Early Career Mental Health Counsellor

• Part Time (15.2hrs per week – 0.4FTE), Fixed Term (until 30 June 2027)
• Central Adelaide location | SCHADS Level 4 + above award rates
• Make a difference in the lives of people living with HIV and LGBTIQ+ communities

About the role

We are seeking a passionate and qualified Early Career Mental Health Counsellor to join our Therapeutic Services team in South Australia.

This is an exciting opportunity for an early career practitioner looking to further develop their skills and experience in mental health assessment, treatment planning and therapeutic counselling within a supportive, specialist LGBTQI+ service.

Working under the guidance of experienced senior clinicians, you will provide sexuality and gender affirming, trauma-informed counselling interventions to clients experiencing mild to moderate mental health concerns.

Key responsibilities include:

• Conducting comprehensive psychosocial assessments and risk assessments
• Delivering evidence-based, person-centred therapeutic interventions
• Supporting clients with gender exploration and connection to gender affirmation services
• Developing treatment and counselling plans in collaboration with clients
• Facilitating psychoeducational and therapeutic group programs
• Working collaboratively within a multidisciplinary team across Mental Health, AOD and Family and Domestic Violence services

What’s on offer

In addition to a pay rate at SCHADS Award/SACS Level 4 (pro-rata) + superannuation, Thorne Harbour Health pays above award rates. You will also be able to increase your take-home pay by accessing up to $15,900 in salary packaging benefits as well as accessing professional and career development. Hybrid working arrangements are also available.

About you

You will be an emerging mental health practitioner who is passionate about providing inclusive, affirming and high-quality care. You will have:

• A tertiary qualification relevant to counselling practice, such as Social Work, Occupational Therapy or Psychology
• Eligibility for membership with an appropriate professional governing body, such as AASW, AHPRA or APS
• Experience conducting assessments, case formulation and case planning
• Knowledge of, and experience delivering, evidence-based counselling interventions
• Familiarity with approaches including CBT, ACT, solution-focused therapy, motivational interviewing and/or narrative therapy
• An understanding of culturally safe and trauma-informed practice

About us

Thorne Harbour Health is an LGBTQI+ community-controlled health organisation, governed by our members and working for our sex, sexuality and gender diverse communities. For over 40 years – since our beginnings as the Victorian AIDS Action Committee in 1983 – we’ve led the community response to HIV and AIDS in Victoria, and since 2015 have extended that work into South Australia.

We’re working toward a future where our communities are healthy and live safely, with dignity and wellbeing – free of HIV, stigma and discrimination.

For a detailed position description, including selection criteria, visit our website: https://thorneharbour.org/about/work/

Inclusion Matters

We strongly encourage applications from people who are:

• Part of the LGBTQI+ community
• Living with HIV
• From culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds
• First Nations people
• People with disability

For further enquiries about the role, please contact Jess Shipman – Manager, Therapeutic Services (SA) on 0477 710 105 or via email – jessica.shipman@thorneharbour.org

How to apply

Written applications addressing the selection criteria and including a resume and the names and contact details of three professional referees should be sent via the job listing in Employment Hero.

Applications close on Tuesday 22 September 2026

Important: it is essential that applicants specifically address the selection criteria. Where selection criteria have not been addressed, applications will not be considered.

Thorne Harbour Health is an Equal Opportunity Employer and is committed to child safety. We have zero tolerance of child abuse. Our robust human resources, recruitment and vetting practices are strictly adhered to during the application and interviewing process. Applicants should be aware that we carry out working with children, police records and reference checks for all roles.