Support Worker - Crisis Support Drop-In Service (High Peak - Buxton)

Job description

Job responsibilities

Main Duties and Responsibilities

The key responsibilities of the Support Worker are :-

1. To deliver the Crisis Support Drop-In service by providing person-centred non-clinical mental health crisis support and information to attendees who might otherwise had to attend Accident and Emergency for help. This will include providing a supportive and safe environment, supporting attendees to identify their individual needs, providing support with de-escalation, providing advice and information, and, in partnership with the attendees, agree flexible and realistic crisis support and safety plans and encouraging positive steps towards management of crisis and future crisis prevention.

2. To follow agreed service systems, processes and procedures.

3. To proactively recognise the indicators of deteriorating mental health and facilitate appropriate action, while liaising with relevant agencies e.g. 999, On-Call Teams, NHS Crisis Teams. CMHT, etc.

4. To signpost and refer attendees to local services, including Derbyshire Mind groups and services, so that they can support and improve their mental health and hopefully not reach crisis point again.

5. To accurately record attendees discussions, individual and group observations on the relevant attendees notes on the database, following the guidance of GDPR. Ensuring that any issues are reported to the Local Coordinator in a timely manner

6. To liaise with the Local Coordinator, Service Lead, or other appropriate person to ensure the safety of attendees and team members as required.

7. To record and evaluate the impact of interventions using agreed feedback and evaluation tools. This includes using the computer program CharityLog for case management.

8. To potentially organise taxi transport for attendees to facilitate access to the service if they meet the criteria.

9. To support and encourage the Volunteer members of the team.

10. To initiate and maintain good channels of communication and information sharing with all members of the team.

11. To ensure the service remains operational by being punctual, flexible and working with colleagues to cover gaps in the rota caused by planned / unplanned absence ie annual leave and sickness.

12. To work positively as part of Derbyshire Minds partnership, and the wider multi-disciplinary and multi-agency crisis alternatives teams.

13. To proactively contribute to the continuous improvement of the service by making positive suggestions, providing constructive feedback and assisting in the implementation of agreed new ways of working.

14. To contribute to the ongoing co-production of the service by supporting service users with Lived Experience to be involved in the design, review, and continuous improvement of the service.

15. To support the training of new Support Workers and Volunteers where deemed appropriate by the Local Coordinator, including providing shadowing opportunities.

16. To help ensure the service is, and remains, accessible to all individuals and groups e.g. younger adults, women with children, racialised communities, veterans and groups who may have more difficulty in accessing mental health services.

17. To participate in research, audit and evaluation as required.

Supervision, training, meetings, and support

18. To undertake specific and specialised training provided by Derbyshire Mind and other nominated parties, in order to support the vulnerable cohort of attendees.

19. To attend and actively participate in regular one-to-one meetings with line manager, team meetings, and clinical supervision.

20. To participate in Individual Performance Review and Personal Development plans, and to undertake training and development as identified within these discussions and as indicated by the requirements of the post.

21. To be proactive in reviewing and evaluating own personal performance and identifying areas for improvement and development.

General

29. Provide cover for other members of the wider Crisis Support Drop-In service team and potentially other Crisis Support Drop-In service teams across Derbyshire as necessary.

30. Participate in the assessment of risk and thereby contribute towards clinical governance as appropriate.

31. Maintain the confidentiality of information about attendees and other services, in accordance with Derbyshire Minds policies and procedures. GDPR etc

32. Keep up to date on all matters relating to Derbyshire Minds policies and procedures and adhere to these at all times.

33. Be familiar with matters relating to health and safety management and work in accordance with Derbyshire Minds Health and Safety policy and procedures.

34. Derbyshire Mind is committed to Equal Opportunities for all present and potential members of staff and attendees. Therefore, it is expected that all employees and volunteers will understand, support, and apply this policy through their working practice, which requires all individuals to be treated with respect, dignity, courtesy, fairness and consideration.

35. Represent and be an advocate and role-model of Derbyshire Mind.

When Completing Your Application

• Applicants must use the criteria listed in the Person Specification to structure their 'Supporting Information'.
• To be most successful, applicants must take each criteria in turn, and demonstrate their experience, knowledge, and abilities in that area.
• The shortlisting panel will score applications based on the information the application has provided, and how it meets the listed criteria.
• No assumptions about an applicants skills or experience can be made. The panel can only score your applicability based on what has been written.
• If an applicant perhaps feels they dont have direct experience of the required criteria, they should think about what transferable skills they might have from other areas of their life, as this can all be considered.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• 1 Good level of general education, including English and Maths at GCSE grade C and above

Desirable

• 2 Any mental health, housing, social care, health care, counselling, or psychology related training or qualifications

Experience

Essential

• 3 Experience of working in a mental health service or similar, in either a paid or voluntary capacity
• 4 Experience of providing compassionate wellbeing support to adults in a community or other setting
• 5 Experience of helping people experiencing emotional distress and low self esteem
• 6 Experience of working on your own initiative and as a member of a team

Desirable

• 7 Experience of working with adults with mental health conditions, either in a residential or community setting
• 8 Experience of supporting individuals one-to-one, and via group work
• 9 Experience of working outside of normal office hours
• 10 Experience of leading a team or being a shift leader, including allocating roles and responsibilities to staff/volunteers

Skills, Abilities & Knowledge

Essential

• 11 Active listening skills
• 12 Ability to gather and interpret information, problem-solve, make decisions and act
• 13 Knowledge of common mental health conditions and issues affecting adults with mental health issues
• 14 Good interpersonal and communication skills, both verbal and written
• 15 Ability to communicate with different range of cognitive abilities eg learning difficulties, age difference, language differences, non-verbal attendees
• 16 Ability to plan and manage and prioritise own workload in line with shift requirements
• 17 Understanding of working within safeguarding, data protection, confidentiality and equality frameworks
• 18 Good IT and technology skills in order to input attendees data onto the case management system, manage emails and documents using Microsoft programs
• 19 Ability to remain calm in stressful situations

Desirable

• 20 Knowledge of de-escalation techniques and resources
• 21 Ability to seek and acquire knowledge of local services available to attendees
• 22 An understanding of the principles, philosophy and practical applications of the Person-Centred Approach
• 23 An understanding of the issues faced by individuals from minority groups
• 24 Monitoring and evaluation skills

Personal Characteristics

Essential

• 25 Compassionate, supportive and sensitive approach
• 26 Reliable, creative and flexible, with a can-do attitude
• 27 Values people and sees their potential, worth and strengths
• 28 Develops effective and trusting relationships, characterised by respect, being non-judgemental, and not making assumptions about the persons experiences and beliefs
• 29 Highly motivated and able to learn quickly, willing to seek advice appropriately and accept supervision and training as required
• 30 Emotionally resilient and has own self-care practices and methods

Ability to Work Flexibly

Essential

• 31 Access to a car to get to and from the Crisis Support Drop-In service venue (as will be working outside of Public Transport operating times)
• 32 Willingness and ability to work flexibly in terms of working outside of normal office hours and supporting a service that needs to run all year round

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 details

Employer name

Derbyshire Mind

Address

Zink H Q

Clough Street

Buxton

Derbyshire

SK17 6LJ

Employer's website

http://www.derbyshiremind.org.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)