Head of Counselling and Mental Health Service

Head of Counselling and Mental Health Service

Reference: REQ000739

Job details

Job referenceREQ000739 Apply by11/10/2026 LocationCollege Lane Campus SalaryUH9: £58,225 to £69,488 per annum by annual increments on achieving designated skills and experience PackageBlank Contractual hours37 BasisFull Time Job category/typeProfessional/Technical Attachments Head of Counselling & Mental Health Service REQ000739 JDPS.pdf

Head of Counselling and Mental Health Service

Job description

Post Title: Head of Counselling and Mental Health Service

SBU/Department:  Dean of Students / Student Wellbeing Services

FTE: 1FTE (working 37 hours per week)

Duration of Contract: Permanent

Annual Leave: 30 days, plus standard public holidays and an additional 4 days including the closure of our office between Christmas and New Year
Location: College Lane Campus, Hatfield

Lead a service that transforms student lives

The University of Hertfordshire is committed to providing a safe, inclusive and supportive environment in which every student can flourish academically, personally and professionally. We are seeking an experienced and compassionate leader to oversee our Counselling and Mental Health Service and play a key role in shaping the University's approach to student mental health and wellbeing.

This is an exciting opportunity to lead a multidisciplinary team of Counsellors and Mental Health Advisers, ensuring the delivery of high-quality, student-centred support services. Working within Student Wellbeing Services and reporting to the Deputy Director of Student Wellbeing, you will provide operational leadership for counselling and mental health provision, oversee clinical governance and risk management processes, and contribute to the ongoing development of services that respond to the evolving needs of our student community.

You will work closely with colleagues across the University and alongside external statutory and voluntary sector partners to promote positive mental health, strengthen support pathways and ensure students receive timely and effective interventions when needed.

Main duties and responsibilities

You will Provide operational leadership for the Counselling and Mental Health Service, ensuring services are delivered in line with University priorities and professional standards. You will Lead and develop a multidisciplinary team, creating a positive, reflective and high-performing service culture.

You will maintain oversight of clinical governance arrangements, risk management processes and safeguarding responsibilities across the service. You will provide professional consultation and guidance on complex mental health and counselling cases, including students presenting with significant levels of risk or distress.

You will ensure effective pathways are in place with NHS services, local mental health providers and other external agencies.

You will monitor service performance, outcomes and demand, using data and evidence to inform service improvements and operational decision making.

You will contribute to University-wide initiatives, policies and strategies relating to student mental health, wellbeing and inclusion. You will support critical incident responses, Support to Study processes and wider student welfare interventions where required.

You will manage operational relationships with externally commissioned support services and ensure contractual and service standards are met. You will promote evidence-based and inclusive approaches to mental health support, ensuring services remain responsive to sector developments and emerging student needs.

Skills and experience required

You will be an experienced practitioner with considerable post qualification experience of working therapeutically with clients including the management of complex cases and the management of clinical risk. You will have proven experience of  managing mental health and counselling services, supporting service improvement within a safe & inclusive learning environment.

You will have the ability to adapt management style and communication approaches to support effective team and service performance.  You will have excellent communication and relationship-building skills, with the ability to influence and collaborate effectively across a wide range of stakeholders. You will have experience of service evaluation, performance monitoring and leading service improvement initiatives.

A sound understanding of the legal and regulatory aspects of the role and thorough working knowledge of relevant codes of practice and ability to apply these effectively when supporting students and staff. You will have a strong commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion and to delivering accessible and student-focused services

Experience of working with students in a Further or higher education or a comparable student support environment would be advantageous.

Qualifications required

You will be educated with an undergraduate degree level or equivalent qualification or proven experience. You will hold a recognised professional qualification and current accreditation or registration with an appropriate professional body, such as BACP, UKCP or BPS. You will have a recognised professional qualification in Clinical Supervision.

REHABILITATION OF OFFENDERS ACT

DISCLOSURE AND BARRING SERVICE

This post is exempt under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 as amended. The University requires that the successful applicant who is offered employment will be subject to a criminal record check from the Disclosure Barring Service before the appointment is confirmed. An Enhanced Disclosure will be required and this will include details of cautions, reprimands or final warnings, as well as convictions. The University of Hertfordshire complies with the ‘Code of Practice for Registered Persons and other recipients of Disclosure Information’.

Overseas applicants and UK applicants who have lived abroad

Successful applicants who have lived outside the UK, for 12 months or more (whether continuously or in total), in the last 10 years, will be required to produce a ‘Certificate of Good Character/Conduct’ from each of those countries.

Please view the job description and person specification for a full list of the duties and essential criteria. Please attach a personal statement showing clearly how your skills and experience match the Person Specification.

Please apply early. We reserve the right to close this vacancy before the published closing date if we receive a sufficient number of suitable applications. All applications received before the vacancy closes will be assessed consistently against the published person specification.

Internal applicants– please ensure you apply via your employee self service portal.

We regret that we are unable to offer UKVI sponsorship for this post; applicants will either hold UK Right to Work or demonstrate access to UK Right to Work before an offer is made.

Contact Details/Informal Enquiries: For an informal discussion about the role, please contact Viju Patel, Deputy Director of Student Wellbeing Services, at v.patel38@herts.ac.uk, or Geraldine Ward, Dean of Students, at g.1.ward@herts.ac.uk.

Closing Date: 11 October 2026

Interview Date: W/c 26 October 2026

Reference Number: REQ000739

Date advert placed: 22 September 2026

Our vision is to transform lives: UH is committed to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion and building a diverse community. We welcome applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates regardless of their protected characteristics, and recognise there are different ways applicants may achieve the criteria in this document. We offer a range of employee benefits including generous annual leave, flexible location opportunities within the UK, discounted Sports Village memberships and free Active Staff sessions, personal and professional development and family-friendly policies. #GoHerts

Apply online Send to a friend

Head of Counselling and Mental Health Service

Job description

Post Title: Head of Counselling and Mental Health Service

SBU/Department:  Dean of Students / Student Wellbeing Services

FTE: 1FTE (working 37 hours per week)

Duration of Contract: Permanent

Annual Leave: 30 days, plus standard public holidays and an additional 4 days including the closure of our office between Christmas and New Year
Location: College Lane Campus, Hatfield

Lead a service that transforms student lives

The University of Hertfordshire is committed to providing a safe, inclusive and supportive environment in which every student can flourish academically, personally and professionally. We are seeking an experienced and compassionate leader to oversee our Counselling and Mental Health Service and play a key role in shaping the University's approach to student mental health and wellbeing.

This is an exciting opportunity to lead a multidisciplinary team of Counsellors and Mental Health Advisers, ensuring the delivery of high-quality, student-centred support services. Working within Student Wellbeing Services and reporting to the Deputy Director of Student Wellbeing, you will provide operational leadership for counselling and mental health provision, oversee clinical governance and risk management processes, and contribute to the ongoing development of services that respond to the evolving needs of our student community.

You will work closely with colleagues across the University and alongside external statutory and voluntary sector partners to promote positive mental health, strengthen support pathways and ensure students receive timely and effective interventions when needed.

Main duties and responsibilities

You will Provide operational leadership for the Counselling and Mental Health Service, ensuring services are delivered in line with University priorities and professional standards. You will Lead and develop a multidisciplinary team, creating a positive, reflective and high-performing service culture.

You will maintain oversight of clinical governance arrangements, risk management processes and safeguarding responsibilities across the service. You will provide professional consultation and guidance on complex mental health and counselling cases, including students presenting with significant levels of risk or distress.

You will ensure effective pathways are in place with NHS services, local mental health providers and other external agencies.

You will monitor service performance, outcomes and demand, using data and evidence to inform service improvements and operational decision making.

You will contribute to University-wide initiatives, policies and strategies relating to student mental health, wellbeing and inclusion. You will support critical incident responses, Support to Study processes and wider student welfare interventions where required.

You will manage operational relationships with externally commissioned support services and ensure contractual and service standards are met. You will promote evidence-based and inclusive approaches to mental health support, ensuring services remain responsive to sector developments and emerging student needs.

Skills and experience required

You will be an experienced practitioner with considerable post qualification experience of working therapeutically with clients including the management of complex cases and the management of clinical risk. You will have proven experience of  managing mental health and counselling services, supporting service improvement within a safe & inclusive learning environment.

You will have the ability to adapt management style and communication approaches to support effective team and service performance.  You will have excellent communication and relationship-building skills, with the ability to influence and collaborate effectively across a wide range of stakeholders. You will have experience of service evaluation, performance monitoring and leading service improvement initiatives.

A sound understanding of the legal and regulatory aspects of the role and thorough working knowledge of relevant codes of practice and ability to apply these effectively when supporting students and staff. You will have a strong commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion and to delivering accessible and student-focused services

Experience of working with students in a Further or higher education or a comparable student support environment would be advantageous.

Qualifications required

You will be educated with an undergraduate degree level or equivalent qualification or proven experience. You will hold a recognised professional qualification and current accreditation or registration with an appropriate professional body, such as BACP, UKCP or BPS. You will have a recognised professional qualification in Clinical Supervision.

REHABILITATION OF OFFENDERS ACT

DISCLOSURE AND BARRING SERVICE

This post is exempt under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 as amended. The University requires that the successful applicant who is offered employment will be subject to a criminal record check from the Disclosure Barring Service before the appointment is confirmed. An Enhanced Disclosure will be required and this will include details of cautions, reprimands or final warnings, as well as convictions. The University of Hertfordshire complies with the ‘Code of Practice for Registered Persons and other recipients of Disclosure Information’.

Overseas applicants and UK applicants who have lived abroad

Successful applicants who have lived outside the UK, for 12 months or more (whether continuously or in total), in the last 10 years, will be required to produce a ‘Certificate of Good Character/Conduct’ from each of those countries.

Please view the job description and person specification for a full list of the duties and essential criteria. Please attach a personal statement showing clearly how your skills and experience match the Person Specification.

Please apply early. We reserve the right to close this vacancy before the published closing date if we receive a sufficient number of suitable applications. All applications received before the vacancy closes will be assessed consistently against the published person specification.

Internal applicants– please ensure you apply via your employee self service portal.

We regret that we are unable to offer UKVI sponsorship for this post; applicants will either hold UK Right to Work or demonstrate access to UK Right to Work before an offer is made.

Contact Details/Informal Enquiries: For an informal discussion about the role, please contact Viju Patel, Deputy Director of Student Wellbeing Services, at v.patel38@herts.ac.uk, or Geraldine Ward, Dean of Students, at g.1.ward@herts.ac.uk.

Closing Date: 11 October 2026

Interview Date: W/c 26 October 2026

Reference Number: REQ000739

Date advert placed: 22 September 2026

Our vision is to transform lives: UH is committed to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion and building a diverse community. We welcome applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates regardless of their protected characteristics, and recognise there are different ways applicants may achieve the criteria in this document. We offer a range of employee benefits including generous annual leave, flexible location opportunities within the UK, discounted Sports Village memberships and free Active Staff sessions, personal and professional development and family-friendly policies. #GoHerts

Apply online Send to a friend