Community Adolescent Senior Support Worker
The closing date is 28 January 2026
Do you want to be part of an innovative and exciting service, that will support children and young people with acute mental health problems in their homes? If so then a role in the Closer2Home service may be the job for you!
This service operates across the county of Dorset including Poole and Bournemouth BCP.
The Closer2Home team works together to deliver a specialist service to help young people remain at home who otherwise would have been admitted to an inpatient hospital. The service will operate 365 days a year from 8am-8pm.
Joining now will give you a unique opportunity to help shape and develop the service as well a provide a great opportunity to develop your career in an exciting and rewarding area of work.
As a Community Adolescent Senior Support Worker (CASS) you will work as a member of a new multi-disciplinary team which provides an alternative to Tier 4 admission and facilitates supported discharges from hospital.
With team colleagues you will be responsible for delivering time-limited programmes of intensive home treatment to young people who would otherwise have been admitted.
Main duties of the job
You will have specific responsibilities to undertake a range of delegated clinical duties in a community mental health setting involving direct and indirect care to patients under minimal supervision and as directed by the qualified staff team.
Following personal development planning and targeted training you will be in a position to work more autonomously in supporting patients. You will be supported by a career development pathway and as a result, you will develop a broad underpinning knowledge base at intermediate level and have the ability to evaluate information and communicate with a range of professionals.
This service is commissioned by the South West Provider Collaborative.
About us
At Dorset HealthCare we're on a mission to empower people to make the most of their lives through our outstanding, joined-up healthcare services. We're a dynamic, forward-looking Trust, running 12 community hospitals, specialist inpatient facilities and a wide range of integrated community and mental health services for a population of almost 800,000 people.
We do things differently here - it's one of the reasons the CQC rated us 'outstanding' in 2019. It's also why 95% of patients across our services say they have a good or very good experience of our services and 89% of staff feel they can really make a difference. Whether you're looking to work with us in one of our bustling market towns, vibrant urban locations, thriving seaside spots, or among the rolling hills of Dorset, there are lots of ways you can make a difference in our communities.
Our 7,000-strong workforce is at the heart of what we do, and our success is a testament to our brilliant people. We're all about building a workplace for the future, we believe in equal opportunities, and we celebrate diversity. We're an inclusive workplace, where everyone is welcome, everyone can be authentic, and we are all encouraged to be the best version of ourselves.
Working with us you'll be part of a strong team, challenge yourself, build a career, and teach us what we don't know. And you'll be working towards our vision to be better every day through excellence, compassion, and expertise in all we do.
Job responsibilities
For the main duties and responsibilities for this role please read the attached job description and person specification. When completing your application please ensure your supporting statement reflects the criteria set out in these documents by showing how your experience and skills apply to this post.
We understand that using AI can be a useful and supportive tool when completing your application. However, we have also seen an increase in the over-reliance of AI tools which is negatively impacting applications as they remove candidates individuality, and it becomes much harder to get a sense of who you are and your authentic experience. If you do use AI, it should be used to enhance your application and not to create your supporting statement in its entirety. If we suspect you have used AI to create your supporting statement and this does not match your experience, we may withdraw your application.
As part of our vision to have a skilled, diverse and caring workforce, Dorset HealthCare offers support for people getting into work. We offer an employability service to support individuals with application writing, interview skills and other employment support. If you would like or know of anyone who would value this support, please do contact dhc.wideningparticipation@nhs.net
Applications from candidates that require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are unfortunately ineligible to apply for this position.
Person Specification
Qualifications
* Educated to diploma or NVQ Level 3 in Care and equivalent Skills acquired through experience working in a healthcare Setting.
* Maths / English Level 2 or equivalent (GCSE C / 4 or above)
* Bachelor's degree in a relevant subject (e.g. psychology, social policy, health sciences) at 2:2 or above
Knowledge / Experience
* Experience of working with people with mental health needs in a paid or voluntary capacity
* Experience working in the community with Mental Health
* Experience of analysing and communicating complex information verbally and in writing
* Experience running groups/activities
* Experience working as part of a team
* Lived experience of mental health issues/difficulties
Skills
* Able to establish and maintain empathic, supportive relationships with people in significant distress or who are cognitively impaired, their families and carers
* Able to receive, understand and communicate confidential client information of a sensitive and often complex nature, including discussing care with family members within boundaries of confidentiality
* Able to make good use of clinical supervision in a group and/or individual format
* Able to contribute to risk assessment drawing on complex and multiple sources of information, once trained and under clinical supervision
* Able to prioritise workload according to peoples' changing needs and the priorities of the team
Other
* Subject to the provisions of the Equality Act, able to travel using own vehicle on Trust business.
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.
Employer name
Dorset HealthCare University NHS Foundation Trust
£27,485 to £30,162 a year p.a./ pro rata for part time
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