Highly Specialist Clinical/Counselling Psychologist

NHS; Greater London; On-site; GBP 64,000 - 72,000; Full time

Job summary

A prominent mental health organization in London is inviting applications for a Clinical or Counselling Psychologist role at Springfield University Hospital. This position involves working in a multidisciplinary team with adolescents facing mental health difficulties. Candidates should possess qualifications as a Clinical Psychologist and experience in inpatient services is preferred. The role supports career development with training opportunities. Flexible working arrangements are available, and the contract is initially for 9 months.

Benefits

Flexible working

Career development opportunities

In-house training

Regular supervision

Qualifications

• Qualified Clinical / Counselling Psychologist registered with the HCPC.
• Experience working within a specialist inpatient CAMHS service.
• Minimum of 50 hours of clinical supervision over 18 months.

Responsibilities

• Provide psychological assessments for children and young people.
• Formulate treatment plans based on psychological assessments.
• Implement psychological interventions for individuals and groups.

Skills

Psychological assessment skills

Effective communication

Consultation abilities

Knowledge of UK mental health legislation

Education

Qualified Clinical / Counselling Psychologist

Job description

Job Summary

We are inviting expressions of interest for a secondment to a clinical or counselling psychologist based in Tier 4 Aquarius general adolescent unit, based at Springfield University Hospital working with young people with moderate to severe mental health difficulties.

Aquarius ward offers a service for 12- to 17-year-olds experiencing a range of significant and multiple mental health difficulties requiring inpatient treatment. This post will be based within the Aquarius MDT, with strong links with the Adolescent Outreach Team. We are able to offer this role as a full time or part time position.

You will be working within a multi-disciplinary team and will have regular opportunities for CPD and training.

Ideally the post holder will have experience of working within a specialist inpatient CAMHS service. We will offer in-house training, regular supervision and a thorough induction to all new staff.

We are accepting applications for both full time or part time hours. For part‑time interest, please get in touch. The duration for the secondment is for 9 months initially, with a possibility of an extension.

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.

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.

Job Responsibilities

• To provide specialist psychological assessments to children who are referred to the team based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex data from a variety of sources including psychological tests, self‑report measures, rating scales, direct and indirect structured observations and semi‑structured interviews with clients, family members and others involved in the child or young person’s care.
• To formulate and implement plans for the formal psychological treatment and/or management of the mental health problems of children and young people who are based upon an appropriate conceptual framework of their problems, and employing methods based upon evidence of efficacy across the full range of care settings.
• To be responsible for implementing a range of psychological and psycho‑educational interventions for individual children, carers, families and groups, within and across teams including community settings employed individually and in synthesis, adjusting and refining psychological formulations drawing upon different explanatory models and maintaining a number of provisional hypotheses.
• To evaluate and make decisions about treatment options for children and their families in conjunction with other professional colleagues, taking into account both theoretical and therapeutic models and highly complex factors concerning historical and developmental processes that have shaped the individual, family, group or system.
• To exercise autonomous professional responsibility for the assessment, treatment and discharge of children whose problems are managed by psychologically‑based standard care plans.
• To provide specialist psychological advice, guidance and consultation to other professionals contributing directly to formulation, diagnosis and treatment plan for the children.
• To contribute directly and indirectly to a psychologically‑based framework of understanding and care to the benefit of all children, across all settings and agencies serving this client group.
• To undertake mental health risk assessment and risk management for individual children and young people and to provide advice to other professions on psychological aspects of risk assessment and risk management.
• To act as mental health care coordinator, where appropriate, taking responsibility for initiating planning and review of care plans under enhanced CPA including the children, their carers, referring agents and others involved in the network of care. This includes organising case conferences and professional network meetings where appropriate.
• To communicate in a skilled and sensitive manner, information concerning the assessment, formulation and treatment plans of children under their care and to monitor progress during the course of both uni‑ and multi‑disciplinary care.

Person Specification

Training and Qualifications (Essential)

• Qualified Clinical / Counselling Psychologist registered with the HCPC as a Practitioner Psychologist under the domain of Clinical Psychologist.
• Post qualification training in the clinical supervision of trainees.

Training and Qualifications (Desirable)

• Training as part of a CYP IAPT collaborative in a recognised evidence‑based approach.
• Formal training in the supervision of a psychotherapeutic modality.

Experience (Essential)

• Consolidated experience of specialist psychological assessment and treatment of clients across the full range of care settings, including outpatient, community, primary care, and in‑patient settings.
• Consolidated experience of working with a wide variety of client groups, across the whole life course presenting problems that reflect the full range of clinical severity, including maintaining a high degree of professionalism in the face of highly emotive and distressing problems, verbal abuse and the threat of physical abuse.
• Demonstrated further specialist training and experience by having received a minimum of 50 hours of clinical supervision of working as a specialist psychologist or psychotherapist over a minimum of 18 months.

Experience (Desirable)

• Experience of teaching, training and/or supervision.
• Experience of service development or of a leadership role.

Knowledge & Skills (Essential)

• Skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment, intervention and management.
• Ability to communicate effectively orally and in writing appropriate to a variety of audiences.
• Skills in providing consultation to other professional and non‑professional groups.
• Knowledge of UK legislation in relation to the health and welfare services to children and adolescents and mental health.

Knowledge & Skills (Desirable)

• Knowledge of the theory and practice of specialised psychological therapies in specific difficult‑to‑treat groups (e.g. personality disorder, dual diagnoses, people with additional disabilities, children with complex problems etc).

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.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled Worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website.

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see the NHS Careers website.

Employer Details

Employer name: South West London and St Georges Mental Health NHS Trust

Address: Springfield University Hospital, 15 Springfield Drive, London, SW17 0YF

Employer's Website

https://www.swlstg.nhs.uk/

Pay, Contract and Working Pattern

Pay scheme: Agenda for change

Band: Band 8a

Salary: £64,156 to £71,148 a year per annum inclusive of inner London HCAS

Contract: Fixed term

Duration: 9 months

Working pattern: Full‑time

Reference number: 294-CAMHS-7627806-JB

Job Location

Springfield University Hospital, 15 Springfield Drive, London, SW17 0YF

Date posted

19 November 2025