Community Based Counsellor

Salary £31,861.44 - £35,016.80

Location Elmwood Avenue, Belfast

This is a Permanent, Full Time vacancy that will close in {x} days at {xx:xx} BST.

The Vacancy

Community-Based Counsellor

Inspire Wellbeing is recruiting a compassionate and driven Community-Based Counsellor to join our Mental Health & Addiction Services team. This is an exciting opportunity to deliver high-impact, therapeutic, and early-intervention support across a range of innovative programmes.

You’ll work directly with clients affected by substance use, mental health challenges, and self-harming behaviour, as part of Inspire’s Step 2 services including:

SHIP (Self Harm Intervention Programme)
Substance Use Early Intervention
Employee Assistance & Student Support Programmes

🌟 What You’ll Do

As a Community-Based Counsellor, you’ll:

Manage a clinical caseload of up to 25 clients weekly, working both remotely and in-person
Deliver brief solution-focused interventions aligned with CBT principles and NICE guidelines
Provide therapy for adults and young people (14+) experiencing mental health, substance use or self-harm challenges
Liaise closely with GPs, case managers, multidisciplinary teams and external partners
Maintain accurate and timely clinical notes and outcome data via Inspire’s digital platforms
Conduct risk assessments and escalate safeguarding concerns when required
Participate in case management reviews and contribute to quality assurance and clinical governance

🧠 What You’ll Bring

To be shortlisted, you’ll need:

✅ A Professional Diploma in Counselling (structured person-centred/CBT-informed)

✅ Accredited membership with BACP, IACP, BABCP, UKCP, NCS or equivalent

✅ At least 1 year of counselling experience with individuals affected by:

- Mental health issues

- Substance use

- Self-harm behaviours

✅ A strong understanding of risk management, safeguarding, and multi-agency collaboration

✅ Proven ability to manage your own caseload and deliver outcome-focused, time-limited interventions

✅ Confidence using IT systems and client journey databases

✅ A full clean driving licence and access to a car (or reasonable adjustments where applicable)

💚 What Makes This Role Unique

At Inspire, we live our values:

Inclusive – You’ll put the people we support at the centre of everything
Passionate – You’ll believe in the power of recovery and positive change
Determined – You’ll strive for the best outcomes even in challenging times
Kind – You’ll support each other with empathy and respect
Honest – You’ll act with integrity, even when no one is looking
Innovative – You’ll embrace new ways to meet evolving needs

You’ll be part of a supportive and highly respected team delivering early intervention where it matters most. We offer regular clinical supervision, development opportunities, and the chance to contribute to sector-leading mental health programmes.

📍 Additional Info

Some evening/weekend work may be required.

📬 Apply Now!

If you’re passionate about making a difference and meet the essential criteria, we’d love to hear from you. If you have further questions, please reach out to Darren Crooks on recruitment@inspirewellbeing.org

Please note if successful at interview, the applicant will have to complete an enhanced disclosure check.

Following the interviews a waiting list will be created for similar posts for a nine month period.

Inspire is committed to equality of opportunity and to selection based on merit.

Our Organisation

Inspire is an all-island charity and social enterprise and our aim is wellbeing for all. We work together with people living with mental ill health, intellectual disability, autism and addictions to ensure they live with dignity and realise their full potential.

We campaign to create a society free from stigma and discrimination with a culture of compassion that focuses on people and their abilities.