Service lead for Sussex Community Counselling

JD Service Lead for Sussex Community Counselling March 2026 final

Service Lead for Sussex Community Counselling

25 hrs per week – fixed term until 31 st March 2027 in first instance

Salary range £35,304 – £38,979 per annum pro rata (upper levels awarded for post qualifying experience & qualification requirements)

Based Newhaven with some travel to outreach & delivery locations across E. Sussex

Sussex Community Counselling has been operated by SCDA for many years and has established a reputation for offering professional, confidential services to the local community. The Affordable Counselling Service currently has approximately 20 volunteer counsellors, some qualified, some trainees, covering Newhaven, Lewes, Hailsham and Eastbourne. We also provide a Youth Counselling service supporting children aged 10 – 18.

Our Suicide Support and Recovery Service includes support for survivors of suicide and for those bereaved by suicide, helping people living in East Sussex with practical and emotional support, advice and guidance from our team of Bereavement Support Workers. Counselling services are accredited by the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and operate county-wide. We work in partnership with a range of stakeholders across the county, including NHS services and other community-based counselling such as Counselling Plus Community.

We are seeking a qualified, experienced and ideally BACP accredited counsellor to lead the counselling services, maintain and further develop systems and processes, & identify opportunities for service growth. Other duties include:

• Generating new business through promotion of paid counselling services
• Managing BACP accreditation cycle & annual renewal, including review of all policies and procedures, & responding to new BACP guidance as needed
• Developing & coordinating the counsellor training programme, which includes safeguarding and may involve own delivery.
• If a BACP Accredited Member, act as Clinical Lead for the services.

With extensive experience of assessing individuals, facilitating groups in a therapeutic setting and particularly in relation to clinical judgements about risk, you will have a track record of successful partnership work in a complex, multi-agency environment. Reporting to funders and others, you’ll need the ability to successfully develop and implement new initiatives and services crucial to the ongoing success of the services.

We are looking for people to join our team who have the qualities and skills we feel would most benefit our clients; professionalism, empathy, kindness and understanding of professional and personal ethics and boundaries. In return, we understand people want to work in a supportive environment with friendly colleagues. We offer a flexible, hybrid approach to delivery wherever possible, annual leave of 23 days per year pro rata plus bank holidays and sick pay from the start (increasing with service), additional sick pay for planned operations and recovery, a pension scheme, bereavement leave, and managers who are available to you… plus a day off for your birthday!

Post is subject to DBS at enhanced level.

Closing date: 5pm on Sunday 29 th March 2026

Interviews:  Tuesday 7 th April & Wednesday 8th April 2026 in Newhaven.

You may think that you’re not a 100% match to what we’re looking for, but we recognise that some skills and experience may be transferable rather than an exact match . If you’re unsure about whether to apply, please do contact the HR team on hr@sussexcommunity.org.uk and we would be happy to arrange an informal discussion with the recruiting manager.