Assistant Psychologist

North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust; Kendal; On-site; GBP 27,000 - 31,000; Full time

Job summary

A regional healthcare provider based in Kendal is seeking an Assistant Psychologist to deliver psychological care to patients with physical health issues. The successful candidate will collaborate with various services focusing on holistic patient care. This position offers competitive pay and benefits, including a supportive work environment and opportunities for professional development. Ideal applicants will have a degree in psychology and experience in relevant areas. Apply soon as the closing date is 10 February 2026.

Benefits

27-day holiday scheme rising to 33 after 10 years

NHS Discounts

Salary Sacrifice schemes including lease cars

Qualifications

• Experience of work with people with psychological needs.
• Development of patient materials, including IT skills.
• Experience of working with children or young people.

Responsibilities

• Provide psychological care to patients with physical health problems.
• Work collaboratively with related services.
• Follow essential and desirable criteria from the job description.

Skills

Good basic psychological knowledge

Good oral and written communication skills

Ability to work as part of a multidisciplinary team

Confident with a wide range of people

Education

2:1 or above at Bachelors Level Degree in Psychology

Graduate for Registration (BPS)

Care Certificate or willingness to undertake it

Masters Degree

Tools

IT skills in Publisher

Job description

Assistant Psychologist - PHRP

The closing date is 10 February 2026

The post holder will work within the Physical Health Psychology service, which has more than 90 staff working across the whole of Cumbria. The team and service provide psychological care to patients with physical health problems, including long term conditions (LTCs) including:

• Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
• Diabetes
• Cancer

The service also works collaboratively with related services, which provide psychological/rehabilitative services for neuropsychological issues (including stroke) chronic fatigue (CFS) medically unexplained symptoms (MUS), palliative care and paediatric diabetes.

Further detailed information can be found in the job description.

Responsibilities

Main duties of the job and further information on the main duties of this role can be found in the job description and person specification.

About us

At NCIC, we have an ambition to deliver outstanding healthcare services to the population of Cumbria. The Trust is committed to creating a centre of excellence in providing rural and remote healthcare and provides a wide range of community and acute services throughout our county.

Our 5 key principles demonstrate our belief in the delivery of 'safe, high quality care every time':

• Being a clinically led organisation
• Quality and safety at the heart of our Trust
• A positive patient experience every time
• A great place to work
• Managing our money well

As an organisation we are serious about supporting a diverse workforce that reflects our local community and are very much focused on being an inclusive and compassionate place to work.

Across the North East and North Cumbria we are working together to deliver our ambition to be the greenest region in England by 2030. All staff are expected to support sustainability.

Job responsibilities

JOB DESCRIPTION:

Please see attached job description and person specification for further information regarding the role and the essential and desirable criteria required to be met by applicants.

CERTIFICATE OF SPONSORSHIP:

Please note, due to changes implemented by the Government to the UK immigration policy, individuals who require a Health and Care Visa or a Skilled Worker Visa may no longer be eligible for sponsorship where the UKVI salary threshold is not met or if the occupation is not included in the updated Immigration Salary List (ISL). Applicants must check their eligibility to be employed in any role they are interested in applying for, prior to completing an application for employment. Any applicants who do not meet the eligibility criteria will not be progressed. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

If you are applying under the Disability Confident Scheme or Armed Forces Covenant and you meet all the essential criteria for a post, you will be guaranteed an interview.

Relocation assistance may be available for successful applicants moving to the region for certain posts. Please see our Policy for eligible vacancies.

AHP - Return to Practice Job Advert information(Please ask recruiting manager and delete if not appropriate) This role may be suitable for individuals Returning to Practice. Please speak to the recruiting manager for more information.

The trust will provide a twelve month preceptorship period for new to registration Nursing Associates

Registered Nursing Associates returning to practice, moving into new roles or changing clinical environments, may access an agreed preceptorship period.

The essential criteria for this role includes the requirement to have a care certificate or the willingness and ability to undertake this. For further information please see the attached Care Certificate document attached.

Disclosure and Barring Service:

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.

The cost of the DBS must be met by the successful candidate(s) through salary deduction. DBS charges are as followsif applicable to the post:

Standard Check: £21.50 + Administration cost of £6.50 = £28.00 Deducted from salary over a 4 month period or a one-off payment.

Enhanced Check: £49.50 + administration cost of £6.50 = £56.00 Deducted from salary over a 4 month period or a one-off payment.

NCIC can offer successful future employees the following benefits:

27-day holiday scheme rising to 33 after 10 years

NHS Discounts*

Salary Sacrifice schemes including lease cars and Cycle to Work*

Vivup is a free, confidential counselling and information service to assist with personal or work-related problems

*Subject to eligibility

Please ensure that you document evidence of meeting all the essential criteria in the supporting information.

If sufficient response is received this post could be closed earlier than the specified closing date, please apply as soon as possible to ensure that your application is considered.

Candidates who have been successfully shortlisted for interview will be asked via an email notification to log on to their Trac account to select an interview time. This will usually be within 2 weeks of the closing date.

Person Specification

Knowledge and Experience

• Some experience of work with people with psychological needs.
• Experience of relevant research and/or service evaluation
• Development of patient materials, including IT skills in Publisher and other programmes
• Experience of work with patients with health problems
• Experience of working with children or young people
• Previous use of an EPR system
• Previous NHS experience
• Previous publication history

Qualifications

• Graduate for Registration (BPS)
• 2:1 or above at Bachelors Level Degree in Psychology (or directly relevant discipline)
• Care Certificate or the willingness and ability to undertake (applicable for all non-registered support workers that provide health care)
• Further training in research methods
• Masters Degree

Skills and Aptitudes

• Good basic psychological knowledge, compatible with degree level study
• Good oral and written communication skills
• Ability to work as part of a multidisciplinary team
• Open, honest, trustworthy
• Able to work independently but seek help where needed
• Confident with a wide range of people

Other Requirements

• Must be physically capable of the job
• Driving licence and access to car preferred, or ability to travel without recourse to public transport.

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.

North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust

£27,485 to £30,162 a yearPer annum, pro rata