Job Summary
Are you passionate about recovery, rehabilitation and making a meaningful impact?
This is an exciting opportunity to join HMP/YOI Feltham B, a dynamic and evolving adult Category C prison, where we are transforming healthcare delivery through a new integrated model of care.
As a Psychosocial Worker, you will play a vital frontline role supporting individuals with substance misuse needs–helping them stabilise, recover and prepare for a healthier future beyond custody.
At Feltham B, you won’t just be doing a job–you’ll be part of a high-impact team driving real change within a secure environment.
Main duties of the job
You will work within our Substance Misuse Care Pathway, delivering evidence-based psychosocial interventions and supporting individuals at all stages of their recovery journey.
This includes early engagement in custody, structured interventions, and through-the-gate continuity planning, working closely with a multidisciplinary team.
Key Responsibilities
- Deliver 1:1 and group psychosocial interventionsto individuals with drug and alcohol needs
- Undertake assessments, care planning and risk management
- Support individuals through recovery, relapse prevention and harm reduction
- Contribute to Early Days in Custody (EDiC), Planned Care and Release & Transferpathway – engaging individuals at reception and stabilisation phase
- Work collaboratively with nurses, GPs, psychologists and prison staff
- Support delivery of detox and maintenance pathways alongside clinical teams
- Facilitate therapeutic group programmesfocused on wellbeing and coping strategies
- Contribute to release planning and continuity of care into the community
- Maintain high-quality clinical records in line with CNWL and HMPPS standards
Person Specification
Experience
Essential
- Experience of working with people with mental health problems and/or offending behaviour problems and/or other disabilities
- Evidence of working with children and young people with substance misuse difficulties
Desirable
- Experience of paid work in direct care provision.
- Experience of working in prisons and/or with adolescents, in forensic services and/or Substance misuse or CAMHS services.
- Experience of working with young people with gang affiliations
- Experience of co-facilitating psychosocial groups.
- Experience of working within a team.
- Experience of using computers for databases or data-analysis, especially SPSS for Windows
- Experience of collating and inputting NDTMS data
- Experience of working in mental health substance misuse or related services
- Worked in a service where agreed targets in place to demonstrating outcomes
- Ability to manage own caseload and time
Training and Qualification
Essential
- Evidence of working with children, teenagers or adults with Substance misuse difficulties
- Evidence of ability to study successfully at undergraduate level or the equivalent
Desirable
- Training in nursing, social work, occupational therapy, counselling or within a specific psychological therapy
- Psychology or other health /social care/youth related undergraduate degree
- Other relevant postgraduate degree
- Motivational interviewing skills
Knowledge and Skills
Essential
- High level communication skills (written and verbal) including an ability to communicate and work in settings in which the atmosphere may be highly emotive
- Ability to communicate sensitive information to patients, carers family and colleagues in a way that addresses service user’s particular needs.
- An understanding of the needs and difficulties of people with mental health problems or other disabilities
- An ability to apply existing psychological knowledge to a mental health or substance misuse context.
- An understanding of psychology applied to health care.
- Ability to evaluate and put in place the effect of training
- Experience using IT for databases or data-analysis.
Desirable
- High standard of report writing skills
Personal
Essential
- An ability to interact effectively with staff from all disciplines
- An ability to establish and sustain engagement with people who have mental health problems and severely challenging behaviours including sexually harmful behaviours
- Ability to work independently, reliably and consistently with work agreed and managed at regular intervals
- Knowledge of our business and how it supports patient care.
Desirable
- An interest in working with people with forensic histories, mental health problems.
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.
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. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
Closing Date: 29 June 2026
