Early Intervention Mental Health Support Worker

Job Description

Term Time (school based with outreach) Early Intervention Mental Health
Support Worker (P/T)
Hours per week:  30 hours
 Contract type:
 Location:
Reports to:
Manager
Line Management Responsibility:
Financial Accountability:

Permanent in the line with funding
Fife
Early intervention Mental Health and Wellbeing Team

No

Low

To offer a provision of early intervention to support mental health and emotional wellbeing
in secondary aged young people. This early intervention service is designed to support the
emotional wellbeing of young people within secondary schools and their local
communities. The service will focus on young people experiencing anxiety, stress, and
difficulties with emotional regulation, offering timely and targeted support before issues
escalate.

Job Summary

The Early Intervention Mental Health Support Worker will be responsible for the work with
young people aged S1 to S6 who are enrolled in a Fife Secondary School, providing up to
five mental health coaching and mentoring sessions.

Within this role, you will work closely and collaboratively with colleagues in schools and
other partners to co-facilitate wellbeing groups and provide inputs within assemblies,
personal and social education classes, registration and inset days. These inputs will include
sessions such as Seasons for Growth, Kitbag, Decider Skills, and Anxiety Management.

You will deliver a mental health drop in, collaboratively with school partners ensuring this
drop-in service is tailored to the needs of each school, offering accessible and responsive
support for young people.

You will support the development of mental health pupil voice groups such as wellbeing
ambassadors and contribute to the implementation of initiatives which challenge the
stigma and discrimination of mental health within the school community, such as See Me,
See Change.

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Key Responsibilities

You will be responsible for responding to individualised needs, providing coaching and
mentoring and delivering group support through a range of settings within the school
environment. The focus will be on universal level supports and the post holder will develop
excellent relationships with partners to ensure a streamlining of support for young people
both within school and within the community.

The Early Intervention Mental Health Support Worker will demonstrate leadership and
ownership over effective service delivery to young people both within a school setting and
outreach within the community. You will also demonstrate a collaborative approach and
effective partnership working to deliver high quality support to young people as part of a
multi-disciplinary team with schools.

Service Delivery

•  To build relationships and provide positive mentoring support to young people

using a goal setting approach.

•

Identification and recording of support needs in partnership with the young person.

•  To work in partnership with existing community resources, organisations and

supports to sustain positive change for young people and identify appropriate move
on strategies.

•  Ability to assess and respond appropriately to situations where young people may be

at risk of harm. This may involve escalation and referral to more appropriate
services.

•  On a planned basis, respond to the young people and generate solutions using
professional judgement and decision making which is risk enabled. This may
involve escalation and referral to/from more appropriate services.

•  Provide the supported engagement of young people with universal and specialist

supports, services and activities to improve mental health and emotional wellbeing.

People

•  To understand the impact of mental wellbeing and engagement from the young

person, so that a range of support can be given.

•  To understand the individual’s wellbeing needs, identify any barriers and provide

appropriate support.

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•  To demonstrate professional resilience when providing support with sensitive or

challenging issues.

•  To understand and manage emotions, recognise and challenge behaviours.

•  Celebrate strengths, aims and engender hope maximizing health and wellbeing

outcomes.

•  To establish mutually trusting, open and non-judgemental relationship with young

people.

•  Work with education staff to identify young people who require additional support

their mental health and wellbeing.

•  To develop strong partnerships with the wider stakeholders to support the delivery

of includem services.

Influence

•  To help young people share what it is they need to better support their own mental

health and wellbeing.

•  Promote shared learning and contribute to continuous service, design and

development.

•  To role model appropriate responses and convey a positive attitude towards day-to-

day activities.

•  Establish and maintain high quality relationships with partner agencies to ensure
the right young people get the right help at the right time and that their progress is
recognised.

•

Identification of service gaps in the area and using strategies to influence
community planning.

•  Promote the project within the area to ensure the service is used to full capacity.

•  Demonstrate understanding of your impact on people and how they might see you.

Resources

•  Ensure needs led planning and deployment of resources to ensure time is used

effectively over five coaching and mentoring sessions to meet the needs of young
people, with the support of includem’s helpline.

•  To record the required information that will evidence progress against project

outcomes and the ongoing evaluation process.

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•  To maintain and produce accurate and timely records and reports.

•  To ensure support is delivered in line with includem’s Policies Procedures, SSSC

Codes of Practice & National Guidelines.

Quality Assurance

•  To be accountable for the quality of your work and be able to evidence this work

effectively.

•  To actively participate in formal supervision and continuous professional

development.

•  To generate creative and new solutions to issues faced by young people.

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Person Specification

Category

Essential Job Requirements

Desirable Job Requirements

Technical Skills,
Knowledge, and
Experience

•

•  Experience of effectively engaging vulnerable

young people who are likely to
have faced challenging life circumstances,
and supporting them to achieve positive
change.

•  Experience of developing and maintaining

effective partnership relationships across the
organisational sectors.

•  Ability to deliver groups and information in a

presentation style.

•  Ability to recognise situations in which people

are in crisis or at risk and able to use a
strengths based approach to deliver
appropriate interventions.

•  Demonstrate an awareness and ability to
respond appropriately to the impact of
childhood trauma and adverse experiences
on young people’s behaviour,

Method of
Assessment
Application process

Group stage
interview

Individual
interview

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coping mechanisms and functioning.

•  Ability to respond flexibly to changing

situations led by the needs of young people and
families.

•  Excellent organisational and planning skills.

•  Effective team player who is also confident

working independently.

•  Self-motivated and flexible.

•  Ability to provide emotional, practical and

social support to young people.

•  Excellent communication skills, both written

and verbal.

•  Ability to routinely evidence practice,
particularly for evaluation purposes.

•  Reliability and commitment to deliver the
relationship-based model of intervention.

Education /
Qualifications

•  Willing to work towards SVQ Level

3/appropriate professional qualifications for
SSSC registration.

•  SCQF Level 4 within a relevant
discipline (recognised by SSSC)

Application process

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Other
Requirements

•  Ability to demonstrate, understand apply our

•  Experience in the development, delivery

and evaluation of group work

organisational values which are clearly aligned to
the SSSC Codes of Practice. These are embedded
in al roles and applicants must evidence their
attitudes/behaviours as part of the application
process:
•  Respect
•  Collaboration
•  Participation and Dignity
•  Empowerment

Group stage
interview

Individual
interview
Application process

Group stage
interview

Individual
interview

Acknowledgement:
This job description is an overview of the duties, responsibilities, and requirements of the position. You may be required to perform other duties
throughout your employment at the reasonable request of your line manager.

I acknowledge that I have read and understood the job requirements, responsibilities, and expectations outlined in the job description.

Employee Name

Employee Signature

Line Manager Name

Line Manager
Signature

Date

Date

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