Clinical Psychologist in Learning Disabilities
Job Description
Job summary
We are looking to recruit a highly motivated and committed Psychological Therapist (qualified HPCP registered Clinical Psychologist or Counselling Psychologist) to join the expanding Learning Disability Services in North Essex. The newly appointed clinician will be joining multidisciplinary services, consisting of Psychologists, Psychiatrists, Occupational Therapists, Speech and Language Therapists, Physiotherapists, Arts Therapists, and Community Nurses.
This Band 7 role is a development post, which offers the possibility of moving to a Band 8a, upon achievement of the necessary skills, knowledge, and competencies.
This is a full-time, permanent position, working 37.5 hours per week, but part time employment may also be considered.
The post holder will most likely be based in Tekhnicon House, Braintree, but work across other geographical areas covered by the Trust may be required.
Main duties of the job
The successful applicant will be responsible for implementing a variety of psychological assessments and therapeutic interventions for individuals across a range of ability levels, plus support for their families and carers. This would be predominantly in community services but may also continue into inpatient services, if necessary.
The post holders will be joining a well-established Psychology service and receive supervision from an appropriately experienced Clinical Psychologist. We support a range of training opportunities and ongoing professional development. There are good links with the University of Essex and the University of Hertfordshire Clinical Psychology Doctoral Training Programmes. There are great opportunities for R&D as our clinicians are already engaged in several research, teaching, and academic programs. We also actively promote further training and CPD opportunities such as systemic, EMDR, CBT, and Narrative based approaches. We offer a thoughtful and integrative model of psychological therapies for our service users.
Applicants will need to be registered as a Practitioner Psychologist with the HCPC. It is essential that applicants can drive and have access to a car unless a disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010 prevents driving.
About us
Hertfordshire Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (HPFT) is an outstanding organisation with ambitions to match. We are one of just five mental health trusts to achieve an overall rating of 'Outstanding' from the Care Quality Commission, and our aim is to be the leading provider of mental health and specialist learning disability services in the country.
Our family of over 3500 members of staff provide health and social care for over 400,000 people with mental ill health, physical ill health and learning disabilities across Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire, and Norfolk, delivering these services within the community and several inpatient settings. We also deliver a range of nationally commissioned specialist services including Tier 4 services for children and young people, perinatal services, plus medium and low secure learning disabilities services.
The care we provide makes a fantastic difference to the lives of our service users, their families and carers - everything is underpinned by choice, independence and equality, with our Trust values embedded throughout:
Our Trust values are:
Welcoming. Kind. Positive. Respectful. Professional.
These values are at the core of who we are, everything we do, and how we do it!
Would you like to be part of the HPFT family? Would you like work with us to ensure our service users live the fullest lives possible they can? Would you like to be supported in your career to be the best that you can be?
Then please read on...
Job responsibilities
- To provide a qualified specialist clinical psychology service to adults with learning disabilities of all ability levels, their service providers and carers within North Essex, plus in-patient services as required.
- To provide specialist psychological assessment and interventions, as well as offering advice and consultation on service user psychological care to non-psychologist colleagues and other non-professional carers.
- To work autonomously within professional guidelines and the overall framework of the teams policies and procedures.
- To use research skills for audit, service development and research.
- To contribute to identifying key areas and priorities for psychology service provision.
Person Specification
QUALIFICATIONS/EDUCATION/TRAINING
Essential
- Doctoral level training in Clinical Psychology.
- Registered as a Clinical Psychologist with Health and Care Professions Council.
PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE
Essential
- Experience of specialist psychological assessment and treatment of service users with a learning disability.
- Experience of working with a wide variety of client groups, across a range presenting problems and clinical severity, including maintaining a high degree of professionalism in the face of highly emotive and distressing problems, verbal abuse, and the threat of physical abuse.
- Experience of working in a multi-disciplinary team.
Desirable
- Experience of teaching, training and/or supervision.
- Experience of the application of clinical psychology in different cultural contexts.
SKILLS/KNOWLEDGE/ABILITY
Essential
- Well developed skills in the ability to communicate effectively, orally and in writing, complex, highly technical and/or clinically sensitive information to clients, their families, carers, and other professional colleagues, both within and outside the NHS.
- Skills in providing consultation to other professional and non-professional groups.
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Certificate of Sponsorship
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
Employer details
Employer name
Hertfordshire Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust
Address
Tekhnicon House
Springwood Drive
Braintree
CM7 2GB
