Job summary
Employer heading
Senior Applied Psychologist
NHS AfC: Band 8a
Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust provides specialist mental health, learning disability, and community healthcare services for the population of the Black Country.
Across the whole of the region we provide:
- Adult and older adult mental health services
- Specialist learning disability services
- Mental health services for children and young people
- Community healthcare services for children, young people and families in Dudley
Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust was formed on 1 April 2020, with the merger of Black Country Partnership NHS Foundation Trust and Dudley and Walsall Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust. Combining resources, strategies and talented workforce enables us to deliver a wider variety of outstanding services that are based on best practice and are continually improving.
We currently employ over 4,000 people and just like the population we serve, we are made up of diverse cultures and backgrounds. Whatever your role, working in a NHS Foundation Trust, like ours, is a demanding and extremely rewarding experience. Knowing that every day you can help to make a positive difference to someone’s life is a very powerful feeling. We know that our Trust runs on this desire to help and support people, and our Trust vision expresses this. Our vision is to improve health and wellbeing for everyone, especially our colleagues to achieve the best possible work/life balance.
We proudly offer supportive, inclusive and family friendly employment and flexible working policies. We have a wide range of professional services and employee networks to help our colleagues be at their best - and find support if they need it. To find more about our staff benefits, please visit our website: blackcountryhealthcare.nhs.uk.
Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies have shown that women and ethnic minority candidates are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification. At Black Country Healthcare we recognise and value all forms of knowledge and expertise, so if you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification or criteria in the job description/person specification, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.
For further supporting information to help you apply for this role please see documents attached under ‘Additional documents’.
Job overview
An exciting opportunity has arisen for an Applied Psychologist to join the Black Country Adult Inpatient Service. We have a post available at Bushey Fields Hospital (Dudley).
As an Applied Psychologist you will join a team of inpatient psychologists lead by a Principal Psychologist and Consultant Psychologist and supported by assistant psychologists. You will be part of wider Urgent Care Psychology Team.
You will be expected to carry out and have opportunities to develop your skills in an inpatient environment in psychological risk assessments, formulation, care planning and brief psychological interventions. You will also have opportunities to work with the Consultant Psychologist on service development and research in the urgent care areas.
The successful candidate will be part of a group of urgent care Psychologists who are based across acute settings including CRHTT, acute in-patients, mental health liaison services and PICU. The successful candidate will be supported with supervision and opportunities for CPD. BCHFT are committed to investment in our Psychology staff, so you will have access to a psychology specific dedicated CPD budget to support your professional growth.
We have strong links with local universities across the clinical, forensic and counselling courses. Relationships have been established with other organisations with connections into a national psychology group for Trauma Interventions in Acute Settings.
Main duties of the job
To support the Principal Psychologist, Consultant Psychologist and the MDT in the delivery of specialist psychological assessments, formulations and interventions to clients with complex mental health conditions which may include challenging behaviours. To support the Principal Psychologist and Consultant Psychologist in the provision of psychological advice, guidance and consultation to other staff in the MDT.
There will also be opportunities for development of leadership skills through training and development of staff, reflective practice, service developments and project work, and supervision of assistant and trainee psychologists and non psychology staff .
Working for our organisation
Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust was formed on 1 April 2020, with the merger of Black Country Partnership NHS Foundation Trust and Dudley and Walsall Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust.
We currently employ over 3,500 people and just like the population we serve, we are made up of diverse cultures and backgrounds. Whatever your role, working in a NHS Foundation Trust, like ours, is a demanding and extremely rewarding experience. Our vision is to improve health and wellbeing for everyone, especially our colleagues to achieve the best possible work/life balance.
We proudly offer supportive, inclusive and family friendly employment and flexible working policies. We have a wide range of professional services and employee networks to help our colleagues be at their best - and find support if they need it. To find more about our staff benefits, please visit our website: blackcountryhealthcare.nhs.uk.
Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies have shown that women and ethnic minority candidates are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification. At Black Country Healthcare we recognise and value all forms of knowledge and expertise, so if you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification or criteria in the job description/person specification, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
The post would suit a clinical, counselling or forensic psychologist.
Ideally you will have experience of working in mental health services as a psychologist, with people with complex mental health difficulties. You will demonstrate a willingness to learn and engage empathically with clients, colleagues and services.
The post holder will work as an integral part of a multidisciplinary team in Acute adult mental health inpatient services. The post holder will support service users in their care and their recovery.
Please see job description and person specification for full details.
Person specification
Education/ Qualifications
Essential criteria
- Post-graduate doctoral level training in applied Psychology (or its equivalent) as accredited by the BPS including models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology
- Post-doctoral training in one or more additional specialised areas of psychological practice
- HCPC registration as An Applied Psychologist
- Trained in supervision and the supervision of other psychologists or trainee psychologists
- Evidence of continuing professional development
Experience
Essential criteria
- Working as a qualified applied psychologist within a service including a wide variety of client groups, across the whole life course and a range of clinical severity across a range of care settings.
- Exercising full clinical responsibility for clients’ psychological care within the context of a multidisciplinary team.
- Teaching, training, consultancy and clinical supervision
- Research and development
- Quality and service improvement and evaluation
Knowledge
Essential criteria
- Evidence- based practice relevant to the role of working with adults and young people’s complex mental health difficulties
- Risk assessment and risk management
Applicant requirements
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.
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Dr Natalie Louw
- Job title
- Principal Psychologist
- Email address
- [email protected]
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