Job summary
We are extremely excited there is a commitment within the Older People and Frailty Division (OPFD) to the expansion of psychological provision throughout our pathways. This has started with the appointment of two Consultant Clinical Psychologists, to complement an existing Consultant. The advertised posts have been designed to further service developments and continue to embed psychological ways of working within teams. With these roles you will have a real opportunity to make a significant difference to the service provision and care for the older people of Lincolnshire.
The development across the Acute and Community pathways in the last 12-18 months include: creating trainee placements, registering as a site for a national research project regarding Compassion Focussed Therapy for depression in Older People, obtaining funding for training places for existing LPFT staff to increase psychological provision, developing strong links with the Faculty of Psychology for Older People (FPOP) wherein we are co-facilitating the 2025 FPOP conference, on top of the clinical endeavours expected from service provision.
We are looking for innovative, forward thinking, proactive psychologists who can work to further this development, and who, importantly, have a passion for working with older people. Given these are new roles with a broad span of services to cover we could negotiate the breadth of activity to ensure an exciting and satisfying remit.
Main duties of the job
Service development: audit, service evaluation and service development endeavours to enhance provision including Trauma Informed Care approaches, creating and maintaining relationships with neighbouring internal and external agencies to ensure psychological elements relevant to older people are constantly considered.
Recruitment and supervision of growing numbers of psychological staff, and clinical support to non-psychology colleagues.
Provision of placements for trainees from local DClinPsy, as well as other relevant courses.
Client care: hold an independent caseload for specialist assessment, formulation and intervention (including augmented therapeutic input), provision of consultation, manage referrals and waiting list, and associated documentation relevant to client care.
Maintain own Continuing Professional Development (CPD).
About us
Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust provides mental health services and a number of learning disability, autism and social care services in the county of Lincolnshire. Employing around 2,900 staff, and serving a population of over 768,400, our people lie at the heart of everything we do.
You could be part of a Trust rated by staff as one of the best mental health and learning disability trusts in England. We firmly believe the key to high quality care is a contented workforce. This is reflected in our Care Quality Commission rating of 'outstanding' for well-led and 'good' overall. In the most recent National NHS Staff Survey, our staff rated us as the number one trust nationally for staff morale and one of the top scoring NHS Trusts in the Midlands for being compassionate and inclusive. We're really proud of this!
We offer options for flexible working and provide a wide range of training and promotion opportunities in all professions. We support and celebrate diversity, have active staff networks groups and are always looking at what more we can do to support our staff.
Whether you're taking the first exciting steps in your career, itching for a new challenge or searching for a better place to raise a family, Lincolnshire has arange of rewarding health and social care careers in a county that's friendly, fascinating, affordable and brimming with everything you need to live a happy life. Visit to find out more .
Job description
Job responsibilities
To provide a clinical psychology service to clients, with suspected (over age of 65 years) or confirmed Dementia and, when appropriate, additional mental health needs, seen within the older adult and dementia pathways within the areas of agreed responsibility. To work with clients alone at the team base, in care homes or other community venues, or at their home as necessary.
To exercise full responsibility and autonomy for the assessment, formulation, intervention and discharge, for older adults with severe and enduring mental health difficulties and/or Dementia, referred to LPFTs CMHTs or HTTs or Inpatient wards, and their carers and families, where the presenting difficulties and concerns can be managed as a psychologically based intervention.
To support the Consultant Clinical Psychologists and Team Co-Ordinator(s) with the management of incoming referrals, the waiting list, allocation of clients, workload of staff members in the service and decisions about the nature of the service provided and point of discharge. To maintain and manage own complex caseload, including leading and coordinating patient care where is appropriate and agreed.
To ensure the systematic provision of a highly specialist clinical psychology service to clients referred into the CMHTs and Acute Pathways with particular emphasis on the assessment, formulation and intervention of complex psychological neurodevelopmental conditions, maintaining own highly specialist caseload.
To provide expert psychological assessment and reports, both written and verbal, to referrers of people with a wide range of psychological problems, in accordance with codes of professional ethics.
To ensure the provision of highly specialist clinical and professional supervision and support to staff working in the CMHTs and Acute Pathways, including recruitment of staff.
To liaise with relevant professionals within inpatient and community settings, coordinating the delivery of psychology services for older adults within the geographical location where services are provided.
The post holder will have specialist training and experience and will be expected to work autonomously within professional guidelines as well as liaise closely with other professionals and volunteers who work with clients in the CMHTs and Acute Pathways, and their carers and families.
They will provide supervision and consultation to other Psychologists and professionals, and they will provide regular placements to Trainee Clinical Psychologists. The post holder will use their research skills to undertake research and development and audit activities and will participate in CPD, LPFTs annual staff appraisal and other developmental activities.
To provide and promote awareness, skill development and effective action in staff working with older adults with severe and enduring mental health difficulties and/or Dementia and their family/carers in health, care home and voluntary sector settings, through advice, support, specialist consultation, liaison, training and supervision.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
1. BPS accredited honours degree in Psychology
2. A Doctorate in Clinical Psychology accredited by the BPS and HCPC (or equivalent)
3. Additional specialist training related to working with older adults and / or Dementia
4. Clinical supervision training for Doctorate Clinical Psychology Trainees
5. Registered member of HCPC
6. Eligible for chartered status as a Clinical Psychologist
Desirable
7. Other related academic qualifications to Masters or Doctorate level
8. Additional training in at least one therapy related to the post
9. Involvement with the Faculty of Psychology for Older People, BPS.
Experience
Essential
10. Extensive post-qualification experience of working as a Specialist Clinical Psychologist with older adults with severe and enduring mental health issues and/or Dementia, and their carers and families where there are psychological concerns
11. Extensive post qualification experience of working with adults with a range of mental health needs from moderate to extensive difficulties including cognitive difficulties; physical difficulties; chronic and acute health problems.
12. Extensive experience of working with people who have experienced abuse - physical, sexual, emotional
13. Extensive post qualification experience of providing specialist clinical psychology assessments of people in the context of their living situations which may include - living with family; in residential, nursing or inpatient environments
14. Extensive specialist clinical psychology assessment skills which include:- Use of psychometric assessments of cognition, intelligence, memory, language, executive functioning, use of behavioural assessments, use of observational methods of assessment, assessment by interviewing, assessment by analysis of archive material
15. Extensive post qualification experience of developing and providing specialist clinical psychology interventions and intervention packages for use with clients and their carers and families. Specific expertise across a range of approaches including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Compassion Focussed Therapy (CFT), Systemic Therapy; Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT), Attachment/Narrative based approaches, Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR), and solution focused interventions
16. Experience of running therapeutic groups and psycho-educational groups for people and carers
17. Extensive post qualification experience of providing Specialist Clinical Psychology advice to carers and staff concerning the care and/or therapeutic provision for people with neurodegenerative conditions
18. Extensive knowledge and experience of issues for people with significant mental illness, and dementia
19. Extensive knowledge and experience of safeguarding and exploitation issues and procedures
20. Extensive supervisory and consultative experience - to other Psychologists; to other professions; to other agencies
21. Extensive experience of working within multi-disciplinary and multi-agency settings
22. Experience of providing teaching and training to other psychologists and other unqualified and qualified colleagues
Desirable
23. Experience of working with adults with Learning Disabilities, Autism and/or mental health disorders
24. Experience of working with people who present with behaviours that challenge.
25. Experience of developing and providing a specific psychology service with clear policies and measurement of outcomes
26. Experience of carrying out staff appraisals and reviews
27. Record of having published in either peer reviewed or academic or professional journals and/or books
28. Experience of working as a sole psychologist within MDTs