Assistant Psychologist

NHS; Nottingham; On-site; GBP 27,000 - 31,000; Full time

Job summary

A regional healthcare service in England seeks an Assistant Psychologist. This full-time role involves supporting psychological assessments and interventions for patients in acute mental health wards. Candidates must have a Psychology Honours degree with a 2:1 or higher and relevant clinical experience. The position offers opportunities for professional development and working in a supportive healthcare environment.

Qualifications

• Completed a Psychology honours degree with 2:1 or higher.
• Clinically-relevant postgraduate work experience required.
• Experience in acute adult mental health settings preferred.

Responsibilities

• Support psychometric and other assessments with patients.
• Conduct defined therapeutic interventions.
• Assist in data collection and service evaluation.

Skills

Clear communication skills

Numeracy

Data collection and analysis skills

Ability to manage and de-escalate hostility

Word processing and IT skills

Education

Psychology honours degree 2:1 or higher

Post-graduate qualification in psychology (e.g. MSc or PhD)

Job description

Go back Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

Assistant Psychologist

The closing date is 01 October 2025

The Clinical Psychology service for the Nottinghamshire Adult Mental Health Acute Care Network provides high quality psychological assessment, advice and intervention within local adult acute mental health wards.

As a result of several members of our team securing developmental opportunities, we have two full-time band 4 Assistant Psychologist posts available on two of our female acute wards (Highbury Hospital and Sherwood Oaks). We are seeking candidates with a keen interest and demonstrated experience in adult acute mental health to join our enthusiastic multi-disciplinary teams. We would particularly like to encourage candidates with acute inpatient experience to apply.

Please note that this post requires a Psychology Honours degree meeting the requirements for graduate basis for registration with the British Psychological Society- applications without a Psychology degree will not be considered.

You will work in inpatient services and will have good opportunities to participate in individual assessment and formulation of patients\' needs, including a wide range of clinical presentations. There will also be opportunities to plan and deliver both individual and group interventions under the supervision of qualified clinical psychologists. You will work directly with patients and indirectly to advise the multi-disciplinary team, e.g. providing advice at ward review meetings on psychological aspects of patient care.

Main duties of the job

We are seeking candidates who can work confidently under supervision, can follow direction, have the ability to work in teams, and are adaptable and responsive to the needs of the service they are working in. Our commitment to you is we will provide you with the opportunity for you to develop professionally within committed and supportive adult mental health services and play an important role in supporting increasing access to psychological therapies within our acute adult mental health wards.

Applicants should have completed a Psychology honours degree with 2:1 or higher, have clinically relevant work experience and knowledge of psychological assessments and interventions.

The service enjoys good links with local Doctoral training courses in clinical psychology.

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 £26.40 (standard) or £54.40 (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.

About us

#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

Job responsibilities

The main duties/responsibilities of the role are:

• To support and carry out a range of psychometric and other assessments with people who have a range of acute mental health problems and might be at risk of harm to self or others. These may include observations, interviews and intellectual and executive skill assessments.
• To support and carry out defined therapeutic interventions with people with acute mental health problems and their carers.
• To support interventions with staff teams, such as consultancy, training, identifying resources, multi-disciplinary working, signposting staff to appropriate services and service promotion.
• To support data collection and analysis, for both clinical and service evaluation, as required. This may include collecting and reviewing a variety of data such as psychometric scores, interview data, historical information, literature searches. It may also involve data analysis and report writing under supervision.
• A full UK driving license and vehicle for business use is required for this post; however reasonable adjustments will be made for disabled individuals in line with the Equality Act 2010.

Person Specification

Qualifications

• Psychology honours degree 2:1 or higher, meeting the requirements for graduate basis for registration with the British Psychological Society. Candidates with 2:2 degree will be considered if they have completed a postgraduate course (MSc or PhD level).
• Post-graduate qualification in psychology (e.g. MSc or PhD).
• Short courses - e.g. in CBT, schema therapy, trauma, understanding complex clinical presentations.

Experience

• Clinically-relevant postgraduate work experience.
• Experience of working in acute adult mental health setting.
• Experience of NHS clinical psychology services.

Knowledge

• Psychological assessment and intervention.
• Experience of working in applied psychological models, e.g. CBT, DBT, schema therapy.

Skills

• Clear communication skills, both oral and written.
• Dealing with barriers to communication.
• Numeracy, data collection and analysis skills.
• Ability to reflect on practice and accept personal supervision.
• Word processing and other IT skills.
• Understanding of ethical issues in clinical practice.
• Ability to manage and de-escalate hostility and aggression.

Values and behaviours

• All colleagues are expected to demonstrate 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

• Has the physical ability to perform the full range of duties.

Contractual requirements

• A full UK driving licence and vehicle for business use is required for this post due to the need to travel across the Trust\'s geographical area; however reasonable adjustments will be made for disabled individuals in line with the Equality Act 2010.

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

£27,485 to £30,162 a yearper annum (pro rata for part time)