Overview
Belong provides hope, rehabilitation and recovery for victims and perpetrators of crime, through mentoring, restorative justice and psychotherapy interventions, in prisons and communities.
Me Time is a programme for people with criminal convictions from Global Majority Ethnic backgrounds, which aims to improve wellbeing and reduce re-offending amongst participants. Me Time offers short-term emotional well-being support and medium-term community and through the gate creative psychotherapy primarily to people who are under probation supervision in Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire, with some scope to work remotely with those under supervision in the wider East England probation region. The programme is open to people of all genders aged over 18 years. Priority is given to people facing multiple and complex disadvantages.
This position provides an exciting opportunity for a reliable, organised, energetic, resilient psychotherapist to join Belong's committed, specialist team. The successful applicant will have at least two years’ post qualifying experience of facilitating psychotherapy within the criminal justice sector, the prison service or a related sector. They will deliver one-to-one psychotherapy interventions at HMP The Mount, Hertfordshire/Bedfordshire Probation Units, or remotely.
The successful applicant will engage people in psychotherapy using verbal and non-verbal, creative techniques such as movement, visual arts, creative writing and drama. They will integrate psycho-dynamic and psycho-educational techniques into sessions, tailor support to individuals needs, be responsive to risk and safeguarding issues and use an assets based approach. Working as part of Belong's multidisciplinary team, they will engage proactively in regular reflective practice, clinical supervision and line management sessions.
Applications are particularly welcomed from people from Global Majority Ethnicities, with lived experience of the criminal justice system, and/or with current enhanced prison security vetting.
Please apply for this position with a detailed covering letter outlining how you meet the skills, experience and knowledge requirements outlined in this advert. Please also send us your CV. We are unable to consider applications received without a detailed covering letter.
Interviews will be held in person in Central London on Tuesday 21 October.
Place of work: HMP The Mount, Hertfordshire or Bedfordshire Probation Units, depending on participant locations.
Hours of work: 8 hours per week, worked on a Tuesday or Friday.
Pay scale: 39,400k per annum pro rata, plus travel expenses to/from community locations.
Contract term: 15 months fixed term from December 2025, with potential for renewal subject to excellent performance and funding being available.
Reports to: Lead Psychotherapist
National Security and DBS Vetting Required: Enhanced
Responsibilities:
* Provide specialist one to one psychotherapy interventions, over 6 to 12 weeks, and tailored well-being support sessions over 3 weeks, as part of the Me Time service to people with criminal convictions from Global Majority Ethnic backgrounds.
* Work flexibly at HMP The Mount, remotely and/or Herts/Beds probation units, depending on participant locations, holding a case load of 3 to 4 participants.
* Support participants to improve their wellbeing and to identify and tackle issues related to their offending behaviour e.g. relationship problems, substance misuse issues, adverse childhood experiences and racial trauma.
* Maintain detailed, high quality records of psychotherapy sessions in accordance with Belong, HCPC and UKCP guidelines and standards.
* Build excellent working relationships and communicate effectively with other members of Belong’s team, and with members of prison and probation teams.
* Model and encourage the use of non – verbal, creative methods e.g. visual arts, music, movement and writing as part of psychotherapy to enable participants to process their thoughts and feelings.
* Integrate several approaches to psychotherapy including psychodynamic and psycho-educational models and if appropriate, a mentalization - based approach in order to meet participant's needs.
* Manage difficult and demanding clinical situations including exploring complex, sensitive and disturbing personal issues with participants.
* Apply evidence based practice in being attune to and assisting participants to process transference and counter-transference feelings, for example in relation to daily experiences, creative work produced, the therapist, and others.
* Share risk and safeguarding information in a timely and appropriate way with other professionals.
* Assess participant's mental state and identify risk and protective factors, collaboratively undertaking and contributing to risk assessments with other professionals.
* Actively participate in relevant meetings e.g. team meetings, line management meetings, clinical supervision meetings, service reviews with participants.
* Maintain registration with the Health Care Professionals Council (HCPC) and adhere to and implement the professional standards and policies of Belong, the Prison and Probation Service and the HCPC.
* Keep abreast of new developments and research in Psychotherapy and Forensic Psychotherapy.
Required Qualifications:
* Good honours degree (2.2 or above) in psychology or equivalent.
* State Registration as a Psychotherapist.
* Training at Master’s Level in Psychotherapy.
Required Experience and Knowledge:
* At least 2 years’ post qualifying experience of delivering one-to-one psychotherapy to people with criminal convictions or facing other significant disadvantages.
* At least 2 years’ experience of working within the criminal justice sector, the prison service or a related sector.
* Experience of integrating several approaches to psychotherapy including psychodynamic and psycho-educational models.
* Experience of managing difficult and demanding clinical situations including exploring complex, sensitive and disturbing personal issues with individuals.
* Excellent understanding of the issues faced by people from Global Majority Ethnic backgrounds who have committed offences.
* Excellent knowledge of peoples' emotional and mental health needs.
* A strong understanding of the principles of confidentiality and of instances when this should be breached.
* Strong awareness of appropriate boundaries to be maintained with service users and of personal safety issues.
Required Skills and abilities:
* Ability to form therapeutic relationships with people who have committed offences and are serving prison sentences or sentences in the community.
* Ability to apply a variety of models and theories to work with individuals.
* Ability to work with participants psychological, non-verbal and symbolic expression and be competent in interpreting and translating these as meaningful communications where appropriate.
* Ability to maintain appropriate boundaries with participants and to manage personal safety whilst working in prisons and probation units.
* Ability to be attune to and assistparticipants to process transference and counter-transference feelings, for example in relation to daily experiences, creative work produced, the therapist, and others.
* Ability to work effectively under pressure of the psychological impact of highly charged situations eg. disclosure of sexual or emotional abuse and maintain the capacity to think clearly in these conditions.
* Ability to work autonomously in potentially stressful conditions with participants.
* Excellent interpersonal, communication and listening skills.
* Good organisational and artistic skills.
* Ability to work well with members of Belong’s multi-disciplinary team, members of the Probation and Prison Service and other key stakeholders.
* Ability to produce and file high quality, detailed records of work completed.
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