Join us

About the job

We are looking for Clinical, Counselling, or Forensic Psychologists and Child or Adult Psychiatrists to join our ethical and trauma-informed Expert Witness service across the South of England.

The family court process can be incredibly stressful and at times re-traumatising for families. We want to do things differently. Our trauma-informed approach to assessments centres a focus on adversity, social determinants of mental health, and cultural competence.

This is a flexible, self-employed role –you can complete as many or as few assessments as you choose, to suit you!

We pride ourselves on the support and development we offer to our Experts – free monthly peer supervision, ongoing CPD opportunities, mentoring for those who are new to court work, as well as quality assurance and proof-reading support.

‘As a social enterprise, MCTS is the partner of choice for clinicians who value giving back as well as making a living.’

The role:

• Your primary task will be completing complex psychological or psychiatric assessments of children and families and writing reports for pre-proceedings or family court.
• This could include a range of complex assessments depending on your experience and expertise, e.g. cognitive, domestic violence, attachment and trauma etc.
• All assessments will be completed in line with our Attachment and Trauma-Informed policy and processes.
• Assessments are usually a blend of virtual and face-to-face, depending on the clinical needs of the family.

How does it work?

• This is an affiliate, self-employed role.
• You can pick and choose how much work you take on at any time with no pressure or minimum commitment.
• Our dedicated referrals co-ordinator will get to know your experience and availability and send you referrals that we think might suit – you let us know whether you’re interested and available.
• For a standard psychological assessment, we pay up to 25 hours for an assessment of 1 adult or child, with an additional 10 hours available for each additional family member, at a rate of £65 per hour. As an example, this means that you could be paid up to £1625 for an assessment of 1 parent or child, £2275 for 2 people, or a family of 4 would be £3,575, plus travel time and expenses in each case.
• Psychiatric assessments are paid at £85 an hour with up to 15 hours for an adult assessment (£1,275) or 25 hours for a child or adolescent (£2,125).
• When you’re ready to submit your report, we have a robust quality assurance process to support you and ensure the highest quality and consistency which includes support from a clinician as well as proof-reading and formatting support from our admin team.
• We pay you within 30 days of filing your report, so you don’t have to worry about chasing payments from referrers!

Added extras:

• For experienced clinicians who are new to expert witness work, we can pair you up with a mentor to support you through your first couple of assessments.
• We offer a free monthly peer supervision session for all our affiliates so you have access to ongoing support no matter your experience level.
• We also have a lots of opportunities for you to maintain variety in your workload through activities like direct therapy, group work, delivering teaching or training, participating in CPD, research activity, or publishing articles.
• As well as subsidised training and CPD opportunities e.g. Therapeutic Care training, Story Stem Assessment Training, Clinical Trauma Specialist Certification.
• And free access to our secure clinical management software for managing appointments, keeping records and storing files.

Role requirements:

• HCPC registered Psychologist, e.g., Clinical, Counselling or Forensic Psychologist or GMC and RCP registered Psychiatrist (child or adult)
• Desirable: Previous Expert Witness or court experience.
• Essential: Experience of delivering psychological or psychiatric assessments for children, adults and/or families, including the use of specialist assessment tools.
• Essential: Experience compiling professional reports and making clinical recommendations.

For more information about this role, please contact Hannah or Kelly, via email – hello@mcts.org.uk

Don’t meet every single requirement?

Studies have shown that some people, including women and people of colour, are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification. At MCTS we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive, and authentic workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every specification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway – you may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.

About MCTS:

We are specialists in trauma, therapeutic care, and organisational culture. First and foremost, MCTS is a social enterprise – we believe in reinvesting to improve services for children, young people, and families who have experienced trauma and adversity, in an innovative and socially conscious way.

Within the United Kingdom there is a devastating lack of effective, specialist services to meet the needs of children, young people and families impacted by trauma, abuse, and neglect. Our mission at MCTS is to share our expertise and experience in the field to develop and deliver specialist psychological services that are ethical and trauma-informed.

Our services currently include Expert Witness Services, integrated Therapeutic Care packages for independent care providers, consultation and training.

Reasons to join us:

1. We walk the talk

As a trauma-informed employer, we apply the same values, principles and approaches to staff and organisational culture as we do with every child and family. That means a strong emphasis on staff wellbeing, collaboration, connection and integration, and an open, curious and reflective ethos.

2. Support and supervision

We pride ourselves on going above and beyond when it comes to supporting our team, whether you are a permanent employee or self-employed affiliate. Although we are a small team, we have a strong sense of community and we work hard to maintain connection and integration across our service.

3. Socially conscious

We pride ourselves on practicing in ethical and socially conscious ways. Our aim is to reinvest into much-needed psychological services for children, young people and families impacted by adversity. We are passionate about social reinvestment and feel that this makes us unique in the independent expert assessment sector.

4. Lifelong learning

We are strengths-focused and believe in lifelong learning. Every member of our team has completed or is working toward certification as a Certified Clinical Trauma Specialist (individual and families), as well as Therapeutic Care Training and Story Stem Assessment Training. We place high importance on developing our staff team and ensuring that we provide opportunities for career progression and leadership.

5. Staff wellbeing

We all need to feel ok in order to thrive, reflect and learn. Working with trauma and adversity can have an impact on any of us, at any time, regardless of how experienced we are. We are all human beings that bring our own lived experiences, strengths, learning needs, blind spots, biases, feelings, beliefs and values into the work. At MCTS, we celebrate and respect our individual, social and cultural identities and foster a culture of psychological safety.

6. Fresh thinking

We’re just beginning this journey, and now is a great time to join us! As a new business, developed by a team with considerable expertise and experience in the field, we get the unique benefits of being newly formed and full of big ideas, alongside the background of years of success and experience in developing and delivering independent health and social care services.

Safeguarding and Equal Opportunities

MCTS is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. Applicants must be willing to undergo appropriate child protection screening, including employment references and DBS check.

We are an equal opportunities employer and welcome applications from all suitably qualified persons regardless of their race, sex, disability, religion/belief, sexual orientation, or age.

Please note: Job applicants must have the legal right to work in the United Kingdom.