Educational Psychologist

Leicestershire County Council; East Midlands, Leicester; Hybrid; GBP 35,000 - 55,000; Full time

Job description

Organisation: Leicestershire County Council

Work Location: County Hall, Glenfield LE3 8RA

Worker Category: Hybrid Worker

Salary: Soulbury Salary Scale A 3-8 plus up to 3 SPAs

Working Hours: 37 hours per week

Contract Type: Permanent

Closing Date: 9th May 2025

Interview Date(s): 23rd May 2025

About the Role

Leicestershire EPS (LEPS) is a service that provides great opportunities for diverse, meaningful and innovative EP work within a supportive environment. Our goal is to provide access to high-quality psychological practice to a range of partners, to improve the lives of children and families within our local communities. Our service is growing, and we are now actively seeking EPs to join and contribute to the service. We would welcome applications from registered EPs or those who are in Year 2 or Year 3 of their doctoral training.

All commissioning schools in Leicestershire have a named EP who becomes part of their school community, providing a range of psychological practice to meet their needs. We use a structured time allocation system for all work (including statutory work) that enables EPs to manage their workloads and to preserve a balance of work, which we recognise is crucial to well-being, motivation and professional growth.

A DBS enhanced check for a regulated activity is required for this post.

About You

To apply for this post, you must:

• Provide a commissioned service to your own patch of schools, with the freedom to apply a range of psychology at all levels to support the learning, development and well-being of pupils and the wider school community.
• Provide support to our SENA service through the delivery of high-quality statutory advice for children and young people who are going through the EHCNA process, and through contributing to SENA multi-agency decision making panels.
• Contribute to a range of research, project and development work within the service, the LA and in partnership with others (e.g. PINs, EBSA, Trauma informed Schools).
• Provide training to schools and partners with a clear focus on supporting inclusive practice across a range of settings through the application of psychological thinking.
• Continue to develop your own skills and knowledge through participation in the process of supervision; contributing to the induction of new staff; supervising trainee educational psychologists and undertaking further training and continuing professional development.

Essential requirements:

• Professional postgraduate qualification in Educational Psychology, and HCPC registration as a Practitioner Psychologist. Appointed trainees will be expected to hold HCPC registration at the point of taking up post.
• Experience as an Educational Psychologist or Trainee EP in an LA environment, with experience in applying psychological skills at child, group, and systems levels, leading to positive outcomes.
• The ability to apply a broad range of psychology to support the learning, development and well-being of children and young people across a range of ages and contexts.
• A clear commitment to supporting the inclusion of children and young people with SEND and/or other experiences that impact on their experiences of education.
• The ability to work flexibly, decisively and independently.
• The ability to work collaboratively with others within and beyond the team, developing and maintaining positive working relationships with a wide range of colleagues and partners.
• Detailed understanding of relevant legislation, guidance and policy in relation to SEND and safeguarding, with the ability to carry out all duties in line with LCC Safeguarding policies and procedures.

We are committed to supporting the development of the profession and we enjoy strong links to the EP doctoral training programmes. A member of our team currently holds a secondment post as Professional Practice Tutor at the University of Nottingham.

Leicestershire EPs have access to:

• Excellent whole-service and individual CPD opportunities
• Structured time-allocation model promoting well-being and a balance of work
• Regular and high-quality individual supervision sessions and access to peer supervision
• Well-appointed central office base and first-class facilities within County Hall, Glenfield
• Local touchdown bases across the county to reduce travel time
• Up-to-date ICT equipment for mobile / agile working
• Flexible, family friendly working arrangements
• Social events organised by team members to promote connectedness

You must also have an understanding of, and commitment to, equality, diversity and inclusion.

Interested in Flexible Working?

We are keen to support employees to balance their working life with other commitments. Therefore, wherever possible, we will consider working arrangements that suit an individual's personal circumstances whilst still meeting the needs of the Council. If you would like to discuss the possible flexible working options that might be applicable to this role, please contact the person named below.

For more information or an informal discussion, please contact:

Dr Helen Tyson Principal Educational Psychologist Or Lisa O'Connor, Senior Educational Psychologist

Telephone: [phone]

Email: [e-mail] or Lisa.O'[e-mail]

How to Apply

Leicestershire County Council is an inclusive organisation which is on a journey to embed and celebrate equality, diversity and inclusion at every level. We warmly welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds, as having a diverse workforce with different perspectives and ideas is fundamental to our values and enriches the services we offer our communities. We particularly welcome applicants from Ethnically Diverse and LGBTQ+ communities and people with disabilities to create a balanced workforce and one that reflects the communities we serve. Applicants with a disability who meet the criteria listed in the 'About You' section above will be offered an interview under the Disability Confident Employer Scheme.

To apply for this job, please click on the apply button. You will need to upload a supporting statement as part of your application which explains how you meet the criteria listed in the 'About You' section above.

We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible.

If you have any technical issues when trying to apply for this post or you want to request an application pack in an alternative format, please contact our Employee Service Centre by telephoning 0300 3030222 (select option 2) or raising a ticket via our online portal: https://emss.org.uk/support.

By applying for this post, you agree to our Terms and Conditions.