Community Forensic LDA Arts Therapist | East London NHS Foundation Trust


Company:	East London NHS Foundation Trust
Salary:	£58,133 - £65,261 per annum, pro rata
Hours:	Part-time
Location:	London, E1 4DG
Job type:	Contract
Posting date:	18 Sept 2026
Closing date:	18 Oct 2026

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Summary

This is an exciting opportunity for a highly motivated and enthusiastic Arts Therapist (Art, Music or Dance Movement) to join our new Community Forensic LD/ASD Services. We are looking for someone who has excellent communication skills, who is able to work within an emotionally demanding environment to deliver high quality and effective arts therapy provision across North East London with LD/ASD service users discharged from secure forensic inpatient services. We need someone who can work with a high degree of autonomy, who can use initiative in making decisions, is skilled in scoping and forming links with other services and who also works well within teams. An ability to demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of managing risk and relational security when working with this client group is essential.

The Forensic Community Learning Disability and Autism Service is an exciting venture for the ELFT Forensic Service, with an overarching aim of reducing the risk of offending or reoffending of adults with a diagnosis of Learning Disability and/ or Autism.

The team will provide a range of support across North East London, including complex case management and joint work with and consultation to numerous partner agencies such as other areas of the ELFT Forensic Service, criminal justice partners and Community Learning Disability Services, and providing a substantial programme of training. The team will offer inreach to inpatients at the John Howard Centre and forensic medium secure units in North East London who are approaching discharge.

The service model places a strong emphasis on Recovery, service user involvement, and co-production. The model stresses the importance of working across the care pathway from inpatient to community, and there is an emphasis on building relationships and signposting with community services (including community arts projects and arts in health providers ) to work collaboratively to address the needs of the diverse population.

Our mission is to make a positive difference to people's lives by improving the quality of life for all we serve. Our values are: We Care, We Respect, We are Inclusive – so we are looking for people who live and breathe these qualities when supporting service users and carers, and in their relationships with colleagues in the Trust and our partner organisations.

Essential

• Degree in relevant area

• MA ( or equivalent) in post title Arts Therapies modality

• For Art Therapist/Psychotherapist, Music Therapist and Dramatherapist : registration with HCPC

Desirable

• For Dance Movement Psychotherapists: registration with ADMP UK

• Membership of Arts Therapies professional Body

• Clinical Supervision Training

• Further training in an area of psychological practice relevant to the post's clinical area.

Experience

Essential

• Post qualification experience as an Arts Therapist working with this client group in both group and individual work.

• Working with service users with challenging and/or unpredictable behavior.

• Clinical supervision of a trainee Arts Therapist

• Assessing Service Users and making recommendations to a Multi-disciplinary team

Desirable

• Providing Arts Therapy teaching/training to a variety of audiences

• Working as an Arts Therapist in a Multi-Disciplinary team

• Providing Arts therapies as part of research or clinical trial

• Providing Arts Therapies in both Acute and Community settings

• Project management and evaluation supporting service development

• Supervision and support of Arts in Health projects

• Facilitation of reflective practice sessions for other disciplines eg: Nursing or Occupational therapy.

Knowledge

Essential

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

• Developed interpersonal skills enabling therapeutic alliances to be developed and maintained.

• Ability to adapt and use a range of specialist skills in skills in individual and group based arts therapies assessments and interventions

• Ability to treat service users with respect and dignity at all times using a culturally competent holistic approach

• Ability to work both independently and as part of MDT

• Ability to assess and manage frequent distressing clinical interactions with clients who have serious mental health problems

• Ability to assess and manage exposure to potential hazards including frequent verbal aggression and risk of physical aggression while maintaining own, client and general public safety.

• Good organizational and time management Skills.

• Line management of more junior staff.

• Ability to work with trauma and contain emotional impact through clinical supervision and team support systems.

• Ability to assess risk and to work face to face with acutely unwell service users

• Ability to contain and work with organisational stress and 'hold' the stress of other

• Awareness of needs and rights of service users

Other

Essential

• Ability to adapt to physical environment when dedicated therapy rooms are not available e.g. transporting materials, equipment etc and willingness to move furniture to set up a room (within Health and Safety parameters)

• Ability to assess and manage frequently distressing clinical material with clients with serious mental health problems, some of whom have committed violent and/or sexual offences.

• Mental and emotional effort required to undertake intense concentration for clinical interventions on both a one-to-one and group basis.

• Active involvement in ongoing professional and team development and a commitment to developing other team members

• Active involvement in ongoing professional and team development and a commitment to developing other team members.

Desirable

• Record of having published in either peer reviewed or academic professional journals and/or books

• Ability to support the development of the profession through participation in professional bodies and activities

This advert closes on Thursday 1 Oct 2026

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