Creative arts therapist jobs

Respond's Young People's Service meets the emotional and psychological needs of children and young people who are autistic and/or have a learning disability who have experienced abuse or trauma. The specific remit is to make psychological and emotional support as accessible as possible. We do this by providing therapy in our clinic and in special schools, supporting the whole system to consider the impact of trauma and abuse.  

As a qualified creative arts therapist, counsellor, or psychotherapist you will have experience in working with children and young people who have a learning disability and/or autism and who have experienced abuse and/or trauma.

We are committed to the furthering of human rights, equality, and positive social change through our therapeutic and advocacy work and are committed to anti-racism and other forms of anti-discriminatory practice. We recognise that we need to continually keep this as a focus in our work and as an integral part of our organisational strategy. 

We celebrate diversity as an employer and as a provider of services to people who often experience multiple discriminations because of (but not limited to) being autistic or having a learning disability and experiences of trauma. 

If you’d like to find out more about this role, please read through the job description and our person specification. Please send in your CV with your supporting statement of no more than 2 sides of A4.  When you apply, please make sure that you address the points in the person specification in your statement.

Qualified Play Therapist

Location: South Hampshire Women’s Refuge, Southampton

Salary: £15,806 per annum

Vacancy Type: Permanent, Part Time (20 hours per week)

Make a real difference to the lives of children and young people affected by domestic abuse.
At Stonewater, we believe every child deserves a safe space to heal and thrive. We’re looking for a compassionate, creative and qualified Play Therapist (known internally as Play Therapy Worker) to join our Domestic Abuse Services team. This is a unique opportunity to use your skills to empower children and young people through therapeutic play and person-centred support.

What you’ll do

• Deliver age-appropriate, strengths-based play therapy to children and young people living in our refuge accommodation.
• Use a variety of creative techniques – from storytelling and art to music and role play – to help themselves and build resilience.
• Work with the children, young people and families development workers to create individual support plans and work closely with parents to create safe, nurturing environments.
• Collaborate with multi-agency partners and contribute to safeguarding best practice.
• Play a key role in shaping our children and family support programme.

What we’re looking for

• A recognised Play Therapy qualification and registration with a relevant professional body (e.g., UKCP, BACP, BAPT).
• Experience delivering outcomes-focused therapy to children and young people.
• Strong understanding of child development, attachment theory, and the impact of domestic abuse.
• Ability to work creatively, flexibly, and in a non-judgemental way.
• Excellent communication and partnership skills.

Ready to make an impact?

Apply today and help us create safe, supportive spaces where children and young people can flourish.

**This post is restricted to female applicants only under the provisions of the Equality Act 2010, Schedule 9, Part 1. The role is based within a female-only domestic abuse refuge, where the provision of services requires a female worker to ensure the privacy, dignity, and safety of residents.

Discover Stonewater:

Stonewater have 20+ years’ experience delivering refuge, safe accommodation and community based domestic abuse services. Our services include Women and Children’s Refuges, LGBTQ+ Safe Space, a South Asian Women’s Refuge and dispersed accommodation to support those that are unable to access traditional Refuges such as male survivors, those with pets and those facing multiple and complex disadvantage. Our dispersed model of safe accommodation ensures equal access for all.

Stonewater is a leading housing provider. We manage around 40,000 homes, serving 93,000 survivors across our portfolio of affordable properties for general rent, shared ownership and sale, alongside specialist accommodation, with an ambitious house-building programme.

Our mission is to provide quality homes and services for people whose needs are not met by the open market.

We’re looking for like-minded people to join our team of over 800 talented colleagues who embody our values of being ethical, ambitious, passionate, agile and commercial, as well as people who want to make a difference and transform people’s lives.

We are a Disability Confident Employer and working towards accreditation for becoming a Disability Confident Leader, which allows us to record and report on disability, mental health and wellbeing in the workplace to better support our colleagues. We have also achieved accreditation for being an Advanced Employer for Investing in Ethnicity Maturity Matrix. We are committed to being a Menopause Friendly employer and working towards accreditation our Menopause Friendly accreditation.

Stonewater reserve the right to bring the closing date forward should enough quality applications be received prior to the current closing date.

To Apply

If you feel you are a suitable candidate and would like to work for Stonewater, please click apply to be redirected to our website to complete your application.

The Therapeutic Service Co-ordinator & Clinician is a vital member of the DreamArts Core Team. This role combines project co-ordination with direct therapeutic support through our EXPRESS PLUS service and our work with young carers.

EXPRESS PLUS is a free therapy service based in Westminster offering weekly one-to-one or parent-child creative therapeutic support to young people aged 7–18 (or up to 25 with additional needs). It is the only service of its kind in the borough and we provide a safe and welcoming space for clients to explore issues such as domestic violence, sexual abuse, and suicidal ideation.

Sessions take place at three community venues and are delivered by qualified or qualifying therapists using a wide range of creative tools—arts and crafts, sand play, puppets, games—to help young people express themselves in ways that feel natural and safe. With an 80% retention rate after three sessions and two-thirds of clients from global majority backgrounds, the service has a demonstrable impact.

EXPRESS PLUS is proudly user-led. Young people are at the heart of every decision, and the service adapts to meet their needs—typically offering up to 18 weekly sessions, with flexibility depending on circumstances. We accept self-referrals from young people aged 14+, parents/carers, and statutory and voluntary services.

As part of this role, you will also deliver direct therapeutic support to young people with caring responsibilities. This includes offering weekly 1:1 sessions for three young carers and being part of a team facilitating monthly group therapy spaces.

We are looking for a team member who is passionate about the power of creative therapy to support young people. It also offers opportunities to case-manage three-to-four therapists and bring a therapeutic lens across all aspects of DreamArts’ work. We provide appropriate levels of clinical supervision plus a quarterly reflection space to support your professional development.

Please note that the post holder needs to be a qualified psychotherapist/counsellor, with previous experience (paid or voluntary) of delivering 1:1 therapy sessions with children and/or young people.

In in last year’s staff satisfaction survey 100% of team members felt inspired at DreamArts to do their best at their job, and 100% said that their voice and skills matter at DreamArts.

‘DreamArts has a profound impact on the lives of young people and is a model of exemplary practice.’ - The Royal Central School of Speech & Drama, Impact Study

DreamArts has a mission; to transform young lives by fusing arts and therapy.

For over two decades, DreamArts has worked directly in the community, making a difference to the lives of over 500 young people each year in some of London’s most deprived areas—empowering them to explore who they are, build positive relationships and develop emotional wellbeing. 

Our award-winning projects put young people in control: from devising new mini-musicals and immersive theatre, to young carers curating photography exhibitions and young refugees touring their original beatbox plays across the UK. Alongside this, our free therapeutic services offer vital support as mental health crises among young people continues to grow. 

DreamArts is committed to providing an integrative and inclusive programme and not to discriminate on the grounds of race, ethnic origin, nationality, or culture. We are also committed to being a more diverse and culturally representational organisation, therefore any applicant that identifies from a minoritised background and meets the essential criteria will be automatically selected for an interview.