
Desirable criteria
- Skills in providing group work
- Abilities in providing arts therapies across all ages.
Other
Essential criteria
- May be required to handle and transport arts therapies equipment at times.
- Ability to travel across the Trust to deliver services, collect data and attend training and meetings.
- Supports the development of the profession through CPD and service development activities.
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- Degree in relevant subject or equivalent
- Professional Qualification in Arts Therapies (Music, Dance Movement, Drama or Art Therapy) at Master’s level or equivalent.
- Membership with HCPC, UKCP or ADMP UK.
Desirable criteria
- Evidence of additional relevant training.
Employer certification / accreditation badges
Applicant requirements
You must have appropriate UK professional registration.
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
- Dr. Jade Thai
- Job title
- Senior Research Lead
- Email address
- [email protected]
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