Emotional Support Practitioner

The Opportunity

Salary:£36,363 to £39,152 per annum

Contract Type: Permanent

Working Pattern: Full-Time – 37 hours per week

Location: County Hall, Horsham. Please note that the role will involve Countywide travel.

We are currently looking for a dedicated Emotional Support Practitioner. As an Emotional Support Practitioner within the Horizon Suicide Prevention Team, you will work collaboratively with professionals across children’s services and education to strengthen understanding of suicidality and the factors affecting children’s mental health. You will deliver short, intensive, trauma‑informed and neuro‑affirming interventions that support emotional regulation, build resilience and develop safety plans tailored to each child’s lived experience. Working closely with families, you will help build confidence and capacity, so they feel supported and able to respond safely when a child is experiencing suicidal thoughts.

In this role, you will play a key part in supporting the team around the child while delivering psychologically informed, evidence-based individual sessions. These sessions will draw on best practice approaches, including trauma-informed strategies, emotional regulation techniques, resilience-building interventions, and safety planning tailored to each child’s needs.

Launched in July 2025 as part of the development of the West Sussex Children’s Psychological Hub, the Horizon Service plays a vital role within the wider Restore Service, alongside CATs and the Solutions Service. The Horizon Service is made up of two specialist teams, Horizon Intervention and Horizon Suicide Prevention, working together to promote the emotional and mental wellbeing of children across West Sussex.

Our teams support children, families, and professionals by providing expert consultation and advice, delivering high‑quality training, and offering direct therapeutic intervention. The Horizon Service is grounded in a strong value base. We believe that with the right support, children can recover, thrive, and achieve positive outcomes. We strive to restore hope and empower those we work with through:

• Hope – Believing in recovery and the potential for positive change
• Empowerment – Building on strengths and supporting resilience
• Compassion – Listening, respecting, and centring the child’s voice
• Collaboration – Working together across systems for lasting impact
• Inclusion – Embracing neurodiversity and tailoring support to individual needs

Experience and Skills

Key Skills

• Skills in engaging children, young people, their families and external agencies to build strong, trusting relationships and work collaboratively to achieve positive change.

• A willingness to work in a creative and empathetic way to reduce the risk of suicide and promote positive mental health outcomes.

• An ability to apply a strengths‑based approach while navigating and collaborating within complex networks.

• Ability to analyse and interpret information to identify and prioritise needs, risks and safety concerns, and to escalate appropriately to relevant mental health and social care teams when required.

• Ability to negotiate and implement effective plans, delivering direct interventions that draw on evidence-based approaches to support and stabilise young people at risk of suicide.

• Ability to work in an empowering way with young people and families in crisis, managing conflict, containing your own and others’ anxieties, and maintaining a focus on collective strengths and capabilities while working within professional boundaries

Qualifications/Experience

• Relevant degree in health, youth work, education for the Children and Young People’s Workforce, Social Work or equivalent, or demonstrable equivalent comparable experience. Professional registration where appropriate.
• Experience of collaborative working with a range of professionals, demonstrating an awareness of differing roles and responsibilities and effective methods of collaboration, e.g. health, housing, learning, statutory, voluntary and independent sector.
• Requirement to communicate in English with members of the public.
• Valid and full driving licence.

For more information on the Key Skills, Qualifications and/or Experience required, please refer to the Job Description attached. Please refer to the key skills in your cover letter as these will be used for shortlisting criteria.

Rewards and Benefits

As an employer we recognise that it is our employees that are central to everything we do. We aim to create a supportive and dynamic working environment where employees can achieve their full potential, achieve a healthy work-life balance, and are rewarded for the work they do.

For a full list this can be found at our Rewards and Benefits page.

Here at West Sussex County Council, we are ambitious for our children and our workforce. We are committed to improving our services for the children and families in West Sussex we support. You will join us as at a key time on our improvement journey. That’s why we need professionals, like you, who really want to be part of the positive change that is happening for children. Be part of an ambitious improvement plan and make a significant difference to children and families in West Sussex. There has never been a more rewarding time to join.

For further information about us and about working in Children’s Social Care at West Sussex County Council, please visit Careers in children's social work in West Sussex .

Further Information

The reference number for this role is CAFHE06227.

For an informal conversation or for further information regarding the role, please contact Cara Davis (Service Manager) at ***email_hidden***. For any issues or queries regarding the application process please contact Kerry Joad at [email protected].

To apply, please follow the links below to upload your CV and Cover Letter. In your cover letter please outline your motivations for applying and explaining the skills and experience you can bring to the role (please refer to the key skills) ensuring that any gaps in employment are covered in your CV. Please ensure you have saved the job description attached to the main advert on our website as, once the job has closed, you may not have the opportunity to download again.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people, and vulnerable adults. This post is subject to an enhanced DBS check, five years referencing, and an occupational health check.

Equity, inclusion and accessibility is very important to West Sussex County Council. We welcome and encourage applications from everyone, as this helps us build a diverse and talented workforce, that reflects the communities we serve. We ensure our approach to recruitment is flexible and supportive to enable all applicants to be at their best and to ensure they have the best possible chance of success. If you require any reasonable adjustments to support your application, please contact [email protected].

We operate a guaranteed interview scheme for applicants that have a disability, are a veteran or are a care leaver. More information can be found on our application help page.

Job Reference: CAFHE06227