Art Therapist

Job summary

This is a rare and exciting opportunity to join the North Devon Psychology and Psychological Therapies service as an Arts Therapist. We are a dynamic and friendly multi-disciplinary team who are passionate about our work and will encourage and celebrate your creative contributions. We are looking for an enthusiastic and creative practitioner, who is committed to advancing the health and quality of life of people with mental health and complex emotional needs within North Devon.

Main duties of the job

In a dedicated therapeutic space, the postholder will undertake the following tasks and areas of responsibility:

1. Provide an Arts Therapy service to people with Secondary Care mental health needs, from across North Devon.

2. Provide local clinical leadership, co-ordination and supervision for trainees and volunteers employed by or attached to the psychological therapies service, under the general direction and supervision of the Professional Lead.

3. Carry a specialist caseload of clients, including some with a learning disability, and provide advice and consultancy to patients, family members, carers and professionals.

4. The post holder will be supported by senior colleagues within their specialist field and will be encouraged and enabled to further develop their clinical skills with this client group.

About us

About Devon Partnership Trust

We provide mental health, learning disability and neurodiversity services, as well as a range of specialist & secure services for the wider south west region & nationally. We are passionate about promoting good mental health & wellbeing. We strive to use the expertise & resources within our organisation, and through our partnerships, to deliver high quality services that are safe & focused on people's recovery.

We are committed to developing a culture of coproduction, involving patients, families & carers in everything we do

Our values

We not only recruit based on qualifications & experience - we recruit individuals who possess & demonstrate the behaviours which underpin our Trusts core values. These include such attributes as showing a commitment to quality of care, improving lives of others, giving respect, dignity & compassion. We can bring those values to life in our everyday tasks by giving a smile; making time for people; challenging ourselves & others, & being open to new ideas.

We are committed to being an inclusive employer & applications are encouraged & welcomed from all sections of the community, regardless of any protected characteristics as governed by the Equality Act 2010. Part time & flexible working applications will be considered & supported, where possible. We particularly encourage applicants with lived experience of mental health conditions, neurodiversity or learning disabilities. We are a Disability Confident Leader.

Details

Date posted

03 October 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 7

Salary

£47,810 to £54,710 a year pro rata (22.5 hours per week)

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Part-time, Flexible working

Reference number

C9369-25-0644

Job locations

West Pilton Health & Wellbeing Clinic

Youings Drive

Barnstaple

Devon

EX31 1QL

Job description

Job responsibilities

Communication and Working Relationships

• Clients, family and carers: To communicate in a highly skilled and sensitive manner with clients who may have specific difficulties in understand and/or communicating and who may be hostile, antagonistic or highly emotionally disturbed.
• Multidisciplinary team colleagues: To work closely with colleagues in the multi-professional integrated mental health and wellbeing service on a day to day basis.
• Health & social care staff: To communicate with a wide range of health & social care staff in hospital and in community settings in a highly skilled and sensitive manner, complex and sensitive information concerning the assessment, formulation and treatment plans of clients under the services care. To provide support & guidance in the application of psychological principles and techniques, and to foster reflective practice.
• Senior managers & professional staff: To maintain and build good working relationships with senior professional staff and managers across the Psychology and Psychological Therapies service and in DPT to foster a positive approach to the integrated mental health and wellbeing service and to enable effective negotiation.

Planning and Organisation

• The service: To plan and prioritise own workload, balancing the demands of patient care, support and guidance of carers and professionals and service research and development activities.
• To contribute to the planning and organising of the psychology and therapy services within the locality area and to contribute to the development and improvement of provision of psychological services within services to best meet the organisations strategy and priorities.
• The multidisciplinary service: To provide psychology / therapy knowledge to the multiprofessional planning, development and marketing of mental health and wellbeing services.
• Responsibility for Judgement and Analysis
• To provide specialist psychological therapy expertise and advice.
• To provide psychological therapies / other therapies, developing specialist psychological formulations and assessments of clients, formulating plans for their psychological treatment and implementing specialist psychological interventions for individuals, carers, families and groups.
• To support the Professional Head, General Manager, Practice and Strategic Development Leads and Professional Leads by undertaking service development and redesign projects and coordinating the resulting work within the team.

Responsibility for Patient/Client Care, Treatment and Therapy

• Assessment & intervention: To make highly skilled evaluations and decisions about assessment, treatment and discharge, including the management of risk. To formulate plans for psychological treatment and implementing specialist psychological interventions for individuals, carers, families and groups and to demonstrate awareness of diversity issues.
• Consultation & guidance: To provide advice, guidance and consultation on psychological aspects of patient care to colleagues, other service providers, patients, supporters and families.

Policy, Service, Research, Innovation and Improvement

• The post holder is accountable for their own professional actions, acting within Trust policies and procedures and Professional Practice Guidelines.
• Policy & service: To support proposed changes for policy and for service development.

Responsibility for Finance, Equipment and Other Resources

• Careful use of equipment.

Responsibility for Supervision, Leadership and Management

• Leadership & supervision: To supervise the work of assistants &/or trainees as required. To provide supervision & consultancy to health and social care colleagues.
• To support placements for trainee staff in line with professional guidelines

Information Resources and Administrative Duties

• To maintain accurate records, compliant with Trust Practice Standards.
• To be responsible for using an email account to generate, monitor, and respond to the e-mail traffic by which the Trust conducts much of its internal communication.

Responsibility for Research and Development

• To utilise theory, evidence-based literature and research to support evidence based practice in individual work within the PPT and local mental health services.
• To support project work including specific areas of audit, research or service evaluation
• As a clinician to be responsible for collecting clinical practice and outcome data that contributes to building practice based evidence and service evaluation.

Freedom to Act

• The post holder is accountable for their own professional actions, acting within Trust policies and procedures and Professional Practice Guidelines.
• To work autonomously within clinical professional guidelines and exercise responsibility for the governance of psychological practice within the locality/specialty. Interpretation of professional and Trustguidelines, and implementing policies in conjunction with peers, Head of Profession and General Manager.
• To provide specialist Psychological therapy expertise and advice guidance and consultation on psychological aspects of patient care to colleagues, other service providers, patients, supporters and families.

Any Other Specific Tasks Required

• To ensure all clinical care and treatment provided by psychologists/therapists is carried out under appropriate supervision and leadership.
• To ensure that all relevant staff groups continuously update the skills and techniques relevant to their clinical work.

Job description

Job responsibilities

Communication and Working Relationships

• Clients, family and carers: To communicate in a highly skilled and sensitive manner with clients who may have specific difficulties in understand and/or communicating and who may be hostile, antagonistic or highly emotionally disturbed.
• Multidisciplinary team colleagues: To work closely with colleagues in the multi-professional integrated mental health and wellbeing service on a day to day basis.
• Health & social care staff: To communicate with a wide range of health & social care staff in hospital and in community settings in a highly skilled and sensitive manner, complex and sensitive information concerning the assessment, formulation and treatment plans of clients under the services care. To provide support & guidance in the application of psychological principles and techniques, and to foster reflective practice.
• Senior managers & professional staff: To maintain and build good working relationships with senior professional staff and managers across the Psychology and Psychological Therapies service and in DPT to foster a positive approach to the integrated mental health and wellbeing service and to enable effective negotiation.

Planning and Organisation

• The service: To plan and prioritise own workload, balancing the demands of patient care, support and guidance of carers and professionals and service research and development activities.
• To contribute to the planning and organising of the psychology and therapy services within the locality area and to contribute to the development and improvement of provision of psychological services within services to best meet the organisations strategy and priorities.
• The multidisciplinary service: To provide psychology / therapy knowledge to the multiprofessional planning, development and marketing of mental health and wellbeing services.
• Responsibility for Judgement and Analysis
• To provide specialist psychological therapy expertise and advice.
• To provide psychological therapies / other therapies, developing specialist psychological formulations and assessments of clients, formulating plans for their psychological treatment and implementing specialist psychological interventions for individuals, carers, families and groups.
• To support the Professional Head, General Manager, Practice and Strategic Development Leads and Professional Leads by undertaking service development and redesign projects and coordinating the resulting work within the team.

Responsibility for Patient/Client Care, Treatment and Therapy

• Assessment & intervention: To make highly skilled evaluations and decisions about assessment, treatment and discharge, including the management of risk. To formulate plans for psychological treatment and implementing specialist psychological interventions for individuals, carers, families and groups and to demonstrate awareness of diversity issues.
• Consultation & guidance: To provide advice, guidance and consultation on psychological aspects of patient care to colleagues, other service providers, patients, supporters and families.

Policy, Service, Research, Innovation and Improvement

• The post holder is accountable for their own professional actions, acting within Trust policies and procedures and Professional Practice Guidelines.
• Policy & service: To support proposed changes for policy and for service development.

Responsibility for Finance, Equipment and Other Resources

• Careful use of equipment.

Responsibility for Supervision, Leadership and Management

• Leadership & supervision: To supervise the work of assistants &/or trainees as required. To provide supervision & consultancy to health and social care colleagues.
• To support placements for trainee staff in line with professional guidelines

Information Resources and Administrative Duties

• To maintain accurate records, compliant with Trust Practice Standards.
• To be responsible for using an email account to generate, monitor, and respond to the e-mail traffic by which the Trust conducts much of its internal communication.

Responsibility for Research and Development

• To utilise theory, evidence-based literature and research to support evidence based practice in individual work within the PPT and local mental health services.
• To support project work including specific areas of audit, research or service evaluation
• As a clinician to be responsible for collecting clinical practice and outcome data that contributes to building practice based evidence and service evaluation.

Freedom to Act

• The post holder is accountable for their own professional actions, acting within Trust policies and procedures and Professional Practice Guidelines.
• To work autonomously within clinical professional guidelines and exercise responsibility for the governance of psychological practice within the locality/specialty. Interpretation of professional and Trustguidelines, and implementing policies in conjunction with peers, Head of Profession and General Manager.
• To provide specialist Psychological therapy expertise and advice guidance and consultation on psychological aspects of patient care to colleagues, other service providers, patients, supporters and families.

Any Other Specific Tasks Required

• To ensure all clinical care and treatment provided by psychologists/therapists is carried out under appropriate supervision and leadership.
• To ensure that all relevant staff groups continuously update the skills and techniques relevant to their clinical work.

Person Specification

Other skills and abilities

Essential

• Excellent verbal, nonverbal and written communication skills
• Ability to integrate complex data, make highly skilled evaluations and decisions and take a long term perspective.
• Proven organisational, planning and time management skills.
• Calm, methodical approach, friendly but concise.
• Good communication skills when presenting / facilitating to varying groups of people.
• Ability to work independently and use initiative within a service consisting of a network of teams.
• Ability to work as a member of a clinical team.
• Ability to tolerate ambiguity, and maintain own morale and motivation in challenging service delivery contexts.

Qualifications

Essential

• Professional, masters level qualification in Art Therapy and current HCPC Arts Therapies registration.
• Further training or experience in clinical specialism.

Desirable

• Further training in at least one (other) psychological therapy.
• IT skills.

Experience

Essential

• Experience of specialist therapeutic assessment and treatment of mental clients across a wide range of care settings, including outpatient, community, primary care and in patient settings.
• Experience, and/ or training in diversity awareness and social inequality.
• Experience, of working under supervision in secondary care adult mental health services.

Desirable

• Experience of teaching, training and/or supervision.

Experience

Essential

• Experience of specialist therapeutic assessment and treatment of mental clients across a wide range of care settings, including outpatient, community, primary care and in patient settings.
• Experience, and/ or training in diversity awareness and social inequality.
• Experience, of working under supervision in secondary care adult mental health services.

Desirable

• Experience of teaching, training and/or supervision.

Knowledge

Essential

• Knowledge and familiarity of the services in the NHS where psychology and psychological therapies are commonly applied.
• An understanding of providing psychological therapy for service users presenting with severe and complex mental health problems.

Person Specification

Other skills and abilities

Essential

• Excellent verbal, nonverbal and written communication skills
• Ability to integrate complex data, make highly skilled evaluations and decisions and take a long term perspective.
• Proven organisational, planning and time management skills.
• Calm, methodical approach, friendly but concise.
• Good communication skills when presenting / facilitating to varying groups of people.
• Ability to work independently and use initiative within a service consisting of a network of teams.
• Ability to work as a member of a clinical team.
• Ability to tolerate ambiguity, and maintain own morale and motivation in challenging service delivery contexts.

Qualifications

Essential

• Professional, masters level qualification in Art Therapy and current HCPC Arts Therapies registration.
• Further training or experience in clinical specialism.

Desirable

• Further training in at least one (other) psychological therapy.
• IT skills.

Experience

Essential

• Experience of specialist therapeutic assessment and treatment of mental clients across a wide range of care settings, including outpatient, community, primary care and in patient settings.
• Experience, and/ or training in diversity awareness and social inequality.
• Experience, of working under supervision in secondary care adult mental health services.

Desirable

• Experience of teaching, training and/or supervision.

Experience

Essential

• Experience of specialist therapeutic assessment and treatment of mental clients across a wide range of care settings, including outpatient, community, primary care and in patient settings.
• Experience, and/ or training in diversity awareness and social inequality.
• Experience, of working under supervision in secondary care adult mental health services.

Desirable

• Experience of teaching, training and/or supervision.

Knowledge

Essential

• Knowledge and familiarity of the services in the NHS where psychology and psychological therapies are commonly applied.
• An understanding of providing psychological therapy for service users presenting with severe and complex 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.

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Additional information

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.

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Employer details

Employer name

Devon Partnership NHS Trust

Address

West Pilton Health & Wellbeing Clinic

Youings Drive

Barnstaple

Devon

EX31 1QL

Employer's website

https://www.dpt.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)

Employer details

Employer name

Devon Partnership NHS Trust

Address

West Pilton Health & Wellbeing Clinic

Youings Drive

Barnstaple

Devon

EX31 1QL

Employer's website

https://www.dpt.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)