Recovery Navigator (South Wiltshire IOS FT)

Could you inspire hope for people who are struggling with their mental health?

Second Step is a leading mental health charity in the Southwest offering housing, support and hope to people with mental health and support needs.  Our vision is that we believe in a world where everyone affected by mental health problems can create a positive future.  We promote mental health and wellbeing by supporting people and communities to build brighter futures.

We are recruiting Recovery Navigators to join our Intensive Outreach Service Team in South Wiltshire, Swindon and BANES to provide personalised support to individuals who experience complex needs associated with multiple and severe disadvantage. The Intensive Outreach Service (IOS) adds value to the existing Intensive Services across Bath and Northeast Somerset, Wiltshire and Swindon by supporting individuals experiencing intensive mental health symptoms or crisis who require additional intervention beyond short-term clinical input. IOS compliments AWP interventions through a person-centred, trauma-informed approach that supports individuals to address psychological, social and relational difficulties, enabling longer-term stability and aims to reduce the likelihood of reassessing services.

About the role                                                                
We are committed to working with a recovery-based approach and supporting people to meet their individual needs. Why not join our team to support our clients on their recovery journey by:

• Work as part of an integrated system alongside AWP Intensive Services, contributing to the delivery and ongoing development of the IOS model through collaborative practice and reflective learning, within agreed role boundaries.
• Complete support conversations with the client. This conversation is a person-centred intervention to assess what matters to a person with regard to their life, support needs, goals, strengths, and desired outcomes whilst addressing their concerns. The conversation includes the Dialog+ tool that helps to monitor outcomes.
• Provide intensive, trauma-informed and personalised support to individuals face-to-face, responding flexibly to acute mental health distress, crisis presentations and fluctuating levels of risk e.g. stabilisation and grounding techniques, crisis management and effective coping skills, safety planning, identifying networks of support.
• Support individuals to navigate the ‘wider system’ which includes signposting or supporting the client to access support in ways that promote independence. This is oftten in relation to housing, debt advice, health and community resources, employment, family/relationship breakdown, etc.
• Manage a complex caseload effectively, maintaining accurate records that detail support engagement/risk observations in a clinically informed manner. Acknowledge fact versus professional opinion, as a core aspect of safe practice within a high-risk service in line with organisational and partnership requirements.

The IOS Recovery Navigator role is a great fit, for an applicant pursuing experience relevant to a clinical psychology field but also lends itself to anyone who is passionate about supporting those with acute mental health presentations and has some form of training/experience relevant to acute/higher risk populations. 

Full details of this exciting opportunity can be found in the role profile. 

About you

You will:

• Have experience working with people with mental health needs.
• Strong knowledge of mental health presentations, including acute distress, crisis, and co-occurring needs.
• Knowledge of support planning and risk assessing.
• Commitment to trauma-informed, psychologically informed and recovery-oriented practice.
• Be passionate about improving the lived experience and health of people using mental health services
• Have proven knowledge of support needs of people with mental health needs

What we offer

• to be part of a friendly team, with direct support from a Senior Line Manager
• in-depth induction to Second Step and all the relevant training and support you need to do your job well.
• This is blended working with support taking place in the homes of people but will also require some office and home working.
• monthly one-to-one sessions with your line manager
• Group reflective practice with input from the Psychology Team.

If you are interested in this role but are concerned that you may not have the experience or knowledge please contact us for an informal conversation, we would very much like to hear from you.  Please contact: Jessica Chivers: IOS Team Manager on 07353099629 or email jessica.chivers@second-step.co.uk

About us

We are taking positive action to increase diversity throughout our organisation, and to nurture a culture of inclusion for all our people and the clients that we support. 

We welcome applications from everyone who meets the criteria and strongly encourage individuals who identify as being of Black, African, Caribbean or Asian descent to apply as these groups are currently under-represented at Second Step.

To ensure fairness and consistency, all applications are anonymised up until an interview has been confirmed so that shortlisting is based solely upon the suitability of the candidate’s skills and qualities.

Closing date: 29th June 2026

Interview dates: TBC