Mental Health Programme – Out of Country Clinical Lead

Summary

The out-of-country Clinical Lead will provide specialist clinical oversight to support the development of a Children Not Numbers' Mental Health Programme, assessing and advising on selected in-country partners and ensuring the referral pathway reflects evidence-based, trauma-informed and culturally appropriate practice. The role will provide expert advice on the mental health needs of children, adolescents, pregnant women, parents and caregivers and in-country colleagues, supporting safe, ethical and effective referral pathways across Children Not Numbers Programmes. The postholder will also strengthen the clinical capacity of staff and volunteers through training, supervision and case consultation.

Principal Duties

• Provide clinical advice on establishing a programme to streamline access to mental health services through delivery of practical and safeguarding-centred mental health referrals.

• Provide an assessment and advise on preferred in-country mental-health providers and partners for referral based on the services and quality provided. Support the management of these partner relationships once established.
• Advise on referral criteria and eligibility, developing appropriate assessment checklist of required documentation.
• Develop and deliver training for medical teams, caseworkers and volunteers to support roll-out of the programme, focusing on:
• Mental health awareness
• Identifying mental health concerns and trauma red flag signs, using assessment tools such as CRIES-8 (Children’s Revised Impact of Event Scale)
• Safe referral procedures
• Trauma-informed practice and safeguarding
• Provide clinical mentoring and case consultation as required.

General

• This description represents a broad outline of the role and is not intended to be exhaustive
• From time to time, you may be asked to perform other duties commensurate with the role as required.
• All staff are required to:
• Adhere strictly to safeguarding and child protection policies
• Follow security and emergency procedures
• Uphold conflict-sensitive and humanitarian principles
• Promote dignity, inclusion, and non-discrimination
• Maintain professional boundaries at all times

Person Specification

Qualifications

• Registered Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist, Clinical Psychologist, or equivalent regulated mental health professional.
• Postgraduate training or demonstrated expertise in child and adolescent mental health, trauma, and psychological interventions.

Experience

• Minimum 5 years' post-qualification clinical experience.
• Significant experience providing psychological assessment and intervention for children and adolescents affected by trauma, displacement, conflict or humanitarian emergencies.
• Experience working with mothers and families, both ante and post-natal is desirable.
• Experience working in conflict-affected or humanitarian settings, ideally within the Middle East.
• Experience designing or advising on mental health referral pathways and clinical governance.
• Experience delivering training, supervision and case consultation to multidisciplinary teams.
• Experience working remotely with NGOs, community organisations or humanitarian programmes is desirable.

Knowledge and Skills

• Specialist knowledge of child and adolescent psychology and trauma-informed care.
• Strong understanding of the psychological impact of armed conflict, displacement and complex trauma on children and families.
• Demonstrated cultural understanding of Middle Eastern communities, including culturally responsive approaches to mental health and family-centred care.
• Knowledge of safeguarding, child protection and humanitarian MHPSS standards.
• Excellent clinical judgement, communication and stakeholder engagement skills.
• Ability to provide culturally sensitive advice within multidisciplinary and remote teams.
• Proficiency in Arabic language (desirable).

Children Not Numbers strongly value diversity of experience in our team and for this reason encourage you to apply should you not meet 100% of the above criteria.

Commitment

The role requires a minimum commitment of 5 hours per week

Application Process

To apply, please submit your CV and a brief cover letter outlining your relevant skills and experience.