Mental Health & Wellbeing Lead
Location: Tower Hamlets
Salary: £150 - £170 per day PAYE
Contract: Temp2Perm after 12 weeks
Hours: 8:30 - 4:30pm Monday - Friday (term time only)
Start Date: ASAP
Are you an experienced mental health and wellbeing professional passionate about improving outcomes for children and young people with complex social, emotional and mental health (SEMH) needs?
We are seeking an exceptional Mental Health & Wellbeing Lead to provide strategic leadership for whole-school mental health and emotional wellbeing provision within a specialist education setting.
This is a key leadership role, bridging pastoral care, therapeutic intervention and academic support to create a trauma-informed, nurturing and emotionally safe environment in which young people can thrive.
The Role
As Mental Health & Wellbeing Lead, you will lead the strategic development, implementation and evaluation of mental health and wellbeing provision across the setting.
You will work closely with senior leaders, safeguarding and SEND colleagues, education staff, families and external agencies to ensure that mental health support is effective, evidence-informed and closely aligned with individual needs and outcomes.
The role will combine strategic leadership with hands-on support, including responding to periods of acute dysregulation, overseeing targeted interventions and supporting young people experiencing significant barriers to education.
Key responsibilities will include:
- Leading the development and implementation of a trauma-informed, nurture-based whole-school mental health and wellbeing strategy.
- Monitoring and evaluating the impact of interventions using recognised assessment and evaluation frameworks.
- Advising senior leaders on matters relating to behaviour, attendance, mental health and wellbeing.
- Championing staff wellbeing and contributing to effective staff supervision and support frameworks.
- Overseeing the triage, coordination and monitoring of targeted 1:1 and small-group therapeutic and emotional regulation interventions.
- Providing specialist support during periods of acute dysregulation, trauma response or mental health crisis, using effective de-escalation approaches.
- Developing individualised reintegration plans for young people experiencing Emotionally Based School Avoidance (EBSA).
- Developing strong relationships with external professionals, including NHS mental health services, local authority teams, social care and third-sector providers.
- Working closely with safeguarding and SEND leads to align mental health provision with safeguarding requirements and EHCP outcomes.
- Leading or contributing to multi-agency meetings and statutory EHCP reviews.
- Designing and delivering CPD for teaching and support staff around mental health, trauma-informed practice, de-escalation and emerging mental health needs.
- Supporting parents and carers through workshops, guidance and practical resources designed to promote emotional resilience and wellbeing.
About You
You will be an experienced and compassionate professional with a strong understanding of children's and young people's mental health, particularly within an SEMH or similarly complex setting.
You will have:
- A minimum of three years' experience working with children or young people with complex SEMH needs.
- A recognised Senior Mental Health Lead qualification or equivalent training.
- A relevant degree in Psychology, Social Work, Counselling, Nursing, Education or a related discipline.
- Advanced safeguarding training at DSL level.
- Experience as a DSL within a school environment.
- A proven track record of planning and delivering evidence-based mental health interventions.
- Experience coordinating multi-agency referrals and working collaboratively with external professionals.
- Strong knowledge of adverse childhood experiences, developmental trauma and neurodiversity.
- Experience using mental health and wellbeing assessment tools such as the Boxall Profile and Strengths & Difficulties Questionnaires.
- Excellent crisis management and de-escalation skills.
- A strong understanding of CAMHS and local authority Early Help pathways.
Experience within an SEMH special school, PRU or alternative provision setting, together with experience of line-managing pastoral or therapeutic teams, would be highly advantageous.
A postgraduate qualification in child and adolescent mental health, psychotherapy or trauma-informed care, or additional specialist training such as Youth Mental Health First Aid Instructor status, would also be desirable.
What You Will Bring
Above all, you will bring emotional resilience, empathy, sound professional judgement and genuine commitment to improving the lives of young people.
You will be calm and composed under pressure, able to build trusting relationships with children, families and professionals, and committed to understanding behaviour through a trauma-informed and non-judgemental lens.
You will be an excellent communicator who can confidently operate at both strategic and operational levels — influencing whole-school practice while remaining close to the young people and staff you support.
The Opportunity
This is an exciting opportunity to take a leading role in shaping mental health and wellbeing provision within a specialist educational environment.
You will have the opportunity to influence whole-school culture, develop staff practice, strengthen multi-agency partnerships and make a tangible difference to the educational and emotional outcomes of young people with complex needs.
If you are an experienced mental health professional looking for a role where your expertise, leadership and compassion can make a lasting difference, we would be delighted to hear from you.
Please get in touch with Elise @ Parker Smith Inclusion or call 0203 011 4848.