Practitioner Psychologist

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

Job summary

A mental health service provider in Catford is seeking a Practitioner Psychologist to join the Lewisham CAMHS ARTS Team. This senior clinical role involves leading complex assessments and providing evidence-based interventions for vulnerable young people in the Youth Justice System. The ideal candidate will have a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology and HCPC registration, along with a passion for forensic CAMHS services. Join a committed team focused on equity, learning, and clinical excellence.

Benefits

Competitive salary

Supportive team environment

Opportunities for professional development

Qualifications

• Doctorate in Clinical Psychology or equivalent required.
• Must have clinical registration as a Psychologist with HCPC.
• Experience in assessing and treating complex mental health issues.

Responsibilities

• Provide specialist psychological assessments for young people.
• Deliver culturally appropriate psychological interventions.
• Undertake service evaluation and research.

Skills

Psychological assessment

Cultural competence

Therapeutic intervention

Education

Doctorate in Clinical Psychology

Clinical Registration with HCPC

Training in AIM Assessment & Intervention

Supervision Training

Job description

Go back South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust

Practitioner Psychologist

The closing date is 16 January 2026

We are seeking a highly skilled Practitioner Psychologist to join our Lewisham CAMHS ARTS Team, working with young people in the Youth Justice System or at risk of offending. This is a senior clinical role where you will lead on complex assessments, including sexually harmful behaviour and neurodevelopmental needs, and deliver evidence-based interventions that make a real difference.

You will play a key role in shaping psychologically informed care, offering clinical supervision, consultation and leadership across the team. Your work will support safer, more inclusive services and help embed trauma-informed, culturally competent practice across the pathway.

This post offers scope to influence service development through research, audit and innovation. You will work autonomously within HCPC and BPS guidelines, supported by a collaborative team and a Trust committed to equity, learning and clinical excellence.

If you are passionate about forensic CAMHS and ready to lead impactful work with vulnerable young people, we welcome your application.

Main duties of the job

• To provide a highly specialist psychology service to young people who are held within the Youth Justice System or who are at risk of offending including specialist assessment, treatment, planning, implementation and monitoring of outcomes.
• To contribute to enabling other staff, service users and carers from diverse backgrounds to flourish by working to create a psychologically safe environment.

To provide clinical supervision and consultation as appropriate, functioning as a lead specialist in assessment and intervention of sexually harmful behaviour, violence risk assessment using SAVRY/SAPROF and neurodevelopmental assessment where required.

To undertake service evaluation, audit and research.

To work as an autonomous professional within BPS and HCPC guidelines and codes of conduct, and guided by principles and policies or procedures of the service, taking responsibility for interpreting policies within defined parameters.

To agree outcomes/results with clinical/professional lead and to decide how they are best achieved.

About us

The ARTS Forensic CAMHS Team is a small but highly regarded team co-located with the Youth Justice Service within the wider local authority Integrated Adolescent Service based in Catford, London Borough Lewisham. The team is part of Lewisham CAMHS and has a long history of providing innovative approaches to working with the complex and traumatised young people involved in the criminal justice system. The postholder will be well supported within the Psychology & Psychotherapy framework within Lewisham CAMHS and the South London & Maudsley Trust. The team consists of a Clinical Service Lead, Senior Clinical Psychologist and CAMHS Therapist. A Consultant Child & Adolescent Forensic Psychiatrist is with the team on Tuesdays.

Job responsibilities

KR 1 Clinical and Client Care

To provide highly specialist psychological assessments, formulations and interventions for clients in the ARTS Team including AIM assessment and intervention for sexually harmful behaviour, violence risk assessment and neurodevelopmental assessment (ADHD & cognitive assessment).

To provide culturally appropriate psychological interventions with carers or families of referred clients when required.

KR 2 Contributing to team or service clinical functioning

To contribute to the effective working of the team or service and to a psychologically informed framework for the service.

To contribute to the team or services delivery of accessible and acceptable services to diverse local communities.

To be proactive in challenging discrimination and support the development of culturally competent services.

To advise other members of the service on specialist psychological care of clients.

KR 3 Policy and service development

To implement policies and procedures in own area of work, and to propose improvements or beneficial changes.

To contribute to service development through undertaking and participating in appropriate projects.

KR 4 Care or management of resources

To take care of, and use carefully, the Trusts equipment and physical resources.

To ensure that the post-holder has sufficient resources by estimating future needs and requesting or ordering supplies as needed.

KR 5 Management and supervision

To be responsible for the allocation and/or clinical supervision of the work of more junior psychologists with support from a more senior psychologist.

To supervise trainee applied psychologists within own area of specialism.

KR 6 Teaching and Training

To undertake occasional teaching and training of pre and post- qualification psychologists and specialised training to other professions as appropriate.

To contribute to the development of the knowledge and skills base within the ARTS Team by maintaining an active awareness of current developments in psychology and forensic work with young people and by implementing knowledge gained in practice.

KR 7 Record-keeping and Information Governance

To ensure that all information generated by own work is recorded as required by Trust policies and local procedures.

To maintain the highest standards of clinical record keeping and report writing, according to professional and Trust guidelines, including electronic data entry.

KR 8 Research and development

To initiate, undertake, support and supervise regular complex service evaluation and audits.

To initiate and carry out appropriate research where appropriate and within scope of the service.

KR 9 Maintaining professional standards and continuing professional development

To receive regular clinical and professional supervision from a more senior psychologist according to HCPC and Trust guidelines.

To ensure own Continuing Professional Development in line with BPS and Trust Personal Development Plan requirements and the HCPC Standards for Continuing Professional Development.

KR10 General

To travel to home visits, prisons, and other teams and services as appropriate and across the Trust when required.

To be aware of risk relating to aggressive and challenging behaviour amongst the client group, and follow trust policies relating to its management.

Person Specification

Qualifications

• Clinical psychologist: Doctorate in Clinical Psychology or equivalent
• Clinical Registration as a Clinical Psychologist with HCPC
• Training in AIM Assessment & Intervention
• Training in use of SAVRY, SAPROF or MACI
• Supervision Training

Experience

• Evidence of having worked as a clinical specialist under supervision in with a range of young people presenting with complex mental health, emotional and behavioural difficulties
• Experience of specialist psychological assessment and treatment of clients with a range of psychological needs of a complex nature
• Experience of supervising assistant and trainee psychologists having completed the relevant training.
• Post-qualification experience that supports working with, and addressing issues of, diversity within local communities.
• Experience of working with young people who perpetrate sexually harmful behaviour
• Experience of working with young offenders

Knowledge

• Knowledge of the theory and practice of specialised psychological assessments and interventions for young people with complex mental health and trauma
• Theoretical knowledge of psychopathology and the evidence base for the relevant treatments including emotional instability, trauma, ADHD, depression and anxiety.
• Advanced knowledge of psychological assessment and clinical psychometrics in ADHD.
• Knowledge of legislation in relation to the client group and mental health issues, child and adult protection, and equalities.
• Knowledge of complex trauma and trauma informed approaches.

Skills

• To deliver psychological therapy across cultural and other differences.
• To select and administer specialist psychological assessments, interpreting and integrating complex data that require analysis, interpretation and comparison, drawn from several sources.
• Skills in providing teaching and training to other professional groups

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 London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust

£64,156 to £71,148 a yearper annum inclusive of HCAS