Job overview
An exciting opportunity has arisen to appoint a skilled and enthusiastic Community Mental Health Link Worker within the North MINT team in the borough of Hammersmith and Fulham.
We are seeking to recruit individuals with a good understanding of mental illness as well as excellent communication, personal, and customer service skills, who have a passion for wanting to empower and support individuals with their recovery journey. We are looking for highly motivated, enthusiastic, and caring individuals who can provide the best possible care with patience and compassion to our service users
The community mental health framework for adults and older adults (2019) set out a vision for providing services in local settings that better reflected the needs of the local population. West London NHS Trust is one of a small number of pilot sites and has developed an exciting new Mental Health Integrated Network Teams (MINT) service that offers service users more needs based, episodic interventions integrated with primary care. Link Work will be a key specialism within MINT, overseeing recovery focused interventions that make use of community assets as well as those of the multi-disciplinary team.
Main duties of the job
You will play a vital role in connecting people who are experiencing a challenge with their mental health with community supports and resources. As a Link Worker you will specialise in signposting to and supporting with referrals to identified appropriate community resources, fostering autonomy and promoting independence, building on the individual’s strengths and aiding in gaining skills and confidence in collaboratively identified areas of support, as well as escalating concerns should they arise.
You will be comfortable working both on your own and with others from a range of different backgrounds. You’ll need to be resilient, motivated, and committed to adapt to working in an ever-changing environment.
Working for our organisation
West London NHS Trust is one of the most diverse healthcare providers in the UK, delivering a range of mental health and physical healthcare and community services. The Trust runs Broadmoor Hospital, one of three high secure hospitals in the country, with an international reputation.
Our high secure services care for patients from South of England and we provide low and medium secure services across eight London boroughs. The Trust also provides mental and physical healthcare in three London boroughs (Ealing, Hounslow and Hammersmith & Fulham). We employ over 5,000 staff, of whom 59% are BME. Our turnover for 2024-25 is over £500m.
The Trust is rated as ‘Good’ overall by the Care Quality Commission. Forensic services are rated as ‘Outstanding’.
The Trust is an established partner and contributor in the development of the evolving North West London Integrated Care System and the Integrated Care Board. The Trust leads the NW London Children and Adolescent Mental Health provider collaborative.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
The Candidate Pack provides an overview of the key tasks and responsibilities of the role, and the person specification outlines the qualifications, skills, experience and knowledge required. Please view as attached
The person specification below is not the full person specification, but outlines the criteria against which your application form will be assessed.
Person specification
Qualifications and Training
Essential criteria
1. Demonstrable commitment to professional and personal development appropriate to the role in order to ensure competency and the execution of best clinical practice.
Desirable criteria
2. NVQ level 3 or working towards an equivalent qualification in a relevant subject area or demonstrable equivalent experience.
Experience
Essential criteria
3. Experience of 1:1 client work
4. One year or more experience of working or volunteering in mental health services
5. Experience of partnership/collaborative working and of building relationships across organisations
Desirable criteria
6. Experience of working alongside or supervising volunteers
7. Experience of working in a community development context or similar
Knowledge
Essential criteria
8. Knowledge of the local community
9. A good broad understanding of mental health challenges
10. A good awareness of different models of understanding of mental health
11. A good awareness of current issues in policy and practice in mental health
12. A good understanding of primary, secondary care and third sector mental health services
13. Thorough understanding of co-production and recovery principles
14. Thorough understanding of the principles of good customer service
15. Thorough understanding of good practice in person-centred client work
16. Thorough understanding of equal opportunities with particular emphasis on how it applies to users of mental health services
17. An understanding of the principles of good partnership working
18. Good level of computer skills with knowledge of Word and Excel and ability to input information, use an email system and produce simple plans/reports
Personal Qualities
Essential criteria
19. Ability to listen, empathise and provide person-centred support in a non-judgemental way
20. Ability to communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing, with strong interpersonal skills
21. Ability to take responsibility for key clients
22. Ability to produce written materials to a high standard, including assessments and minutes of meetings
23. Ability to communicate constructively and professionally with service users, staff, colleagues and external agencies
24. Ability to organise, plan and prioritise workload on own initiative
25. Ability to work flexibly and cooperatively, balancing multiple responsibilities
26. Ability to handle formal and informal disputes and complaints constructively
27. Ability to manage your own stress in a busy and demanding environment
28. Ability to work independently and to utilise support effectively
29. Ability to work at evenings and weekends, sometimes at short notice, when required to meet work demands
30. Ability to implement equal opportunities through anti-discriminatory practice
31. Strengths-based recovery approach to client work and person centred practice
32. Ability to maintain confidentiality
33. Ability to demonstrate personal accountability for your work to your manager