Mind in Croydon
Orchard House
15a Purley Road
South Croydon
CR2 6EZ

t: 020 8668 2210
w: www.mindincroydon.org.uk
e: admin@mindincroydon.org.uk

Chief Executive
Emma Turner

September 2025

Dear Candidate

Re: Independent Mental Health Advocate (IMHA) role

Thank you for your interest in this post and towards our organisation, Mind in Croydon.

I am pleased to enclose:



Job description and person specification for the Independent Mental Health Advocacy
(IMHA) role.

  Guidelines for applicants

  Organisation Summary.

The  closing  date  for  receipt  of  applications  is  5pm  on  Monday  20th  October  2025  with
interviews held soon after.

To apply, please submit an up-to-date copy of your CV and a cover letter no longer than 2 A4
pages  to  recruitment@mindincroydon.org.uk,  outlining  your  reasons  for  applying  and
demonstrating how you meet the criteria set out in the person specification.

Applications without cover letter will not be accepted.

Your faithfully

Nicoletta Crivellaro
People Manager at Mind in Croydon

Mind in Croydon is a company limited by guarantee.  Registered in England No. 3697578.  Registered office: 26 Pampisford Road, Purley, Surrey CR8 2NE.  Charity No. 1073880

INDEPENDENT MENTAL HEALTH ADVOCATE (IMHA)
JOB ADVERT
___________________________________________________________________________

Mind in Croydon is seeking to recruit a full time Independent Mental Health Advocate (IMHA)
to  join  our  small,  dedicated  team  of  Independent  Mental  Health  Advocates  working  to
provide advocacy services to adults subjected to detention under the Mental Health Act in
the London Borough of Croydon to ensure they understand, express and exercise their rights,
and to enable them to access essential services. The advocacy team also provides Community
Mental Health Advocacy for people who are informal patients in psychiatric hospital or living
in  the  community  and  provides  weekly  advocacy  service  at  two  InMind  Healthcare  Group
hospitals in Croydon.

This role is suitable for a fully qualified Independent Mental Health Advocate (IMHA) with a
proven ability to support people under the Mental Health Act. We are not considering trainee
positions at this time.

In  December  2024  the  team  was  awarded  the  Quality  Performance  Mark  in  Advocacy,  a
testament to their quality of service providing safe and life-changing support.

Independent Mental Health Advocate (IMHA)

Salary:

£30,404 per annum

Reports to:

Advocacy Service Manager

Term:

Permanent – subject to funding

Based at:

Bethlem Royal Hospital, Monks Orchard Road, Beckenham BR3 3BX.
Advocates are also required to meet clients at different sites
throughout Croydon and neighbouring boroughs.

The closing date for the post is 5pm on Monday 20th October 2025 with interviews held soon
after.

If you would like to discuss the post further, please contact:
recruitment@mindincroydon.org.uk to arrange an informal call with Helen Thompson, Head
of Social Inclusion and Support Services.

INDEPENDENT MENTAL HEALTH ADVOCATE (IMHA)
ORGANISATION SUMMARY AND OBJECTIVES OF THE POST
___________________________________________________________________________

Mind in Croydon (MiC) is a mental health charity founded in 1967 to promote good mental
health. Our vision is a world where everyone with mental health issues receives support and
respect,  and  where  inequality  and  stigma  are  eliminated.  We  are  a  voluntary  sector
organisation, a company limited by guarantee and a registered charity, with over 50 members
of staff working across 2 offices and outreach locations in the London borough of Croydon.
While we maintain strong links with National Mind and other local Minds within the Mind
Federation, we are completely independent in how we govern ourselves, run our campaigns
and how we raise and manage our funding.

We provide a wide range of services to support, inform and empower anyone experiencing a
mental health problem. These include independent mental health advocacy; carers support;
counselling;  welfare  benefits  advice,  form  completion  and  representation;  peer  support;
information and advice; physical activities; group activities and crisis support. Through these
services, we promote greater understanding of mental health and foster positive attitudes
within  Croydon  and  beyond.  Over  the  past  year,  Mind  in  Croydon  supported  over  15,000
individuals, an increase of over 50%, compared to the previous year.

We  are  deeply  grateful  to  all  the  volunteers,  partners  and  stakeholders  in  Croydon  who
support our charity. Their commitment has made it possible to meet the growing demand for
our services.

CONTEXT OF THE POST
___________________________________________________________________________

We  are  seeking  a  new  Independent  Mental  Health  Advocate  (IMHA)  to  provide  both
statutory and non-statutory mental health advocacy services in London Borough of Croydon
and at the Bethlem Royal Hospital.

This includes:



Independent Mental Health Advocacy (IMHA) for individuals who are subject to the
2007 Mental Health Act.

  Community  mental  health  advocacy  for  people  living  in  the  community  who  need

support to have their voice heard.

  Weekly advocacy service at two InMind Healthcare Group hospitals in Croydon.

Advocates in the team are trained to deliver both statutory and non-statutory advocacy. This
means that clients can continue working with the  same advocate even if their legal status
changes, ensuring continuity of care and support.

Last year:

  We have had contact with 1,663 individuals across the services.
  We provided 663  service introductions to newly admitted patients, both voluntary

and detained under the Mental Health Act, within their first week in hospital.

  We held 759 brief contact sessions with clients who wanted to speak directly with an

advocate and resolved their issues within that one-off first contact.

  We  received  241  referrals.  Of  these,  198  were  IMHA  qualifying  and  43  were

community referrals.

The  Independent  Mental  Health  Advocate  will  work  in  a  small  team  and  will  be  regularly
supported  by  the  Advocacy  Service  Manager  and  the  Head  of  Social  Inclusion  &  Support
Services.

Please  note  that  the  post  is  offered  on  a  full-time  basis  with  the  following  funding
arrangements:

-  0.6 FTE of the role is funded by the Local Authority for the next 7 years
-  The remaining 0.4 FTE (2 X 0.2 FTE) is funded through two separate external funding
streams. These may not be guaranteed long-term and may be subject to change or
withdrawal at short notice.

If changes do occur, this may mean the role continues on a part time basis rather than a full
time. Should this happen, we will work closely with the postholder to explore all available
options and support them through any changes.

INDEPENDENT MENTAL HEALTH ADVOCATE (IMHA)
JOB DESCRIPTION
___________________________________________________________________________

POST:

SALARY:

Independent Mental Health Advocate (IMHA)

£30,404 per annum
plus pension contributions (above 4% by salary sacrifice)

REPORTS TO:

Advocate Service Manager

TERM:

BASED AT:

Permanent, subject to funding, full time (36 hours pw)

Bethlem Royal Hospital, Beckenham BR3 3BX. Advocates are
also required to meet clients at different sites throughout
Croydon and neighbouring boroughs.

This role supports hybrid working. Other flexible arrangements can be discussed however
please note that specific flexible working arrangements such as staggered hours may not be
feasible due to operational constraints set by the Hospital.

KEY TASKS
___________________________________________________________________________

Service Operations

  To  offer  qualifying  patients  who  are  detained  or  under  a  restriction  of  the  Mental
Health Act assistance in understanding and exercising their legal rights as outlined in
Chapter 6 of the Mental Health Act Code of Practice.

  To discuss with advocacy clients their views, preferences, wishes and determine with

them a course of action which promotes their rights.

  To ensure that advocacy clients have access to the full range of information they need
in  order  to  be  able  to  make  informed  choices  about  their  mental  health  care  and
treatment, to exercise their rights and to maximize their entitlements.

  To signpost advocacy clients to obtain support in the community from other agencies
(e.g., social work, voluntary organizations, benefits advice, housing advice) and in a
hospital setting (e.g., occupational therapy, psychology etc.).

  To accompany service users to key meetings such as ward rounds, Associate Hospital
Manager Hearings, tribunals, case conferences, care planning meetings and  meetings
with individual professionals, to provide support and representation as appropriate.
  To write letters of complaint on behalf of advocacy clients or help them to write letters

and to accompany them to meetings to discuss complaints.
  To support users in the pursuit of their rights with respect to:

o  Care Act 2014
o  Local policies e.g., Care Program Approach
o  Other relevant legislation e.g., Access to Health Care Records
o  NHS  complaints  procedures  and  other  (e.g.,  local  authority)  complaints

procedures

  To discuss possible further action, e.g., use of the legal system or the Ombudsman and

to assist advocacy clients in pursuing these courses, as instructed.

  To  take  up  other  issues  of  importance  to  advocacy  clients  relating  to  their  mental

health needs and treatment and to promote self-advocacy.

  To provide non-instructed advocacy where necessary to individuals who lack mental
capacity (as defined by the Mental Capacity Act 2005) to directly instruct an advocate.
  To  develop  links  with  community  and  service  user  groups  in  order  to  provide
information  on  advocacy  and  general  mental  health  issues,  this  includes  giving
presentations to promote the Service to clients, carers and professionals.

  To  monitor  advocacy  client  feedback  and  views  and  pass  these  to  providers  and
commissioners with the aim of promoting good practice and advocacy clients’ needs
  To ensure that information available within the advocacy service is appropriate and

accessible to all mental health service users.

Service Responsibilities

  Responsible  for  maintaining  quality  standards  in  accordance  with  the  Advocacy
Quality Performance Mark (QPM) and Mind in Croydon policies and procedures.
  Responsible for maintaining accurate records on Views database, including records of

all contacts with advocacy clients and those who contact the service.

  To  assist  in the  collection  of data for  monitoring  and  evaluation  of  the  Service  and

where necessary to provide written reports.

  To  attend  key  meetings related  to the work of  the  project with both  statutory and

voluntary agencies as required.

  To always act in the client’s best interest and seek out further external legal advice

and support where appropriate.

Training





To undertake training surrounding the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and Safeguarding and
any other training as required or directed by your manager
To keep abreast of professional and legal developments within the profession

Other General Duties

  Work in accordance with Mind in Croydon’s Values, Aims and Objectives.


Provide  a  positive  representation  for  the  organisation  both  internally  and  externally,
including promoting our work, and attending external meetings and partnership events
when required.

  Work  within  and  implement  all  of  Mind  Croydon  policies  and  procedures  including



Confidentiality, Health and Safety, and Equal Opportunities.
Promote  positive  understanding,  awareness  and  attitudes  towards  mental  health  and
wellbeing as part of day-to-day duties.

  Be  responsible  for  respecting  and  maintaining  personal  and  professional  boundaries

concerning relationships with volunteers and staff.

  Work at all times to promote equality, diversity and individual rights.


Participate  in  and  actively  contribute  to  individual  supervision,  training  and  team
meetings; attend all staff meetings and organisational events as required.

  Recognise  and accept the need to learn from experience, to  change where necessary,



develop new skills
In addition to the tasks and duties outlined in this job description, to undertake such duties
as may be identified and which are generally compatible with the functions of the post.

The Job Description is not exhaustive and is subject to change considering the service, work,
priorities, or requirements.

INDEPENDENT MENTAL HEALTH ADVOCATE (IMHA)
PERSON SPECIFICATIONS
___________________________________________________________________________

Essential Qualifications

1.  Level 3 Certificate in Independent Advocacy (4 core modules) plus the specialist IMHA

module

Knowledge and Experience

2.  At least one years’ experience working with people with mental health issues.
3.  Experience of hospital and community mental health services.
4.  Understanding of Equal Opportunities Issues.
5.  Experience of working as a mental health advocate.
6.  Knowledge of relevant mantal health and community care legislation.
7.  Experience operation within a multi-racial setting.
8.  Familiarity with NHS and Social Service complaints procedures.
9.  Understanding of Health Service, Social Service, and voluntary sector structures.

Skills and Capabilities

10. Communicating effectively with people in distress.
11. Communication and negotiating with professionals (written and verbal).
12. Working under pressure and managing stress.
13. Acquiring and applying relevant knowledge.
14. Effective time management.
15. Working co-operatively with a small team.
16. Maintaining confidentiality in line with policies.
17. Working independently and showing initiative.
18. Excellent IT skills including Microsoft Office.
19. Proven ability to write clear and concise case records.
20. Excellent written and verbal communication, including conveying complex information

face to face, by phone and in writing.

Personal attributes and approach

21. Values individuals and recognises their full potential, worth and strengths.
22. Build respectful, trusting relationships without judgement or assumptions.
23. Work inclusively, respecting diverse backgrounds and experiences.
24. Highly motivated, quick to learn, and open to supervision and training
25. Demonstrates integrity and accountability.

26. Shows a proactive, solution focused attitude.
27. Takes responsibility for personal development.

Desirable criteria

28. Experience developing links with community service user groups
29. Ability to communicate effectively across cultural boundaries