Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust
Assertive Outreach Practitioner
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Job Overview
We are seeking motivated Band 6 practitioners to join our Assertive Outreach Team (AOT), a new, high-impact service designed to support individuals with severe mental illness who are at risk of disengaging from services and require intensive, proactive, community-based care.
This is a dynamic, community-facing role, focused on engaging patients in their homes and local environments to stabilise their mental health and reduce crisis presentations.
The Assertive Outreach Team (AOT) role is fundamentally a patient-facing position, focused on engaging and managing individuals who are often reluctant to engage with services. Given the nature of this work, requiring proactive outreach, direct contact, and consistent face-to-face intervention, the role is not suitable for remote or hybrid working arrangements.
Main duties of the job
As a Band 6 AOT Practitioner, you will:
- Deliver intensive assertive outreach, including regular home visits and community-based engagement
- Work with individuals who are difficult to engage or do not attend appointments, using persistent and flexible approaches
- Undertake clinical assessments, risk management and care planning for a high-risk cohort
- Act as care coordinator/keyworker, ensuring continuity of care
- Deliver clinical interventions and support treatment, not just engagement
- Work within a model based on:
- Persistent engagement and relationship-building
- No discharge due to non-attendance (DNA)
- Proactive, flexible support to prevent crisis
- Collaborate closely with CMHT/CMHH, Crisis Teams, inpatient services and partner agencies
Working for our organisation
Central and Northwest London Mental Health NHS Trust is committed to involve staff at all levels in the development of the organisation. The Trust is committed to the principles of Improving Working Lives, and all managers are encouraged to follow Improving Working Lives practices.
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The Assertive Outreach Team (AOT) role is fundamentally a patient-facing position, focused on engaging and managing individuals who are often reluctant to engage with services.
The Team is committed to delivering safe, compassionate and high-quality care.
The Assertive Outreach Team offers:
- The opportunity to work in a new, innovative model of care
- A strong focus on patient safety, engagement and recovery
- A supportive MDT environment with clear leadership and development opportunities
Detailed Job Description And Main Responsibilities
Essential:
- Registered mental health professional (RMN, OT, Social Worker or equivalent)
- Experience working with complex mental health needs and high-risk service users
- Strong skills in risk assessment, care planning and community-based working
- Ability to engage hard-to-reach individuals
Desirable:
- Experience in assertive outreach, crisis or urgent care services
- Driving Licence and access to a vehicle for work
Person specification
Education & Qualifications
Essential criteria
- Registered mental health professional qualification (e.g. RMN, OT, Social Worker or equivalent relevant professional qualification)
- Current professional registration with the relevant professional body
- Evidence of post-registration experience in mental health practice
Experience
Essential criteria
- Experience of working with people with complex mental health needs
- Experience of working with high-risk service users
- Experience of risk assessment, formulation and safety planning
- Experience of working with hard-to engage or disengaged individuals
- Experience of community-based working, including home visits or outreach
- Experience of care coordination / caseload management
- Experience of MDT and multi-agency working
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Desirable criteria
- Experience in Assertive Outreach, Crisis, HTT or urgent care settings
Skills, Abilities & Knowledge
Essential criteria
- Knowledge of mental health conditions and treatment approaches
- Understanding of Assertive Outreach principles, including persistent engagement and no discharge for DNA
- Knowledge of risk management and safeguarding frameworks
- Understanding of community mental health pathways and system interfaces
- Knowledge of care planning and documentation standards
- Ability to deliver autonomous clinical assessment and decision-making
- Strong risk assessment and management skills
- Ability to engage and sustain relationships with difficult-to-engage individuals
- Ability to deliver persistent, proactive and flexible outreach
- Ability to develop and implement care plans and safety plans
- Ability to work independently in community settings
- Strong communication and interpersonal skills
- Ability to prioritise and manage a complex caseload
- Ability to work effectively within an MDT and across agencies
Desirable criteria
- Awareness of wider system partners such as housing, social care or substance misuse services
Personal Qualities
Essential criteria
- Compassionate and non-judgemental approach
- Persistent, proactive and solution focused
- Resilient and able to work with complexity, uncertainty and disengagement
- Commitment to recovery-focused and person-centred care
Other Requirements
Essential criteria
- Ability to travel across the borough and undertake regular home visits
- Willingness to work flexibly, including evening/weekend outreach where required locally
- IT literacy and ability to use clinical systems and documentation platforms
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