CYP Psychological Practitioner Trainee

South West London and St Georges Mental Health NHS Trust; Greater London; On-site; GBP 46,000 - 56,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading mental health organization in the United Kingdom is seeking a Trainee Psychological Practitioner. This role involves assisting in the delivery of psychological interventions for children under 5, with support for professional development through training at Anna Freud/UCL. Candidates will engage with children and families facing mental health challenges, working closely within community settings in Wandsworth. Competitive salary range: £46,419 to £55,046 annually as part of a supportive, inclusive team.

Benefits

Flexible working

Career development opportunities

Inclusive workplace culture

Qualifications

• Strong experience with children and families with mental health problems.
• Experience in delivering group and individual interventions.
• Experience in NHS settings.

Responsibilities

• Assist with psychological interventions for children and families.
• Supporting the coordination and running of groups and workshops.
• Contribute to training and support for staff and community workers.

Skills

High-level communication skills

Ability to communicate sensitive information

Understanding of psychological models

Education

Professional qualification as a Psychotherapist or related field

Registration with appropriate professional body

Training in therapeutic approaches for Under 5's services

Job description

Go back South West London and St Georges Mental Health NHS Trust

CYP Psychological Practitioner Trainee

The closing date is 10 December 2025

An exciting opportunity has arisen to work in the Early Years part of Wandsworth CAMHS based within Wandsworth Borough Early Years settings. Wandsworth CAMHS Under 5s team offers early intervention and preventative work to children and their families. Established 14 years ago, the team is highly regarded by the Trust, the Local Authority and the CCG. The team works closely with staff from the perinatal service, nurseries and children's centres in Battersea, Tooting and Roehampton, and offers appointments in the community and in family homes.

The successful candidate will work as part of the existing Tier 2 CAMHS team based within Wandsworth Children's Centres to support young children with attachment, separation, emotional and behavioural regulation difficulties from nurseries and schools across Wandsworth.

Main duties of the job

This Trainee Infant and Early Years Early Childhood pathway post combines formal teaching at Anna Freud/UCL with a caseload within the Trust's Wandsworth Under 5's CAMHS service line. The position will be based in the community around Wandsworth and successful candidates will be expected to travel to Anna Freud in Central London (Rodney St, N1 9JH) for teaching during the training year. Upon completion of the training year, the postholder will be encouraged to apply for Under 5's CAMHS Practitioner roles, although please note that currently we are unable to guarantee that these roles will be available in the Trust.

About us

We are Proud to Belong at South West London and St George's Mental Health NHS Trust.

We have expert services, a rich history and a clear commitment to providing the best quality care for those with mental ill-health. The Care Quality Commission already rates our services as 'good' - we aspire to be 'outstanding'.

This is a great time to join us. We are transforming the way we care for our communities to support our mission of Making Life Better Together. We have built two brand new mental health facilities at Springfield University Hospital, which are amongst the best in the world. More developments are planned across our sites and services as we invest a further £120m to upgrade and modernise our estate by 2027.

We are inclusive and diverse and strive to be actively anti racist. We want to attract people from all backgrounds and experiences to enrich the work we do together. We are proud to co-produce and involve our local communities in all that we do.

We offer flexible working, career development and a variety of benefits to enable a positive, welcoming environment in which our people and their careers can thrive.

Come and join our inclusive teams and help our patients on their recovery journey.

Springfield University Hospital, Tooting

Job responsibilities

Clinical and Clinical Research

1. To assist qualified psychotherapists and applied psychologists in the implementation of delivery of psychological interventions for infants, children and their parents or carers accessing the Under5s service.
2. To assist with the provision of information and self‑help material for service users under the supervision of a qualified professional psychologist or psychotherapist.
3. To undertake protocol based psychological assessments of children and their carers applying psychological inclusive self‑report measures, rating scales, direct and indirect structured observations and semi‑structured interviews with patients and others involved in the client’s care.
4. To assist in the formulation and delivery of mental health care involving psychological interventions in line with Under 5 CAMHS services, under the clinical supervision of qualified professional psychotherapists and psychologist as appropriate across community settings.
5. To assist, and where appropriate lead, in the coordination and running of groups and workshops.

Teaching, Training and Supervision

1. In common with all applied therapists, to receive regular clinical supervision in accordance with professional practice guidelines and clinical governance guidelines.
2. To complete the Anna Freud/UCL training programme and assignments to further develop skills in therapeutic interventions and risk assessment.
3. To develop skills and competencies that assist in the delivery of current duties.
4. To support the leads and service in the regular and systematic entry of clinical data on IAPTus according to Trust protocols and to highlight areas of difficulty to the Under 5 service lead as soon as they arise.
5. To contribute to the training and support of others, including staff and workers in the non‑statutory sector enabling them to provide effective mental health care.
6. To inform primary care practitioners and users about local statutory and voluntary services to whom children and young people can be signposted.

Management, Recruitment and Service Development

1. To assist in managing a triage system for entry to the service in line with agreed protocols and to highlight issues relating to potential waiting times and access to the relevant Clinical Lead or Service Manager.
2. To assist in the design and implementation of service development projects within the service as required.
3. To attend meetings in which service developments are planned and discussed.

Research and Service Evaluation

1. To assist the clinical team leader and others in undertaking data collection, analysis, and production of reports and summaries, in relation to primary care mental health services.
2. To undertake searches of evidence‑based literature and research to assist qualified staff and others in evidence‑based practice in individual work and work with other team members.
3. To take the lead in organising resources of self‑help material and maintaining up to date information about services to which service users could be appropriately signposted.

Person Specification

Training & Qualifications

• Professional qualification as a Psychotherapist, Creative therapist, CWP, EMHP, nurse, social worker, occupational therapist, drama therapist or art therapist, CBT therapist, systemic practitioner
• Registration with appropriate professional body (where applicable)
• Training in therapeutic approaches used in Under 5's services

Experience

• Training in therapeutic approaches used in Under 5's services
• Strong experience of working with children, young people and families with mental health problems and/or other disabilities
• Considerable experience in delivering both group and individual interventions
• Experience of working within NHS settings

Knowledge & Skills

• High-level communication skills (written and verbal) including an ability to communicate and work in settings in which the atmosphere may be emotive
• Ability to communicate sensitive information to children, young people, parents, carers and colleagues in a way that addresses psychological resistance
• An understanding of psychological models/theories including attachment

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.

South West London and St Georges Mental Health NHS Trust

£46,419 to £55,046 a year per annum inclusive of Inner London HCAS