Salary: Scale NHS Band 6, SP 25 – 30, Actual salary: £25,717.46 – £30,497.90 (FTE £44,684 to £52,990)
Location: Nightingale Satellite Priory Lane, SW15 5RT
Contract: Permanent (Term Time plus 2 weeks)
Working Pattern: 21.5hrs/week, 3 days a week
Start Date: September 2026
Nightingale Community Academy is a special school in Wandsworth, providing education for boys aged between 5 to 19 with social, emotional, and mental health (SEMH) needs. Our primary pupils benefit from a purpose-built classroom hub, an outdoor adventure playground, weekly music lessons, and a comprehensive therapy service. Secondary and post-16 students have access to a broad curriculum, including vocational courses such as motor vehicle studies, construction, horticulture, and hospitality. All pupils also enjoy regular animal therapy sessions at Tom’s Farm, located on our expansive school grounds.
Staff at Nightingale Community Academy take pride in the development of young people in a safe and stimulating environment and are offered a rewarding and varied career in return.
Nightingale Priory Lane is a new satellite provision of Nightingale Community Academy in Wandsworth. It provides high-quality specialist education for secondary-aged pupils with Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH) needs, including Autism Spectrum Condition (ASC). Based in Putney (SW15), the school offers a personalised, therapeutic curriculum designed around student voice, independence, and emotional development. The curriculum is delivered in purpose-designed environment featuring specialist facilities and vocational opportunities.
We are seeking a dedicated and enthusiastic Psychotherapist to join our multidisciplinary team. In this vital role, you will deliver high-quality therapeutic interventions to support learners’ emotional wellbeing, mental health, and personal development. You will work with individual pupils and groups, contributing to assessment, formulation, and care planning, while supporting staff to understand and respond to pupils’ emotional needs. Working closely with the Principal, Senior Leadership Team, therapists, and teaching staff, you will play a key role in promoting a trauma-informed, psychologically safe learning environment that reflects the Academy’s aims and values.
Key Responsibilities:
Deliver individual therapeutic sessions using integrative and play-based approaches
Assess pupils’ needs and develop, review, and adapt therapeutic plans and goals
Build safe, trusting relationships and support pupils with SEMH needs, including Autism Spectrum Condition
Work collaboratively with school staff, families (where appropriate), and external agencies to support pupil outcomes
Maintain safeguarding, professional boundaries, accurate record keeping, and engage in supervision and CPD
Key Requirements:
Qualified Integrative Counsellor/Psychotherapist with current BACP or UKCP registration and ongoing CPD
Proven experience delivering therapeutic interventions, including those with SEMH needs and Autism Spectrum Condition
Strong understanding of trauma-informed and attachment-aware practice, including safeguarding responsibilities.
Ability to build safe, trusting therapeutic relationships and deliver effective, play-based interventions.
Strong communication, record-keeping and teamwork skills, with commitment to supervision and professional development.
OHCAT is an exciting, forward-thinking organisation, and we offer many benefits to attract and keep our staff, contributing towards maintaining and improving wellbeing, and encouraging our required behaviours, achievements, values, and skills. Below is just a selection of the benefits available to our employees:
Rewards & Benefits:
Pathways for progression within the trust, ensuring you can grow and thrive in a supportive and inclusive environment.
Pension Scheme - you will be enrolled in either the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) or the Teachers' Pension Scheme (TPS), both offering life cover and financial protection for your family.
Salary Sacrifice Schemes (Cycle Scheme, Employee Car Lease Scheme and Home Electronics Scheme)
Employee Wellbeing - We support employee wellbeing with access to counselling, mental health support, generous leave, flexible working, and enhanced parental leave including Employee Assistance Programme, MyGym Discounts, Corporate Eyecare Scheme
Employee Discounts (Blue Light Card, Costco Membership, Discounts for Teachers, and more)
Other (Season Ticket Loan and Employee Referral Scheme)
Find out what makes Orchard Hill College and Academy Trust a truly rewarding place to work - visit our ‘Work for Us’ page to hear from our Chief Executive Officer, Ian Valvona, and watch inspiring messages from students and parents about the difference our staff make every day.
Our Trust
Nightingale Priory Lane is part of Orchard Hill College and Academy Trust. We are a family of specialist education providers from pre-school through to further education across London, Surrey, Sussex and Berkshire and fully represent all designations of special education needs and disabilities (SEND). To find out more about us, and what makes us a special place to work please visit our website.
We are committed to promoting and advancing equality of opportunity by attracting and retaining the most diverse range of students, staff and partners.
Working together to transform lives is what we do and across the whole organisation we have a range of experts and practitioners who advocate for children and young people with SEND to ensure they receive the best possible opportunities to achieve their full potential.
As a large specialist education provider we employ over 1500 people across our schools, college and central support team. There is a wide range of job roles available, ranging from teaching and therapy to business support roles and significant career progression opportunities.
It is an exciting time to be part of OHCAT and we are keen to recruit talented people who can play a key role in realising our mission and who want to make a difference. In return, we offer training and development, competitive pay and benefits in a positive and inclusive working environment.
If you wish to discuss this opportunity before or after submitting an application form, please get in touch with the School directly. Visits to the School in advance of applications are encouraged.
Your application form will be scored according to each of the requirements laid out in the person specification for this role. Please demonstrate in your statement how your experience, skills and knowledge match the criteria that are required for the role.
How to Apply:
To apply for this role, please click ‘Fast Apply’, you will then be directed to a ‘Login’ page, once signed in, please complete and submit the Application Form.
Please note that CV applications cannot be considered.
Closing Date: Friday 3rd April 2026
Interviews will take place on: The week commencing 13th April 2026