Mental Health Practitioner - Initial Response Service
At a glance
- Band
- Band 6
- Contract
- Permanent
- Pattern
- Full-time, Part-time
- Posted
- 24/08/2026
- Closes
- 06/09/2026
Sponsorship verdict
Candidates needing sponsorship are encouraged to apply.
HiveMind found a sponsorship-friendly statement in the source advert welcoming applicants who require a visa. Always confirm on the source before applying.
“Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications.”Quoted verbatim from the source advert
Role summary
This role is for a skilled and compassionate Mental Health Practitioner to join the new Initial Response Service (IRS) at Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust. The IRS provides a single point of access for urgent, crisis, and routine mental health referrals. You will undertake rapid mental health and risk assessments, support individuals in crisis, and make critical clinical decisions within a 24/7 multidisciplinary environment. This is an opportunity to shape a new service and provide clinical leadership and supervision.
Essential criteria
- Ability to assess service users' presenting problems and needs, quickly and accurately, under pressure
- Ability to determine the most appropriate course of action from a range of available options
- Ability to communicate clearly the outcomes of assessment, verbally and in writing
- In-depth knowledge of mental health problems
- In-depth knowledge of issues that impact upon people with mental health problems
- Detailed knowledge of the impact of risk and protective factors that affect people with mental health problems
- Knowledge of medication prescribed for management of mental health issues
- Recognised core Mental Health Professional Qualification (e.g., RMN/DipSW/OT
- Mentorship qualification or ENB998 equivalent. Willingness to become sign-off mentor
Desirable criteria
- Management course or equivalent
- Experience of post qualification clinical work with service users experiencing a range of mental health problems
- Experience of delivering evidence based interventions in a time-limited framework
- Evidence of assessment across a broad range of mental health problem
- Ability to assess service users' presenting problems and needs, quickly and accurately, under pressure
- Ability to determine the most appropriate course of action from a range of available options
- Ability to communicate clearly the outcomes of assessment, verbally and in writing
- In-depth knowledge of mental health problems
- In-depth knowledge of issues that impact upon people with mental health problems
- Detailed knowledge of the impact of risk and protective factors that affect people with mental health problems
- Knowledge of medication prescribed for management of mental health issues
- Recognised core Mental Health Professional Qualification (e.g., RMN/DipSW/OT
- Mentorship qualification or ENB998 equivalent. Willingness to become sign-off mentor
- Management course or equivalent
- Experience of post qualification clinical work with service users experiencing a range of mental health problems
- Experience of delivering evidence based interventions in a time-limited framework
- Evidence of assessment across a broad range of mental health problem
Useful to know
Agenda for Change 2024/25 pays Band 6 at £37,338 – £44,962 a year, across England.
This advert: £39,959 – £48,117 — outside the standard scale; check for HCAS/London weighting.
Posted 14d ago · Closes in 0d
Applications close soon — apply now if this is a fit.
Full advert · preview
Norfolk & Suffolk Foundation NHS Trust
Mental Health Practitioner - Initial Response Service
The closing date is 06 September 2026
Job summary
Be the difference at the moment it matters most.
We are looking for skilled, compassionate and motivated Mental Health Practitioners (Band 6) to join our new Initial Response Service (IRS) , a key development within Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust designed to transform access to mental health services across the county.
The IRS will provide a single point of access for urgent, crisis and routine referrals, ensuring people receive the right support, from the right service, at the right time.
This is an exciting opportunity to be part of a new service from the outset and help shape the future of mental health access and crisis response.
Working within a 24/7 multidisciplinary environment, you will undertake rapid mental health and risk assessments, support people experiencing mental health crises, and make critical clinical decisions that directly impact patient outcomes.
Every day will bring variety, challenge and the opportunity to make a meaningful difference to people's lives.
As a senior clinician within the service, you will work autonomously whilst being part of a supportive team that values collaboration, innovation and professional development. You will provide clinical leadership, supervisi
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