Clinical Registered Psychologist

Ministry of Justice; Dacre; Hybrid; GBP 45,000 - 65,000; Full time

Job summary

The Ministry of Justice invites applications for a senior psychology role focused on risk assessment, research, consultancy and staff training. The post involves supervising trainee psychologists, contributing to policy development and maintaining professional registration with HCPC.

The role requires experience with offender populations, strong analytical skills, and the ability to provide professional supervision and guidance in a complex, multi-agency environment.

Qualifications

• HCPC registration required and maintained
• Continued Professional Development (CPD) maintained

Responsibilities

• Provide authoritative professional advice on targets and objectives for offenders and advise on optimal locations within establishments.
• Lead on risk assessment and risk management for offenders.
• Supervise trainee forensic psychology staff and provide designated supervision.
• Deliver training, mentoring, and support to trainee psychologists and other staff.

Job description

The job holder will be working with prisoners, people on probation and staff and applying their competence in psychology to reduce the risk of harm and of re-offending by undertaking a range of work including risk assessment of prisoners, conducting research, providing consultancy and delivering training for staff and assessment and interventions for offenders. This job holder will be able to provide designated support and supervision to trainee psychologists. This is non-operational offender facing job with line management responsibilities. This role is non-rotational.

Responsibilities, Activities and Duties

• Offer authoritative professional advice on targets and objectives for relevant offenders and advise on the best location for those offenders (both within the establishment or relocation to another category establishment)
• Offer professional opinion to teams conducting reports e.g. lifer reports, parole reports
• Develop strategy and plans of activity for some areas of operation e.g. manages the organisation of relevant programme assessments or manages assessment and interviews those with an indeterminate sentence
• Provide consultancy support to colleagues such as the SMT or other teams in relation to psychology services and outcomes
• Conduct relevant research including data gathering and analysis
• Responsible for providing supervision to trainee forensic psychology staff
• Provide training, mentoring and support to trainee psychologists and other staff (e.g. interventions staff)
• Can be required to provide professional (designated) supervision of trainee's e.g. professional Supervision to ensure that a trainee is able to develop through the key steps towards chartered and registered status
• Ensure staff are developed in accordance with key competencies and gateways and ensuring consistency across the team in the application of policies and procedures affecting staff and prisoners
• Lead on risk assessment and resulting risk management
• Participate in risk assessment of offenders to determine their risk of harm to self, others and the risk of reoffending. May undertake Assessment, Care in Custody and Teamwork (ACCT) and self-harm assessments
• Can be required to deliver and/or oversee the quality of programmes (treatment management). These will be of the more complex type requiring such qualified input
• Provide consultancy role on specialist area e.g. Working with those convicted of Sexual Offending Strategy or Indeterminate Sentenced Prisoners (ISP) Strategy
• Act as a negotiation adviser where suitable and competence has been demonstrated
• Act as a "professional witness" in parole board hearings, multi-agency meetings, and other formal settings where psychology input is required. May also act as expert witness in respect of court proceedings for Ministry of Justice
• Maintain own Continued Professional Development (CPD) and registration with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC)

The MoJ offers Hybrid Working arrangements where business need allows. This is an informal, non-contractual form of flexible working that blends working from your base location, different MoJ sites and / or from home (please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas). Some roles will not be suitable for Hybrid Working. Similarly, Hybrid Working will not suit everyone's circumstances. Arrangements will be discussed and agreed with the successful candidate(s) and subject to regular review.

For nationally advertised roles, the successful candidate(s) will be appointed to a MoJ office location, which may include their nearest Justice Collaboration Centre or Justice Satellite Office. This will be discussed and agreed on the completion of pre-employment checks. Some of MoJ's terms and conditions of service are changing as part of Civil Service reform. The changes will apply to staff joining MoJ who are new to the Civil Service. Staff joining MoJ from other civil service employers will transfer onto the new MoJ terms if they are already on 'modernised' terms in their current post or onto 'unmodernised' MoJ terms if they are on 'unmodernised' terms at their current post. Details will be available if an offer is made. Standard full time working hours are 37 hours per week excluding breaks which are unpaid. HMPPS welcomes part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns, where they meet the demands of the role and business needs. All applications for part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns will be considered in accordance with the HMPPS' Flexible Working policy. If you are a current NPS employee, this vacancy may be available on a Loan basis for up to 2 years. Applications are invited from suitable qualified staff. The Loan/Secondment is subject to the approval of the selected candidate's Business Unit, which should be obtained before confirmation of appointment.

Technical and qualification sections and other terms are included in the full original posting. Specific language requirements include Spoken and Written English. DBS Enhanced level of security checks are required. The duties/responsibilities described here are not exhaustive and may be altered or added to as necessary. An ability to fulfil all spoken aspects of the role with confidence through the medium of English or (where specified in Wales) Welsh.