Overview
We are seeking a dedicated and compassionate Creative Art Psychotherapist to join our multidisciplinary team 2 days per week (days to be discussed) . The Creative Therapist will provide therapeutic support to young people through creative, expressive, and relational approaches. The role enhances the home’s therapeutic culture by embedding emotional wellbeing practices, supporting staff with psychoeducation, and contributing to care planning and progress monitoring. The residential setting currently provides care to two young people.
Duties
Direct Therapeutic Work with Young People
- Provide one‑to‑one creative therapy sessions tailored to each young person’s emotional, developmental, and relational needs.
Therapeutic Integration Within the Home
- Embed a therapeutic lens within each young person’s care plan, ensuring emotional needs, trauma history, and regulation strategies are clearly articulated.
- Support staff to apply psychoeducation within key work sessions, helping them understand emotional development, trauma responses, and regulation strategies.
- Provide reflective guidance to staff on how to integrate therapeutic principles into daily routines and interactions.
Written Therapeutic Outputs
- Produce a six‑monthly therapeutic progress report for each young person, evidencing engagement, themes, progress, and recommendations.
- Contribute written reports for LAC Reviews, or attend reviews where possible to share therapeutic insights and progress.
- Develop a monthly therapeutic newsletter aligned with awareness themes (e.g., self‑esteem, emotional regulation, identity, relationships) for staff to use in key work sessions and activities.
- Create a fortnightly therapeutic terminology definition list, placed in the home’s “Read & Sign” folder, to support staff in using accurate therapeutic language in practice and documentation.
Development of Therapeutic Tools and Resources
- Support the home to design measuring tools (e.g., emotional wellbeing scales, regulation trackers, creative assessment tools) to monitor young people’s emotional development.
- Develop a Therapy Guide outlining the therapeutic framework used within Catherham Lodge, including approaches, boundaries, aims, and how therapy integrates with residential care practice.
- Provide staff with accessible explanations of key therapeutic concepts such as attachment, trauma responses, and co‑regulation.
- Use creative modalities such as art, movement, play, and sensory‑based approaches to support emotional expression and regulation.
- Maintain accurate, confidential session notes in line with professional standards and organisational policy.
Professional Standards
- Work in accordance with HCPC and/ or relevant professional bodies ethical guidelines and safeguarding requirements.
- Always maintain professional boundaries and confidentiality.
- Engage in ongoing CPD to ensure high‑quality, evidence‑informed practice.
Qualifications
Essential
- Qualified Creative Therapist, Art Therapist, DMP, or equivalent.
Desirable
- Experience in residential children’s homes or social care settings.
- Knowledge of Ofsted frameworks and therapeutic models used in residential care.
- Ability to deliver staff training or reflective practice sessions.
- Experience working with children and young people with trauma histories.
- Strong understanding of therapeutic communication, emotional development, and trauma‑informed practice.
- Ability to work autonomously and collaboratively within a residential care environment.
- Excellent written communication skills for reports and staff guidance.
This role offers a rewarding opportunity for qualified professionals passionate about harnessing creativity to promote mental health recovery and well-being within a supportive organisation committed to professional development.
Advert Close Date: 14 August, 2026.
''We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive a sufficient number of applications.”
Pay: £14.00-£16.00 per hour
Benefits:
- Casual dress
- Company events
- Company pension
- Free parking
Work Location: In person
