Senior Clinical Psychologist / Psychological Therapist

Senior Clinical Psychologist / Psychological Therapist Band 8a

Main area: Senior Clinical Psychologist Grade Band 8a

Contract: Permanent

Hours: Full time - 37.5 hours per week

Job ref: 351-PEN950-CL

Site: RITT East (65+), Town: Rawtenstall

Salary: £53,755 - £60,504 pa

Salary period: Yearly

Closing: 25/02/:59

Our Vision is to provide the best mental health, learning disability, autism and community based services for the populations we serve.

As an integrated mental health, learning disability and community Trust, Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust provides a range of services including:

1. Primary and secondary mental health care for children and adults including specialist inpatient child and adolescent mental health provision, perinatal mental health, forensic services including low and medium secure care.
2. Specialist community support for children and adults with learning disabilities and autism, including intensive support.
3. Community physical health and well-being services for children and adults.

The Trust was first established in 2002 and employs approximately 7,000 staff who provide care from more than 400 sites. The organisation offers opportunities for medics, mental health and general nurses, allied health professionals, psychology, administration and clerical staff, apprentices and volunteers.

Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust supports flexible working; we believe that a positive work/life balance benefits NHS employees through improved health and wellbeing. We would consider working patterns such as term time, part time, compressed hours, home/remote working, and flexi-time.

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a clinical psychologist or psychological therapist with passion and enthusiasm in working with older people to join the friendly and supportive Older Adult Rapid Intervention and Treatment team (RITT) in Pennine Lancashire (covering Blackburn with Darwen, Burnley, Hyndburn & Ribble Valley, Rossendale). The RITT provides a variety of approaches to support older people with complex mental health difficulties, aiming to reduce the need for hospital admission where possible. A specialist care home liaison service is also provided to nursing and care homes.

The role within the RITT involves direct and indirect psychological assessment, formulation and intervention, consultation, and training and supervision of psychology and non-psychology colleagues. Additionally, this post offers some flexibility to continue to support RITT clients, who have complex care needs, for longer term work within the Pennine Lancs OA Community Mental Health Team (CMHT).

The post is professionally attached to the locality older adult psychology team and wider older adult psychology network, both of which offer a friendly and supportive space, with a strong commitment to providing quality services for older people in Lancashire. The Trust is also committed to staff development and has invested in ongoing training and development opportunities including funding recent further therapy training and leadership courses.

Main duties of the job

1. To provide a qualified Clinical Psychology Service to patients of the nominated team(s) including the provision of specialist psychological assessment and therapy, working within the policies, procedures and protocols applicable to the service.
2. To offer advice and consultation on patients' psychological care to non-psychologist colleagues and to other, non-professional carers, working autonomously within professional guidelines and the overall framework of the services policies and procedures.
3. To utilise research skills for audit, policy and service development and research within the area in which the post-holder works.

Working for our organisation

Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust provides a range of services including secondary mental health care across this area. Specialist provision comprises inpatient child and adolescent mental health services, perinatal mental health and forensic services including low and medium secure care.

The Trust also provides a range of physical health and well-being services in the community alongside a range of partners in the Lancashire, Cumbria and Sefton area.

Lancashire & South Cumbria Foundation Trust encourages flexible working; we believe that a positive work/life balance benefits NHS employees through improved health and wellbeing. We encourage applicants to state clearly on their application forms this request and discuss these options at interview.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please see the attached job description and person specification for more information about this role.

Person specification Education/ Qualifications

• Doctoral level training in clinical psychology or equivalent for those who trained prior to 1996, including specifically models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and Neuropsychology, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology as accredited by the BPS.

Knowledge

• An increased level of knowledge relevant to this post equivalent to a post-graduate diploma (in addition to entry level qualification).
• Doctoral level knowledge of research methodology, research design and complex, multivariate data analysis as practiced within the clinical fields of psychology.
• Evidence of continuing professional development as recommended by the BPS by completion of CPD log demonstrating a minimum of 40 hours per year.
• Knowledge of legislation in relation to the patient group and mental health.

Experience

• Experience of specialist psychological assessment and treatment of patients across a range of care settings, including outpatient.
• Ability to sustain intense levels of concentration responding and participating as required.
• Ability to self-reflect and use clinical supervision appropriately.
• Ability to cope and deal with highly distressing emotional circumstances.
• Ability to cope with unpleasant working conditions.

Work Related Circumstances

• Ability to teach and train others, using a variety of complex multi-media materials suitable for presentations within public, professional and academic settings.
• Ability to identify and employ mechanisms of clinical governance as appropriate, to support and maintain clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive material and challenging behaviour.

Please note that further communication from Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust (LSCft) will normally be to the email address given on the application form. You should also ensure that email addresses and telephone numbers are provided for your referees, to enable LSCft to contact them.

Please be aware the use of artificial intelligence (AI) when submitting an application is monitored and if you have used AI to generate an application, you are required to declare this on your application form. AI-generated content may lack specificity and fail to address key criteria outlined in the job description. Personalisation is essential when submitting an application form to convey your skills, knowledge, and experiences effectively.

Please ensure that you read the person specification attached below as your application will be measured against this document. Applications from job share partners are welcome and other forms of flexible working will be considered for all posts.

For all posts which require a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check please be aware of the Disclosure and Barring Service Code of Practice, a copy of which is available by logging on to the DBS website. If the post is subject to DBS disclosure, a charge will be made to the successful candidate(s).

You are advised to consider applying for LSCft vacancies as soon as possible as in some instances vacancies are closed as soon as a sufficient number of applications have been received. If you are not invited to interview within three weeks of the closing date then please assume that on this occasion you have been unsuccessful, as it is not possible to contact all unsuccessful candidates.

LSCft is committed to celebrating difference as an asset and we know that recruiting talent from diverse backgrounds helps to create a more flexible, creative and effective workforce. We actively challenge discrimination and welcome applications from people regardless of age, disability (particularly those with experience of accessing or caring for someone who has accessed mental health or learning disability services), ethnicity, gender, religion or belief or sexual orientation. Our goal is for the Trust to be truly representative of the communities we serve so we are particularly keen to receive applications from people in under-represented groups. If there is anything you'd like to discuss in relation to your application then please ask.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.

Application numbers

This vacancy may close early if it receives a high number of applications. You are therefore advised to consider applying for this vacancy as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.