JOB DESCRIPTION

JOB TITLE: Children’s Therapy Practitioner

SERVICE: Children’s Therapy Service, DVIP a division of Richmond
Fellowship

ACCOUNTABLE TO: Children’s Therapy Service Manager

BRIEF PURPOSE: To develop and undertake therapeutic work with children who
have lived with domestic violence with the aim of increasing
their safety and wellbeing.
Therapeutic Intervention with children who have lived with domestic abuse

 Processing referrals including the attendant administrative tasks.

 Assessing children and families for direct therapeutic work with the children as part of
DVIP’s multi-disciplinary team.
 Undertaking semi long term work and time limited therapeutic work in suitable cases.
Offering Holistic/integrative approaches mainly child centred non directive play
therapy interventions.
 Keeping appropriate records of all contacts and client work and service related
information.
 Attending monthly clinical supervision and line management as required.
 Undertaking review sessions with children and parents as appropriate.
 Undertaking all work with children collaboratively with the parent/s (in so far at is
appropriate and safe to do so), the DVIP team and other professionals involved with
the family, in the interests of increasing the safety and welfare of children and
reducing the effect of harm they have experienced.

Supervisory / Service Responsibilities

 Assist the children’s therapy service manager in developing and managing

psychologist, psychotherapists and play therapy training placements in partnership
with training institutions, making sure the placement can meet training requirements.
This includes providing supervision, conducting the recruitment process (advertising,
interviewing and selecting trainees).
 Assist the Children’s Therapeutic Manager in providing training for trainees around
domestic abuse and specialist intervention.
 Assist the Children’s Therapy service manager in running both centre based and
outreach therapeutic services which may involve working from our other sites at
times.

Liaison and partnership working
 Liaise with other agencies and the rest of the DVIP team to identify appropriate and
potential referrals (3-17 year olds) that have been affected by DV, who’s parent/s, will
actively support their therapy, and who have no obvious contra-indications for
therapeutic intervention).
 Call and attend case work meetings (with the DVIP team) and professionals
meetings (with others involved in the case) or liaison as required to this end.
 Develop intra– and inter- agency partnerships, protocols and working agreements to
facilitate such collaboration both on individual cases and on cross-referrals
 (especially with CAMHS, specialist Safeguarding Leads and Children and Families
social work services).
 Promote and raise the profile of DVIP’s children’s work alongside the Children’s
therapeutic service manager and Head of Children & Young People’s Services.
 Assist in developing and maintaining monitoring systems for the therapeutic service
as it expands.
 Contribute to monitoring and provide reports of DVIP’s children’s work for funders
and management as required.
 Contribute to funding applications around further child or parenting work as required.
 Contribute and assist in undertaking research projects as carried out by the service
as well as attending regular project meetings with internal and external partners.

Risk Assessment
To undertake or contribute to the assessments of children who have lived with domestic
abuse, both separately and as part of the therapy team.

 Contribute to, prepare and file risk assessment reports.

 Completing court reports if appropriate / required.
 Undertaking further interim and final assessments and reports on the same case if
required.

Team Work
 Attend and participate in team meetings as required.
 Offer peer support and supervision to other DVIP team members as required.
 Assist in the general cover of DVIP’s offices.
 Work collaboratively with other DVIP teams as and when appropriate.

Policy & Approach

 Undertake all work in accordance with DVIP’s objectives and policies and operate
within the London Child Protection Procedures
 Develop and contribute to other work in line with the job purpose outlined above and
DVIP’s overall objectives

Supervision and Training

 Participate in identified training relevant to the post.

Equal Opportunities
 Demonstrate a working knowledge of RF’s Equal Opportunities Policy and
incorporate requirements into day to day work practice.

Health & Safety

 Comply with RF’s Health & Safety policies and procedures.
 Take personal responsibility for your own health and safety and report incidents and
potential hazards as necessary.

Recovery Focus Policies and Procedures

The post holder will be expected, at all times, to be familiar and comply with the written
policies, procedures and guidelines for good practice, issued by the Recovery Focus Group.

Reviewing and Updating

This job description should not be considered exhaustive. It will be reviewed on a regular
basis and updated in line with the requirements of the role. The post holder will be expected
to take a flexible approach to the tasks which may be varied from time to time.
 Basic Terms and Conditions of Employment
Children’s Therapy Practitioner

Status: This post is offered as a fixed term contract ending 31st March 2022.

Hours: This post is for 37.5 hours per week, part time opportunities are also
available.

Salary: Starting salary for this post is £26,000.00 plus £3,250.00 Inner London
Weighting per annum.

Holidays: 25 days holiday per annum, plus statutory Bank Holidays, or time off in
lieu if worked (pro rata for part time). Annual leave is increased to 28
days after two year’s continuous employment.

Benefits: ~ Contributory pension scheme upon completion of three months’

service.
~ Non-contributory life assurance policy (to value of 3 x annual
salary).
~ Commitment to formal supervision and staff support.

Learning &
Development: Recovery Focus is committed to training as an integral part of staff
development and offers a wide range of in-house training courses.
 Basic Terms and Conditions of Employment
Children’s Therapy Practitioner
You will need to demonstrate in your application (A) and/or at interview (I), that you possess the
essential criteria for this post as detailed below. In addition demonstration of some of the desirable
criteria will also assist you greatly in your application.
CRITERIA ESSENTIAL DESIRABLE
EXPERIENCE
Experience of using Holistic/integrative models of therapy. 
Experience of working with children across a wide age range of 
ages and from diverse backgrounds and ethnicities.
Experience of initial assessments / clinical formulation.

Experience of working in the arena of domestic abuse, trauma
or related field.

Experience of play therapy and other creative forms (e.g. art 
therapy)
Experience of working within safeguarding and child protection 
procedures
Experience of assessing children and families suitability for
therapeutic intervention

Experience of child observation and observation of families in
contact with children

Experience of service monitoring and evaluation 
Post qualification experience of providing direct long term (up to 
one year minimum) therapeutic work to children who have
experienced domestic violence between their parents and other
forms of abuse.
Experience of assessing children for the family courts or
otherwise and of writing court reports.

Experience of group work with children

Experience of parenting work with mothers / fathers who have
experienced or perpetrated domestic violence

Experience of developing and providing training.

Experience of supervising trainees and volunteers

KNOWLEDGE
An understanding of child development.

An understanding of child abuse and trauma and the impacts of
these on child development.

An understanding of the dynamics of domestic abuse and its 
effects on victims and children and on child-parent relationships.
Theoretical knowledge of the holistic integrative and chid 
centred model of therapy.
Knowledge of risk factors to children in domestic violence. 
Knowledge of the dynamics of abuse and issues around safety 
planning and advocacy.
An understanding of the family courts system - both private and 
public law including the Children Act 1989, safeguarding
policies and procedures and legislation in relation to domestic
abuse.
SKILLS
The ability to form therapeutic relationships with children and 
parents that have clear boundaries, are compassionate and are
focused on increasing their safety and wellbeing and on
minimising the harm to the child as a result of domestic
violence.
The ability to reflect upon the child and / or parent and make 
helpful therapeutic interventions at a level which they are able to
understand.
The ability to communicate clearly with a range of people both 
over the telephone and in person, sometimes over sensitive and
/ or complex issues.
The ability to organise your own work load and use your own 
initiative.
The ability to work as part of a team. 
The ability to reflect on your own process and the process of a 
team of which you are a part.
The ability to use a computer, particularly MS Office, Word, 
Excel, and to maintain effective administrative systems in a
meticulous manner.
The ability to write clear reports, including offering your 
professional opinion and recommendations fully backed up and
explained.
Possess excellent presentation skills. 
QUALIFICATIONS
Applicants must possess a qualification from related fields of 
child psychotherapy, art and or play therapy.
Registration with PSA and HCPC 
Applicants must be registered with a recognised accredited 
body, such as BPS, PTUK,BACP,UKCP or BAPT
APPROACH
Demonstrate an understanding of Anti-Discriminatory Practice
in employment and service delivery and a commitment to

implementing Anti-Discriminatory Practice in relation to job
responsibilities.
Demonstrate a commitment to work in accordance with the
objectives and policies of DVIP (including Child Protection,

Confidentiality and Equal Opportunities Policies)
Demonstrate a willingness to work within an organisation, which
works not only with children, but also with both adult

perpetrators and victims of domestic abuse.
Willingness and ability to work flexibly and to work some
evenings in line with the changing needs of the service.

Willingness to provide professional support functions to the
children’s therapy service manager.

Demonstrate the ability to work in an intense environment and
manage a heavy workload.

Demonstrate the ability to work under pressure and meet
multiple deadlines.

Willingness to undertake personal and professional
development while striving to address gaps in knowledge and

skill.
Willingness to travel to other sites / boroughs where required to
maintain the smooth running of outreach services.
