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Job title: Highly Specialist Clinical Practitioner (HCPC registered Psychologist, UKCP registered Psychotherapist or equivalent)

Setting: Specialist attachment and trauma-informed residential care setting for young people experiencing complex mental health difficulties

Full or part time: 3 – 5 days per week to be agreed with post holder

Closing date: The listing will be closed when sufficient applications are received so do not delay your application.

Are you a Psychologist or Psychotherapist who specialises in complex trauma and mental health difficulties? Do you like to work systemically with the team around the child?

Our Therapeutic Care Service supports independent care providers who want to deliver specialist, therapeutic care. In your role as Highly Specialist Clinical Practitioner, you will oversee the delivery of effective and integrated psychological support services for one of our partner providers, Essential Therapeutic Care in Aldermaston, Berkshire.

Essential currently have three small CQC and/or Ofsted registered residential services for adolescents with complex mental health needs and/or attachment and trauma difficulties. Many of the young people also have diagnoses of neurodevelopmental differences such as autism or ADHD. Essential are planning on opening a fourth home in the coming year. The primary purpose of these homes is to provide support to young people aged 13-25 who need to step down from inpatient mental health, or to prevent them from being admitted in the first place.

Your role will include embracing and implementing our ATIC™ model (Attachment & Trauma Informed Care) and embedding consistent, predictable ATIC components and structures within ETC.

This is a highly autonomous and empathic leadership role to oversee reflective practice, integrated leadership meetings, risk management meetings for young people, assessments, staff training in trauma-informed practice, and formulation and planning meetings.

You may also provide routine therapy to the young people, or you may provide supervision to a specialist trauma therapist who is responsible for direct work with the young people. You will provide supervision to an Assistant Psychologist who will support on the delivery of both the therapeutic interventions and the systemic team structures that you will lead.

There is much scope for evolving and expanding the clinical role within the team and we are proud to have a dynamic and creative approach to implementing meaningful change within the services we support.

Role requirements:

• Higher degree (e.g., Doctorate) in Psychology or Psychotherapy (meeting requirements for HCPC or UKCP registration)
• Essential: Substantial experience of delivering evidence based therapeutic support structures in inpatient mental health settings or a children’s services context (i.e. residential services) – local authority, CAMHS, or services for looked after children
• Essential: Substantial experience of providing systemic consultation and advice to organisations, social work staff and other professionals eg CAMHS or Local Authorities
• Desirable: Experience in leading a psychological service and offering supervision and support to clinical psychologists in delivering Attachment and Trauma Informed Care

Start date: ASAP

You will receive:

• Salary: £45,000 – £55,000 depending on experience
• 25 days’ holiday plus 8 bank holidays
• Company pension scheme
• Enhanced DBS check and update service
• Ongoing clinical and professional support and supervision from a highly experienced clinical team
• Extensive training and continued professional development opportunities, including access to online CPD platform, Therapeutic Care training, Story Stem Assessment Training, and Clinical Trauma Specialist Certification
• Peer Buddy allocated at induction to support you through probation period and beyond
• Monthly reflective practice space
• Fully-funded team development events.

Download the role profile and person specification (PDF)

The court assessment 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.

The role:

• Your primary task will be completing complex psychological 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.
• The role is based remotely at present and will require travel within a reasonable distance of Brent, North-West London.
• Flexible hours to suit you – you choose how many assessments you would like to complete.

What we offer you:

• Ongoing clinical and professional support from a highly experienced and growing team.
• Monthly group supervision/reflective practice facilitated by our experienced Service Lead.
• Variety in your workload – opportunities to maintain your recent and relevant expertise through activities such as direct therapy, group work, delivering teaching or training, participating in CPD, research activity, or publishing articles.
• Extensive training and CPD opportunities at a subsidised rate, e.g. Therapeutic Care training, Story Stem Assessment Training, Clinical Trauma Specialist Certification.
• An allocated Peer Buddy to support you as you become familiar with our service.
• Robust quality assurance process to support you and ensure the highest quality and consistency.
• Dedicated referrals co-ordinator to specifically match each case with your skills and experience.
• Location flexibility – remote working with travel required within a reasonable distance of Brent, North-West London.
• Flexible hours – you can complete as many or as few assessments as you choose, to suit you.
• Team development days twice yearly.
• Access to our clinical management software for managing appointments, keeping records and storing files.

Role requirements:

• HCPC registered Psychologist, e.g., Clinical, Counselling or Forensic Psychologist
• Essential: Experience of delivering psychological assessments for children and families, including the use of specialist assessment tools.
• Essential: Formulation experience following assessments, including compiling psychological assessment reports.
• Desirable: Previous Expert Witness or court experience.

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.

How to apply:

Do not delay your application – the listing will be closed early if sufficient applications are received.

If you would like a copy of the Job Description and Person Specification, an application form, or just some more information about this role, please contact Michelle Thomas, Service Lead on [email protected], call us on 0808 239 1481 or email [email protected].