West London NHS Trust
Job summary
The Tri-borough Perinatal Mental Health Service (PMHS) is seeking enthusiastic and motivated Band 7 Nurses and/or Social Workers to join its specialist multidisciplinary team.
We have two 0.8 WTE vacancies available:
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Ealing: 12-month fixed-term/secondment opportunity, immediate start.
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Hounslow: 12-month fixed-term/secondment opportunity, starting February 2027.
Both posts provide maternity leave and secondment cover.
Successful candidates will support women, babies and families experiencing moderate to severe mental health difficulties during pregnancy and the postnatal period. This is an excellent opportunity to develop specialist clinical knowledge, leadership and partnership-working skills within a rewarding area of mental health care.
The service operates across three boroughs, with bases at Trust Headquarters, Ealing; Hounslow House; and Hammersmith Hospital.
The team works flexibly across community mental health services, maternity units, children’s centres and service users’ homes, with opportunities for remote working. In line with Trust policy, staff must maintain a minimum of 60% office-based working.
This is an exciting opportunity to join a supportive and well-established service, contribute to high-quality perinatal mental health care and further develop your professional experience in this specialist field.
Main duties of the job
Ensuring women (age 18+) who are pregnant and booked for delivery and/or have infants under twelve months receive appropriate screening, assessment and identification of their mental health needs and these are managed using evidence-based interventions throughout this period.
Actively liaising with primary care, maternity and health visiting staff as well as other mental health services regarding referrals, care co-ordination, transfer of care including facilitating professionals’ meetings.
Efficiently managing a caseload of up to 25 women (antenatal and postnatal) with moderate to complex mental health needs, by providing assessments and reviews in community sites (children’s centres), joint reviews with maternity, health visitors or other mental health professionals, home visits and care planning meetings.
Providing on-going training, supervision, consultation and advice on mental health issues in childbearing to a range of professionals who work closely with this group of women.
Participating on rotation in the service daily Duty rota, to support the triage of new referrals and urgent / emergency presentations in the maternity units.
Supervising and mentoring students in the service.
Person Specification
Qualifications and training
Essential
- oRMN qualification and evidence of registration on Part 3 of NMC register or equivalent (AF)
- oEvidence of continuing professional development including recently in perinatal mental health practice and safeguarding children practice (AF)
- oENB 998 or equivalent practice / placement educator course (AF)
Desirable
- oEducated to degree level or equivalent (AF)
- oDual qualified as RGN, Midwife or Health Visitor (AF)
- oSpecialist training in perinatal and/or infant mental health (AF)
- oClinical supervision training (AF)
- oQualification / training in additional specialist skills e.g. therapeutic / psychological interventions (AF)
- oApproved Mental Health Professional (AMHP) qualification (AF)
- o Post-qualifying specialist training in perinatal mental health, infant mental health or safeguarding
Experience
Essential
- oExperience of managing complex safeguarding concerns, pre-birth assessments and multi-agency planning (AF/I)
- oExperience of working under relevant mental health and safeguarding legislation including the Care Act, Children Act and Mental Health Act (AF/I)
- oSignificant post-qualification experience within mental health services, including community, secondary care, perinatal or specialist services (AF / I)
- oExperience working with women with serious mental illness (AF / I)
- oEvidence of networking within the Perinatal specialty (AF / I)
- oExperience of managing a caseload of service users with evidence of completing high quality assessments (AF/ I)
- oExperience of working in a complex multi-disciplinary / multi-agency context (I)
- oExperience of formal child protection processes and inter-agency work with families (AF / I)
- oExperience of undertaking complex mental health and mental state, risk and needs assessments (AF)
- oExperience of working in a multi-perinatal mental health and associated issues such as safeguarding children, domestic violence (I)
- oAbility to provide supervision to staff within own and other disciplines and to use supervision effectively (AF / I)
- oAbility to work flexibly across service boundaries and with professionals from health care settings such as maternity services (I)
- oExcellent communication and interpersonal skills, both oral and written (I)
- oAbility to work effectively from diverse minority ethnic and cultural backgrounds and families with a high level of deprivation, social isolation, exclusion and stigma (I)
Desirable
- oExperience of multi-agency pre-birth planning for women with serious mental illness
- oExperience of working in obstetrics and gynaecology
- oExperience of planning and delivery of training in response to identified needs
- oExperience of contributing to policies and procedures
- oExperience of supervising mental health / non mental health professionals
- oExperience of delivering both individual and group based interventions
Skills
Essential
- oSufficient clinical knowledge to be able to make autonomous decisions, based on analysis of complex presenting problems and judgement about available options
- oAbility to undertake comprehensive psychosocial, mental health and risk assessments and formulate effective care plans (I)
- oAbility to balance therapeutic engagement with safeguarding responsibilities and risk management (I)
- oAbility to chair or contribute effectively to professional and multi-agency meetings, including pre-birth planning meetings and child protection conferences (I)
- oAbility to implement evidence-based practice (I)
- oAbility to provide highly specialist therapeutic assessments and a range of therapeutic interventions (I)
- oAbility to effectively manage own clinical and administrative caseload and work under pressure at times of change (I)
- o Ability to identify, recognise and understand safeguarding children issues and refer appropriately (I)
- o Ability to develop and deliver training on Understanding of issues around information-sharing in relation to Child Protection and Children in Need (I)
- o Knowledge of relevant Perinatal service models (AF / I)
- o Knowledge of relevant legislation e.g. MHA, MCA (I)
Desirable
- oComputer literate to an intermediate level
Knowledge
Essential
- oUp to date knowledge of evidence based practice and current developments in perinatal psychiatry
- oKnowledge about mental illness in the perinatal period
- oKnowledge of statutory social care frameworks including Working Together to Safeguard Children, Children Act 1989/2004 and Care Act 2014 (I)
- oKnowledge of safeguarding adults and children policy and practice, including pre-birth assessment processes (I)
- oKnowledge of trauma-informed practice and the impact of parental mental illness on infant development and attachment (I)
- o Knowledge and understanding of diversity and equality issues and their application in perinatal psychiatry services (I)
- oKnowledge & understanding of contributions of other disciplines and professionals to a multi-agency service (I)
- o Understanding of clinical governance and audit issues (I)
- o Knowledge of relevant legislation e.g. MHA, MCA (I)
- o Understanding of issues around information-sharing in relation to Child Protection and Children in Need (I)
- o Knowledge of relevant Perinatal service models (AF / I)
Personal qualities
Essential
- oAbility to demonstrate to empathise towards individuals with a mental health problem as well as show a positive attitude towards mental health care (I) Able to work seamlessly with other professional groups
- oAbility to deal with stress appropriately and work under pressure
- oGood attendance record (R)
- oCommitment to life-long learning
Closing Date: 25 November 2026
To apply for this job please visit apps.trac.jobs.