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Senior Psychological Therapist - HMP Bronzefield
NHS AfC: Band 8a
Main area Health & Justice Services Grade NHS AfC: Band 8a Contract Permanent Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week (Health & Justice Services work to a 7-day working week) Job ref 333-D-HJ-1775
Site HMP Bronzefield Town Ashford, Middlesex Salary £55,877 - £62,626 per annum incl of HCAS fringe (pro rata if part time) Salary period Yearly Closing 09/03/2025 23:59
Job overview
Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust is a Top Employer Award Winner and works in partnership to provide responsive and dependable primary care, mental health, intellectual disability and substance misuse services to the diverse and culturally rich communities we serve.
In our quest to deliver patient-focused quality care we are looking to recruit a highly motivated, innovative and enthusiastic Senior Psychologist or Psychological Therapist to join our forward thinking, friendly and expanding Mental Health In reach Team at HMP Bronzefield.
We are keen to recruit someone with a passion for working with women in custody, and those who have experienced trauma, adversity and offending. In our women’s services we provided a wide range of therapies (CBT, MBT, EMDR, Psychodynamic counselling, arts therapies) and actively work with partners to provide timely and trauma informed systems of care. You will be helping provide and develop these services at HMP Bronzefield.
We are able to offer this post as a preceptorship for Band 7 to 8a. We can support the successful candidate to progress their career through our well established mentorship programme. If this of interest please do get in touch to discuss further.
Main duties of the job
* To work as a key member of the multi-disciplinary team, supporting a psychological and trauma informed service to the women at HMP Bronzefield and leading the on the psychological therapy provision within the team
* To provide specialist psychological assessment and therapy as well as offering advice and consultation on service users’ psychological care to other members of the clinical team.
* To utilise research skills for audit, policy and service development and research within the Health & Justice Services Directorate.
* To provide clinical supervision to the team’s psychological therapists, Assistant Psychologists and trainees and other members of the team when appropriate.
* To contribute to the reflective practice and critical thinking of the team on a case-by-case basis (e.g. complex case reviews) and in service improvement.
* To work autonomously within professional guidelines and the overall framework of the service’s policies and procedures
Working for our organisation
By joining CNWL’s Health & Justice Directorate you will be joining a large department of psychologists and psychological therapists that provide a variety of mental health and OPD services across prisons, the youth estate, secure hospitals and the community. Our staff are dynamic and welcoming and the networking and CPD opportunities are central to our services ethos. We have active research forums and promote our services and work through academic and clinical forums. All staff receive regular supervision and are supported with career aspirations and progression.
All of our sites in Surrey offer free use of the onsite leisure facilities and free parking for staff.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
MAIN DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
* To carry out specialist psychological assessments of clients referred to the service, based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex psychological data from a variety of sources including psychological and neuropsychological tests, self-report measures, rating scales, direct and indirect structured observations and semi-structured interviews with clients, family members and others involved in the client’s care, in order to reach a psychological formulation of the client’s difficulties.
* To formulate and implement plans for the formal psychological treatment and/or management of a client’s mental health problems, based upon an appropriate conceptual framework of the client’s problems, and employing methods based upon evidence of efficacy, across the full range of care settings.
* To be responsible for implementing a range of psychological interventions for individuals, carers, families and groups, within and across teams employed individually and in synthesis, adjusting and refining psychological formulations drawing upon different explanatory models and maintaining a number of provisional hypotheses.
* To provide specialist assessments of clients presenting with cognitive impairment due to a variety of causes or organic conditions, including pre-assessment counselling and neuropsychological and functional assessments, and to be able to adjust psychological interventions to work effectively with people presenting with complex needs due to cognitive impairment and organic disorders.
* To evaluate and make decisions about treatment options taking into account both theoretical and therapeutic models and complex factors concerning historical and developmental processes that have shaped the individual, family or group.
* To provide specialist psychological advice, guidance and consultation to other professionals contributing directly to clients’ formulations, diagnoses and treatment plans.
* To contribute directly and indirectly to a psychologically based framework of understanding and care to the benefit of all clients of the service, across all settings and agencies serving the client group.
* To undertake risk assessment, formulation and management for individual clients with complex presentations and to provide advice to other professions on psychological aspects of risk assessment, formulation and management.
* To communicate in a skilled and sensitive manner, information concerning the assessment, formulation and treatment plans of clients under their care and to monitor progress during the course of both uni- and multi-disciplinary care.
* To promote and participate in multi-disciplinary team working, development and liaison.
* To promote actively, user and carer involvement in care planning and service development.
* To be up to date with both de-escalation, physical breakaway and PMVA techniques appropriate to the service environment.
Teaching, Training, and Supervision:
* To receive and provide regular clinical professional supervision.
* To gain additional highly specialist experience and skills relevant to applied psychology, in line with a professional development plan and in keeping with service needs (as agreed with the professional lead).
* To develop skills in the area of professional post-graduate teaching, training and supervision and to provide supervision to other team members’ psychological work as appropriate.
* To provide clinical placements for trainee clinical psychologists, ensuring that trainees acquire the necessary skills, competencies and experience to contribute effectively to client care and to contribute to the assessment and evaluation of such competencies.
* To provide professional and clinical supervision of trainee and assistant applied psychologists, as well as more junior qualified psychologists, psychological therapists and counsellors.
* To contribute to the pre- and post-qualification teaching of applied psychology and psychological therapy, as appropriate.
* To provide advice, consultation and training to staff working with the client group across a range of agencies and settings, where appropriate.
Management, Leadership, Recruitment, Policy and Service Development:
* To participate as a clinician in identifying and implementing the development of a high quality, responsible and accessible service, in consultation with the team manager and supervisor.
* To contribute to the development, evaluation and monitoring of the team’s operational policies and services, through the deployment of professional skills in research, service evaluation and audit.
* To advise both service and professional management on those aspects of the service where psychological and/or organisational matters need addressing.
* To contribute psychological knowledge and expertise to policy and service development through participation, where practical, in regional multidisciplinary meetings and special interest groups, working parties etc that may impact on the functioning of the service.
* To participate in the management of psychological resources available to the team, in the form of psychological materials employed in the assessment and treatment of service users.
* To manage the workloads of assistant and trainee applied psychologists, within the framework of the team/service’s policies and procedures.
* To be involved, as appropriate, in the short listing and interviewing of assistant / graduate psychologists and other staff as appropriate.
* To provide effective leadership and management to staff which promotes high performance standards both individually and as a team, in the achievement of the Trust’s objectives and priorities. The Trust’s success will be dependent on all managers playing an active role to make sure the existing areas of good employment practice are universally embedded within the organisation.
* Promote equality, diversity and rights, and treat others with dignity and respect ensuring services are developed, managed and delivered to meet specific needs linked to protected characteristics.
* Promote equality, diversity and Human Rights in working practices by developing and maintaining positive working relationships, ensuring that colleagues are treated fairly and contributing to developing equality of opportunity and outcomes in working practices.
* Contribute to developing and maintaining equality of opportunity in working practices by complying with legislation and organisational policies. Advise colleagues about equality, diversity and human rights policies and procedures and ensure they are followed.
* Ensure that colleagues are treated fairly. Behave in a non-discriminatory way and challenge the discriminatory behaviour of others. Be supportive of colleagues or service users who wish to raise issues about discriminatory practice or experience.
Research and Service Evaluation:
* To utilise theory, evidence-based literature and research to support evidence-based practice in individual work and work with other team members.
* To undertake appropriate research and provide research advice to other staff undertaking research.
* To undertake project management, including complex audit and service evaluation, with colleagues within the service to help develop service provision.
General:
* To ensure professional registration is maintained, complying with Continuing Professional Development requirements to maintain registration.
* To ensure the development, maintenance and dissemination of the highest professional standards of practice, through active participation in internal and where appropriate, external CPD training and development programmes.
* To ensure the development and articulation of best practice in psychology within the service area and contribute across the service by exercising the skills of a reflexive and reflective scientist practitioner, taking part in regular professional supervision and appraisal and maintaining an active engagement with current developments in the field of applied psychology and related disciplines.
* Maintain an individual professional profile within the care group as direct evidence of clinical practice at an advanced level. Disseminate good practice through National and International Conference Presentations and preparing relevant material for publication in appropriate professional journals.
* To contribute to the development of an open learning culture within the organisation, which supports clinical governance, innovation, and the provision of safe and effective services, in line with broad government and Department of Health policies to tackle inequalities, improve public services and promote social inclusion, which involves users and staff and values learning.
* To participate fully in the Trust’s performance review and personal development planning process on an annual basis.
* To maintain and promulgate the highest standards of clinical record keeping including electronic data entry and recording, report writing and the responsible exercise of professional self-governance in accordance with professional codes of practice of the British Psychological Society, Health and Care Professions Council and Trust policies and procedures.
* To maintain up to date knowledge of legislation, national and local policies and issues in relation to both the specific client group and mental health.
* To work within agreed Trust policies and guidelines including adult and child protection guidelines and including health and safety regulations and policies.
* To receive instructions from, and carry out any other duties as reasonably requested/ delegated by the Team manager and Psychology Lead.
Person specification
EDUCATION AND QUALIFICATIONS
* • Doctoral level training in clinical, counselling or forensic psychology or its equivalent, accredited by the BPS. Training in models of developmental lifespan psychology, psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology and two or more distinct psychological therapies. • HCPC Registered as a Practitioner Psychologist. OR • A recognised post graduate qualification in Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapy (or equivalent). • Accreditation with the British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy (BABCP) (via having a recognised qualification in one of the core mental health professions e.g. nursing, psychology, medicine, social work, occupational therapy or evidence of having achieved the Knowledge Skills and Attitudes (KSA) route) OR • A recorded/registered qualification in counselling or psychotherapy and further post accreditation qualification in a nice recommended or evidence-based therapy (e.g. CBT; EMDR) • Accreditation with a Professional Standards Authority recognised Accreditation Body. • Evidence of post-qualification specialist training, experience and developing expertise in a specialist area of clinical practice relevant to this role.
* • Other relevant CPD qualifications, pre- or post-training. Especially training in working with people with trauma and/or neurodiverse presentations, research methodology, staff training and/or other fields of applied psychology.
PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE
* • Experience of specialist psychological assessment and treatment of clients across the full range of care settings, including outpatient, community, primary care and inpatient settings
* • Demonstrate specialist experience gained post-qualification of working as an applied psychologist with evidence of having received a substantial amount of clinical supervision (normally in the region of approximately 50 hours).
* • Experience of working with a wide variety of client groups, across the whole life course presenting problems that reflect the full range of 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 representing psychology within context of multidisciplinary care
* • Experience of the application of applied psychology in different cultural contexts and experience of working within a multicultural framework.
* • Experience of teaching, training and/or supervision.
* • Experience or demonstrable knowledge of working with the particular client group served by the team/service
* • Knowledge of guidance and legislation in relation to the client group and mental health
* • Knowledge of the theory and practice of specialist psychological therapies in specific difficult to treat groups (e.g. personality disorder, dual diagnosis, people with additional disabilities etc)
* • Experience of delivering brief, primary care, CBT interventions or equivalent
* • High level knowledge of the theory and practice of at least two specialised psychological therapies
* • Formal Training in Supervision of other psychologists
* • Evidence of continuing professional development as required by the HCPC
* • Experience of working in secure environments and/or forensic mental health
* • Experience of using a trauma informed approach
* • Lived experience of mental health Issues
* • High level knowledge and skills in neuropsychology and evidence of further practice and/or training since qualification
SKILLS, KNOWLEDGE, ABILITIES:
* • Skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment intervention and management frequently requiring sustained and intense concentration
* • 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
* • Possesses range of clinical knowledge, skills & information technology expertise relevant to post
* • Can demonstrate competence in supervision of junior qualified psychology and MDT staff and professional psychology trainees
* • Ability to teach and train others, using a variety of complex multi-media materials suitable for presentations within public, professional and academic settings
* • Ability to identify and employ mechanisms of clinical governance as appropriate, to support and maintain clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive material and challenging behaviour
* • Broad knowledge of models of assessment, management and treatment of offenders with mental health difficulties and personality disorders.
* • Ability to work intensively with people who present challenges in the complexity of their problems and needs, including sexual and violent offending and self-harming and suicidal behaviours
* • High level of ability to plan and organise clinical service provision to meet service demands, and to maintain high quality professional practice.
* • Evidence of continual development of specialist knowledge and skills through engaging in relevant study and Continuing Professional Development relevant to the forensic population
* • An Understanding of the social determinates of health inequalities and relevant psychological theory and practice
* • Good understanding of the current context of service provision within the NHS
* • Experience of software e.g. SPSS, EXCEL
* • Ability to write reports for varied audiences, including courts and purchasers of services
* • Doctoral level knowledge of research methodology, research design and complex, multivariate data analysis as practiced within the clinical fields of psychology and psychological therapies
ATTITUDES, APTITUDES PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS:
* • Excellent interpersonal skills
* • Willingness to work flexibly to meet demands of contracts, commissioners and other stake-holders to provide high-quality and effective care
* • Commitment to multidisciplinary team working.
* • Appreciation of the interface between our personal and professional lives, high level of self-awareness and knowledge of principles of self-care
OTHER:
* • The post holder must have the ability to understand and implement the equal opportunities policy at a level appropriate to the job
* • Ability to promote anti-discriminatory and anti-racist practices.
* • Ability to work in a secure environment. Must be able to obtain and maintain prison security clearance and work in accordance with HMPS and Sodexo policies and procedures.
* • Ability to travel across sites
CNWL (Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust) has almost 8,000 staff providing integrated healthcare to a third of London's population, Milton Keynes and areas beyond. We involve service users, carers, the public, staff and partner organisations in the way that we are run.
Our catchment area spans diverse communities, with over 100 first languages spoken. It contains areas of great affluence as well as areas of much deprivation. We are committed to providing services that meet the needs of the people who use them, and we actively encourage involvement from local people who can help make a difference. We’re proud of our diversity and we continue to undertake new initiatives to advance equality for LGBT+, BME and people with disabilities to promote good relations and understanding between our staff.
We are recognised locally, nationally and internationally for providing high quality, innovative healthcare. We aim to employ only the best people, and our experts are frequently called upon to contribute to national health strategy and policy, and many models of our care have been adapted for use in other countries.
We offer a generous relocation package (subject to eligibility assessment) and flexible working options, including bank assignments for most roles. For more information on these and other benefits of working for us, see our Benefits, Reward and Wellbeing page
Become part of our team. We care for you as much as you care for others.
CNWL NHS Foundation Trust are committed to safeguarding all children and vulnerable adults and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. We follow safe recruitment practices to protect children and vulnerable adults.
Due to the high response levels we receive for some vacancies, we may expire any of them prior to the advertised closing date and advise you to submit your application as soon as possible.
Our Agenda for Change employment contracts are subject to a contractual 13 week probationary period.
If you are offered a job, information will be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system.
Employer certification / accreditation badges
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.
Name Dr Nicola Thomas Job title Lead Psychologist for Health & Justice Email address nicola.thomas45@nhs.net Additional information
We are a friendly team and are really keen to find the right person for this role. We therefore encourage any prospective candidate to contact us for a discussion, with any questions and/or to book an informal visit, thank you.
Our healthcare services work to a 7-day week working model, to ensure our patient's healthcare is managed and maintained to the highest of standards at all times
You can also find more information on our services and the work we do within the Health & Justice Directorate please do take a look at our new website https://www.cnwl.nhs.uk/health-and-justice
Any enquires please contact Dr Nicola Thomas: Lead Psychologist for Health & Justice nicola.thomas45@nhs.net
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