Clinical Specialist – Childrens Autism Assessment
Please apply directly through our website: https://grnh.se/k28x1572teu
We are seeking a passionate and experienced clinician in children’s autism assessments to act as an Autism Assessment Clinical Specialist. Your role is to clinically supervise a team of 8‑10 Autism Assessors and ensure high‑quality, multidisciplinary autism diagnostic decision‑making within this team.
Main duties of the job
Your typical day will be a mixture of leading group and individual discussions of cases to ensure clear diagnostic decision‑making, as well as reviewing clinical cases to ensure that clear diagnostic decisions and formulations are made. In addition, each month you will independently deliver a small number of developmental histories and child observations to stay close to our care pathway.
About us
Paloma’s mission is to make children’s autism and ADHD assessments and care available on the NHS within 4 weeks of GP referral. We are redesigning care pathways, building new software & AI tools, and training the next generation of assessors.
Mark & Darshak founded Paloma out of frustration that families had been waiting 2‑10 years for NHS children’s autism and ADHD assessments. Learn more about the crisis in NHS children’s neuro‑developmental services at https://www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/blog/childrens-commissioner-warns-of-invisible-crisis-as-delays-and-inequalities-laid-bare-among-children-with-neurodevelopmental-conditions/.
We are growing incredibly fast to meet the need for autism and ADHD care and have:
- grown our team to 90 people and are hiring ~100 more over the next 12 months;
- raised £5m pre‑seed funding from leading healthcare investors (Triple Point Ventures and Heal Capital), helping us invest in technology and our team;
- achieved financial sustainability.
How Paloma Health is different from other neuro‑developmental providers
- We are clinically‑led, Care Quality Commission (CQC) registered, and rigorous in recording our outcomes and family experiences.
- Our in‑house product & engineering team ensures we can:
- give families a more consumer‑like experience of healthcare;
- free clinicians from documentation, allowing them to focus on supporting families;
- maintain a strong culture of transparency, community, and staff career development;
- leverage the founders’ experience of building tech‑enabled NHS obesity and ophthalmology services, which has treated over 1 million NHS patients in the last 15 years;
- benefit from backing by leading healthcare investors, allowing rapid progress.
Job responsibilities
- Deliver both group and one‑to‑one clinical supervision to an 8‑10 person assessor team through daily discussions;
- Lead high‑quality diagnostic decision‑making within the team;
- Stay up to date with the latest clinical and government guidelines and best practices regarding children’s autism assessments;
- Deliver a small number of developmental histories and observations each month;
- Complete all required Continuing Professional Development to maintain professional registration (we run one development day per month to support this).
Qualifications and experience
Required:
- Current healthcare professional registration, either with the HCPC (clinical psychologists, speech & language therapists, occupational therapists), NMC (nurses), or GMC (paediatricians, psychiatrists, and specialty doctors);
- At least 4 years of experience delivering children and young peoples’ autism assessments (pre‑ or post‑qualification experience included);
- Evidence of strong autism diagnostic decision‑making in children;
- Evidence of strong time‑management skills to ensure families receive prompt outcomes;
- High‑quality communication skills, putting team members and families at ease;
- At least 2 years of experience undertaking clinical supervision with children’s autism assessors;
- Ability to evidence strong ADHD diagnostic decision‑making in children (if applicable).
Benefits
- A strong, positive culture that prioritises staff well‑being, provides clear transparency on goals, and invests in training and career development;
- Protected time and budget for team connection, learning, and community‑building;
- Salary depending on clinical background and experience, starting at:
- £75 000 for nurses, speech & language therapists, and occupational therapists;
- £80 000 for clinical psychologists;
- Very competitive salaries for medical doctors, including associate specialists, consultant paediatricians, and child & adolescent psychiatrists;
- Annual salary reviews, 5 % employer pension, and a company laptop;
- Share options in Paloma Health – all benefit from our success;
- A unique annual leave package including:
- 33 days of annual leave, including bank holidays;
- Birthday off;
- Option to buy an additional 5 days per year;
- An additional 10 days of paid sabbatical leave every three completed years of service (equivalent to 43 days of leave in year four at Paloma);
- Home office equipment allowance and professional registration fee allowance;
- Access to NHS discounts, including the Blue Light Card (as we are an NHS provider).
Equality & Diversity
Paloma Health is an equal‑opportunity employer committed to diversity and inclusion in the workplace and throughout the application process. We do not discriminate based on any protected characteristic.
Accommodations
We gladly accommodate candidates who need adjustments throughout the hiring process and encourage openness about the adjustments required.
Safer Recruitment & Pre‑Employment Checks
Paloma Health ensures that supporting people to be safe is at the heart of our work. As part of the pre‑employment check, you will be asked to complete a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check. Because this role is patient‑facing, it will be an Enhanced level.
Application process
Please apply via our website. We understand that applying for a new job requires effort, and we appreciate your time.
Join us and be part of our journey to revolutionise access to NHS autism and ADHD care!
Full‑time, part‑time, home or remote working.