Assistant Psychologist

NHS; Lincoln; On-site; GBP 32,000 - 39,000; Full time

Job summary

Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust in Lincolnshire is seeking an Assistant Psychologist (Band 5) to support the Offender Personality Disorder Pathway within Lincoln/Grantham Probation settings. The role works with probation staff and supervision from a Clinical or Forensic Psychologist to identify cases meeting entry criteria for OPD.

You will contribute to clinical record keeping, risk assessment, and delivery of group or individual psychological work, while ensuring diversity,

Qualifications

• First or upper second class honours in Psychology and eligibility for BPS graduate membership.
• Post-graduate training in forensic or clinical psychology.
• Experience with offenders or mental health populations.
• Experience in MDT and multi-agency working.

Responsibilities

• Maintain high standards of clinical record keeping and report writing.
• Undertake administrative duties as required.
• Work with Psychology Manager and colleagues on duties.
• Ensure diversity considerations in care and service development.
• Consult with service users and empower them to express their views.

Skills

Risk assessment

Communication skills

Independent working

IT literacy

Education

Bachelor in Psychology with 2:1 or better

Graduate membership of BPS

Post-graduate training in forensic/clinical psychology

Tools

SPSS

Excel

Databases / spreadsheets

Job description

Main area Psychology - Mental Health/Probation Services Grade Band 5 Contract Permanent Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week Job ref 186-1017-26-GH

Employer Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site Lincoln or Grantham Probation Office Town Lincoln Salary £32,073 - £39,043 per annum (pro rata for part time) Salary period Yearly Closing 24/11/2026 23:59

Assistant Psychologist

Band 5

We fully support the use of AI and other tools to assist in writing your application. However, it's essential that the content, especially your supporting statement, is personalised and factually accurate. Your application should reflect your genuine experiences and qualifications to ensure authenticity and credibility

Job overview

Assistant Psychologist - Band 5

To work in partnership with the National Probation Service to support with the ongoing development and delivery of the community based element of the Offender Personality Disorder Pathway within Lincolnshire.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will work under the supervision of a qualified Clinical or Forensic Psychologist supporting and advising probation staff in identifying and consulting on cases that meet the entry criteria for the Offender Personality Disorder (OPD) pathway; in terms of personality disorder this means cases that appear to have significant problematic personality traits.

Please see Job Description for full infomation.

Please note applicants will be required to pay for their DBS check. Costs are deducted from salary following appointment. The cost of the DBS application is £20.00 (standard) or £41.00 (enhanced), this cost will be deducted from your salary over the first 2 months of employment.

You are encouraged to enrol for the DBS Update Service. An annual fee of £16 per year applies.

Working for our organisation

#TeamNottsHC comprises over 11,000 dedicated colleagues who #MakeADifference every day. We deliver intellectual disability, mental health, community health, forensic, and offender healthcare services across Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, and South Yorkshire. Our care is provided from over 200 sites, spanning community locations, acute settings, and secure environments, including prisons.

We are one of the largest mental health and community Trusts in the East Midlands and one of Nottinghamshire's biggest employers. We also host national and regional services, such as the National High Secure Deaf Service and the Nottingham Centre for Transgender Health.
We offer a variety of employee-led staff networks, including Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) groups, the Green Champions network, the Freedom to Speak Up network, the Health and Wellbeing Champions network, and the Menopause Champions network. These networks play a vital role in supporting our diverse workforce and promoting a culture of inclusivity.

The health and wellbeing of our colleagues is a top priority. We invest significantly in this through our in-house occupational health and staff counselling services, supported by a dedicated Health and Wellbeing team.

The Trust is committed to reducing its carbon emissions, with a specialised Energy and Environmental team working to ensure compliance with environmental legislation, enhance our environmental performance, and achieve our net-zero commitment

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

To maintain the highest standards of clinical record keeping and report writing in accordance with professional codes of practice of the British Psychological Society and Trust policies and procedures.

To undertake specific administrative duties as required.

To perform other duties of a similar kind appropriate to the banding which may be required from time to time by their Psychology Manager.

To ensure that in all aspects of professional activity (e.g. communication with service users, relatives, and colleagues as well as in the assessment, development/delivery of interventions) issues of diversity such as race, culture, identity, gender, religion, age and sexuality are sensitively considered and incorporated to reflect individual differences appropriately.

To ensure that service users are appropriately consulted about relevant aspects of their care and are empowered to express their views in a responsive environment enabling such views to be assimilated/incorporated into continued service development and improvement.

Person specification

Values

• All colleagues are expected to demonstrate at interview that they act in line with Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust Values: Trust Honesty Respect Compassion Teamwork
• All colleagues are expected to demonstrate an understanding of and commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) and how it applies to their role. The Trust's expectations are highlighted within our EDI Policy, and associated EDI and Human Rights legislation

Physical Requirements

• Able to sit still for long periods in clinical settings or for report writing, however reasonable adjustments will be made for disabled individuals in line with the Equality Act 2010.

Qualifications

• 1st class or Upper second class honours degree or 2.2 plus higher degree in Psychology; and ability to demonstrate eligibility to graduate membership of the BPS.
• Further relevant post-graduate training (e.g. in Forensic, clinical or other applied Psychology discipline).

Training

• 1st class or Upper second class honours degree or 2.2 plus higher degree in Psychology
• Further awareness level training in therapeutic modalities

Experience

• Experience of working with offenders or patients with mental health problems/ intellectual & developmental disabilities/ personality disorders.
• Experience of working in Forensic/secure settings and mental health settings
• Experience of MDT and multi-agency working
• Experience of completing risk assessments
• Experience of psychometric testing (delivery, scoring and interpretation).
• Experience of delivering group or individual psychological work
• Experience of supporting the development of structured group programmes.
• Experience of conference presentations, publications or teaching/training delivery.

Knowledge

• Knowledge of legal system or MHA (MH system
• Knowledge and application of formulation with staff and service users
• Knowledge of psychological theories / models which help to understand personality difficulties
• Knowledge of the prison/ probation system
• Knowledge of the Offender Personality Disorder Pathway

Skills

• Ability to apply existing psychological knowledge to a mental health context, specifically psychological theories relevant to personality disorder and offending behaviour
• Ability to identify risk factors and to use risk management strategies
• Excellent communication skills; able to overcome barriers and to communicate complex, sensitive information
• Evidence of ability to accept and use supervision appropriately and effectively; (reflective practice / learning/ safety)
• Ability to work independently, reliably and consistently with regular supervision;
• Ability to maintain appropriate professional boundaries;
• IT literacy for psychological data analysis (e.g. excel / SPSS)
• Skills and experience in SPSS, databases/spreadsheets.
• Research and audit skills

Contractual Requirements

• Flexibility to work as and where required
• Car owner with appropriate driving licence and insurance

Additional Information

• We reserve the right to close the post early once we have received a sufficient number of applicants.
• The Trust believes in treating everyone with dignity and respect and encourages applications from all sectors of the community. We guarantee an interview to candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum essential criteria.
• In submitting an application form, you authorise Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust to confirm from your previous or current NHS employer and other prior employers; previous NHS service details and personal data held about you. This data will be transferred using NHS Electronic Staff Record and third party systems via an automated process and only used for the purposes of obtaining and maintaining accurate employment records, should you be appointed to the post. Should you require any further information please refer our Privacy Policy shown on the Trust website, please click here for more information.
• For eligible posts, DBS disclosures are mandatory before commencement of employment. If you are in a position that is deemed a regulated adult and/or child care role, you will not be able to start your employment until we have received a satisfactory DBS Disclosure. The Trust is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Convictions which would otherwise be considered as 'spent' will also be checked as part of an Enhanced DBS Disclosure.

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.