Mental Health Adviser, Casework

Weekly Working Hours: 37

Contract Type: Fixed Term Contract until 31 July 2026 

The Open University is the UK’s largest university, a world leader in flexible part-time education combining a mission to widen access to higher education with research excellence, transforming lives through education. Find out more about us and our mission by watching this short video (you will be taken to YouTube by clicking this link). 

The Mental Health Casework and Advice Team (MHCAT) forms part of the Student Welfare Team, which is responsible for mental health support, mental health training, suicide-safer university strategy, welfare advice and safeguarding.

As a Mental Health Caseworker, you will be responsible for providing one-to-one interventionist support to students with enduring or complex mental health illnesses and conditions, who find themselves facing acute difficulties with their studies as a direct consequence of their mental health and have been referred into the service by staff in other units across the University. In addition, you will also be responsible for working closely with other colleagues and external organisations, to coordinate support for students who are in crisis and at risk of self-harm. 

You will have substantive experience of providing support to adults with mental health difficulties, and working within a multiagency context in a community, health or education setting (preferably adult or higher education). You will also be experienced in carrying out mental health assessments, implementing solution-focussed interventions and managing risk at the individual and service level. 

You will be required to undertake a Disclosure and Barring Service check for this role.

For further information including a full job description and person specification, click on the apply button above.

It is anticipated that a hybrid working pattern can be adopted for this role, where you can work from home and the office. However, as this role is contractually aligned to our Milton Keynes office it is expected that some attendance in the office will be required when necessary and in response to business needs. We’d expect this to be approximately twice per year.

We may close this job advert earlier than the published closing date where a satisfactory number of applications are received. We would therefore encourage early applications.

The Open University is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion which is reflected in our mission to be open to people, places, methods and ideas. We aim to foster a diverse and inclusive environment so that all in our OU community can reach their potential. We recognise that different people bring different perspectives, ideas, knowledge, and culture, and that this difference brings great strength.  We strive to recruit, retain and develop the careers of a diverse pool of students and staff, and particularly encourage applications from all underrepresented groups. We also aspire to make The Open University a supportive workplace for all through our policies, services and staff networks.

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