About this role
Job summary
As a Senior Mental Health Practitioner (SMHP) you will offer mental health and emotional wellbeing support within schools and colleges to children and young people through evidence-based interventions. The role of the MHST is that of an prevention/early help service for children and young people. As a service we work closely with colleagues across the CAMHS directorate to ensure children and young people are seen by the right service for their needs (considering the THRIVE model).
As an SMHP you will hold responsibility for supporting trainees and other members of the team through supervision and offering guidance. Supervisory and leadership skills are desirable and supervision training will be available within service.
A key part of this role involves working closely with educational staff within schools and colleges to embed a whole school/college approach to mental health. Liaison and consultation are essential skills within this role.
Closing Date: 6th July 2026
Shortlisting Date: 7th July 2026
Interview Date: 23rd/24th July 2026
Main duties of the job
To act as an interface between staff working in all emotional mental health services,providing liaison, assessment, training and consultation regarding the emotional and psychological wellbeing of children and young people.
To work with these staff in carrying out joint assessments and to provide brief interventions with individual clients as required.
The post holder will be expected to support schools and educational facilities to identify emotional mental health issues and find appropriate support to both teaching staff and students.
The actual distribution of workload within these areas will depend on the demands of the service by agreement with the clinical lead.
About us
Everything we do is underpinned by our core values: -
We Care- We act with respect and empathy, and always value difference
We Listen- We understand people's views and respond to their individual needs
We Deliver- We develop and provide excellent services and support our partners
We will consider a variety of flexible working arrangements to enable staff to balance their work and home lives and support staff by offering a fantastic range of benefits including :
Increase mileage rates for > 3500
A wide range of health and wellbeing support packages
A range of internal and external development and learning opportunities
Plus many more.
We are also proud to pledge our support to the Armed Forces and hold a Bronze Award in the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme.
BDCFT is dedicated to environmental and social sustainability by delivering on the commitments within our Green Plan. All staff are actively encouraged and supported to participate in training and to identify and implement sustainable quality improvement across all service areas and activities.
Please note that the Trust reserves the right to close the vacancy before the closing date if a sufficient number of applications are received. It is in the candidate's best interest to apply as soon as possible
Job description Job responsibilities
Please read the attached Job description and person specification for more details about this role.
Right to Work in the UK
Applicants should be aware that for any individual who requires a visa to work in the UK, the Trust provides sponsorship for registered healthcare practitioner roles only. This is an essential requirement of the role, and the Trust is unable to offer you a role if you are unable to meet Trust requirements for sponsorship and Home Office requirements for a visa.
Prior to your appointment you will be asked to provide confirmation of your right to work and reside in the UK. During your continued employment with the Trust, you have a personal responsibility to notify your manager as soon as possible should there be any changes to your right to work status.
Regrettably, if the role is not eligible for sponsorship under the Trusts eligibility criteria, the Trust are unable to extend your employment beyond the expiration of your current visa. The Trust is not responsible or liable for ensuring that your employment continues after this period.
As a condition of continuous employment, it essential you maintain the legal right to work in the United Kingdom throughout the duration of your employment with Bradford District Care NHS Foundation Trust (BDCFT). Any change in your right-to-work status, including but not limited to visa expiration, revocation, or denial of renewal, may impact your eligibility for employment with the Trust. It is your responsibility to promptly inform your Line Manager of any changes in your right-to-work status immediately and to provide necessary documentation for verification purposes. Failure to obtain or renew your visa in a timely manner is a breach of employment conditions and will result in termination of your employment. We appreciate your attention to this matter and your commitment to fulfilling this requirement promptly.
Person Specification
Experience Essential
Post qualification experience at point of recruitment Experience of working with children, adolescents and families using various approaches Experience of screening, prioritising and assessing common mental health difficulties Experiences of networking, liaising and/or consulting to other professionals Experience of working in a multidisciplinary team Experience in managing risk
Desirable
Significant post qualification experience in CYP mental health Significant experience in managing risk Effective use of clinical recording systems Experience of effective use of outcome measures Experience of delivering training material in a range of settings Experience of working with or in education systems
Qualifications Essential
Qualification and prior previous experience of working within registered profession body or either: Registered Nurse, Social Worker, Occupational Therapist, Education Mental Health Practitioner, Accredited psychological therapists
Desirable
Training in either: Brief Therapy o CBT o SFT o LI-CBT Postgraduate qualification in a specific therapy (or working towards): o Diploma in drama therapy o play therapy o family therapy o or other creative therapies or equivalent Supervision qualification for EMHPs (or working towards)
Disclosure and Barring Service Check This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Certificate of Sponsorship 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. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
Employer details Employer name Bradford District Care NHS Foundation Trust
Address New MIll
Victoria Mills
Salts Mill Rd, Shipley
BD17 7EF
United Kingdom
Employer's website https://www.bdct.nhs.uk/current-vacancies/ (Opens in a new tab)