Principal Clinical Psychologist

Lancashire Care Foundation Trust; Blackpool; On-site; GBP 45,000 - 55,000; Full time

Job summary

Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust is seeking a motivated and experienced Clinical Psychologist for a Band 8b role. The position offers clinical input and leadership across the Fylde Coast Access & Urgent Care pathway, focusing on a broad range of clinical presentations. The successful candidate will work within a supportive, multi-disciplinary team, contributing to the development of psychology services and gaining opportunities for professional growth.

Benefits

Flexible working options

Professional development opportunities

Supportive team environment

Qualifications

• Minimum 4 years experience as a qualified clinical psychologist.
• Experience with diverse client groups and clinical severity.
• Skills in teaching, training, and supervising.

Responsibilities

• Provide clinical input and leadership across the AUC pathway.
• Deputise for the psychology lead when necessary.
• Develop therapeutic skills in Internal Family Systems and EMDR.

Skills

Psychological assessment

Communication

Consultation

Research methodology

Complex data analysis

Education

Doctoral level training in clinical psychology

Job description

Our Vision is to provide the best mental health, learning disability, autism and community based services for the populations we serve.

As an integrated mental health, learning disability and community Trust, Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust provides a range of services including:
• Primary and secondary mental health care for children and adults including specialist inpatient child and adolescent mental health provision, perinatal mental health, forensic services including low and medium secure care.
• Specialist community support for children and adults with learning disabilities and autism, including intensive support.
• Community physical health and well-being services for children and adults.

The Trust was first established in 2002 and employs approximately 7,000 staff who provide care from more than 400 sites. The organisation offers opportunities for medics, mental health and general nurses, allied health professionals, psychology, administration and clerical staff, apprentices and volunteers.

Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust supports flexible working, we believe that a positive work/life balance benefits NHS employees through improved health and wellbeing. We would consider working patterns such as; term time, part time, compressed hours, home/remote working, and flexi-time.

For more information visit our website via Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS FT.

Please note that further communication from Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust (LSCft) will normally be to the email address given on the application form. You should also ensure that email addresses and telephone numbers are provided for your referees, to enable LSCft to contact them.

Job overview

Band 8b Clinical Psychology Role available offering clinical input and leadership across the Fylde Coast Access & Urgent Care (AUC) pathway in the Home Based Treatment Team (HBTT) & Mental Health Liaison Team (MHLT).

We require a motivated, dynamic and experienced qualified Clinical Psychologist to join our Access and Urgent Care Pathway working into both the Home Based Treatment Team (HBTT) and the Mental Health Liaison Team (MHLT). You will be joining teams where psychology is well-established and held in high regard. You will be working alongside a Consultant Clinical Psychologist and an Assistant Clinical Psychologist in addition to Trainee Clinical Psychologists. The HBTT and MHLT have highly skilled and experienced multi-disciplinary team members and function effectively in collaboration with psychology.

The successful applicant will be encouraged to contribute their expertise to improve and develop psychology provision within the teams. The role will provide opportunities to work with a broad range of clinical presentations across the age-span in direct and indirect/systemic clinical work alongside consultation, teaching, training, research, audit and clinical leadership. There are ample opportunities for brief clinical work within both teams however longer term clinical work can also be included within the role, and accessed via local community mental health teams, should this be of interest to the successful applicant.

Main duties of the job

As a principal psychologist, there will be opportunities for the post holder to deputise for the psychology lead alongside the other 8b in Network. The post-holder will also be part of a wider and supportive team of psychological professionals within the Fylde Coast Network, which includes Older Adult and Inpatient psychology services. We are a well-established, dedicated, friendly and supportive team of clinical/counselling psychologists and psychological therapists who meet together regularly. The successful applicant will also be able to attend the AUC Special Interest Group within the Trust that provides opportunities for support, practice development and sharing learning. The Fylde Coast offers a unique opportunity for the successful applicant to develop therapeutic skills in Internal Family Systems, EMDR, and Compassion Focussed Therapy. Clinical and peer supervision can be provided in each of these modalities.

The Fylde Coast is easily accessible via the M6 and M55 motorways. The nominated base for this is post is negotiable across the Access and Urgent Care Teams.

Working for our organisation

Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust provides a range of services including secondary mental health care across this area. Specialist provision comprises inpatient child and adolescent mental health services, perinatal mental health and forensic services including low and medium secure care.

The Trust also provides a range of physical health and well-being services in the community alongside a range of partners in the Lancashire, Cumbria and Sefton area.

Lancashire & South Cumbria Foundation Trust encourages flexible working, we believe that a positive work/life balance benefits NHS employees through improved health and wellbeing. We would consider working patterns such as; term time, part time, compressed hours, flexi-time and career breaks. We encourage applicants to state clearly on their application forms this request and discuss these options at interview.

For more information please visit our website via Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS FT

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please see attached the job description and person specification for more information about this role

Person specification

Qualifications

Essential criteria

• Doctoral level training in clinical psychology or equivalent for those who trained prior to 1996, including specifically models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology as accredited by the BPS.

Knowledge

Essential criteria

• Skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment, intervention and management frequently requiring sustained and intense concentration.
• Well developed skills in the ability to communicate effectively, orally and in writing, complex, highly technical and/or clinically sensitive information to clients, their families, carers and other professional colleagues both within and outside the NHS
• Skills in providing consultation to other professional and non-professional groups.
• Doctoral level knowledge of research methodology, research design and complex, multivariate data analysis as practiced within the clinical fields of psychology
• Knowledge of legislation, and its implications in relation to the client group and mental health
• Evidence of continuing professional development as recommended by the BPS by completion of CPD log demonstrating a minimum of 40 hours per year.

Experience

Essential criteria

• A minimum of 4 years experience of working as a qualified clinical psychologist.
• 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.
• Experience of exercising full clinical responsibility for client's psychological care and treatment both as a professionally qualified care co-ordinator and also within the context of multidisciplinary care plan.
• Experience of teaching, training and supervising.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Please be aware, the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) when submitting an application is monitored and if you have used AI to generate an application, you are required to declare this on your application form. Failure to do so, may result in your application being withdrawn.

We want to highlight the importance of integrity and authenticity in your application form, and ask you to use AI tools responsibly to ensure your application form is a true reflection of your skills, knowledge and experiences.

We are looking for you to demonstrate personal experiences of how you meet the essential criteria and as an NHS Employer, we value authenticity and honesty.

Please consider that AI-generated content may lack specificity and fail to address key criteria outlined in the job description providing impersonal and inaccurate information.

Please ensure that you read the person specification attached below as your application will be measured against this document.

Applications from job share partners are welcome and other forms of flexible working will be considered for all posts.

For all posts which require a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check please be aware of the Disclosure and Barring Service Code of Practice, a copy of which is available by logging on to the DBS website. If the post is subject to DBS disclosure, a charge will be made to the successful candidate(s).

You are advised to consider applying for LSCft vacancies as soon as possible as in some instances vacancies are closed as soon as a sufficient number of applications have been received. If you are not invited to interview within three weeks of the closing date then please assume that on this occasion you have been unsuccessful, as it is not possible to contact all unsuccessful candidates.

LSCft is committed to celebrating difference as an asset and we know that recruiting talent from diverse backgrounds helps to create a more flexible, creative and effective workforce. We actively challenge discrimination and welcome applications from people regardless of age, disability (particularly those with experience of accessing or caring for someone who has accessed mental health or learning disability services), ethnicity, gender, religion or belief or sexual orientation. Our goal is for the Trust to be truly representative of the communities we serve so we are particularly keen to receive applications from people in under-represented groups. If there is anything you'd like to discuss in relation to your application then please ask.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

Applicant requirements

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.

Application numbers

This vacancy may close early if it receives a high number of applications. You are therefore advised to consider applying for this vacancy as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.
Documents to download

• JDPS (PDF, 448.4KB)
• NHS Staff Benefits - 2023 (PDF, 556.9KB)
• We Do More at LSCFT (PDF, 654.2KB)