Principal Clinical Psychologist

NHS; Stafford; On-site; GBP 50,000 - 70,000; Full time

Job summary

A healthcare organization in Stafford is looking for a Principal Clinical Psychologist to lead psychological services within the Brockington Parent and Baby Unit. You will be responsible for assessing and treating mothers and their infants experiencing mental health challenges. Ideal candidates will possess strong leadership skills, relevant post-doctoral training, and experience working with perinatal mental health issues. This role offers opportunities for career development and support within a diverse team.

Benefits

Generous maternity, paternity, and adoption leave

Options for flexible working

Extensive Health and Wellbeing support

Qualifications

• Experience working with perinatal mental health problems.
• Post-doctoral training in specialized areas relevant to perinatal mental health.
• Assessed experience as a qualified clinical psychologist.

Responsibilities

• Lead the psychology provision within the Parent and Baby Unit.
• Supervise and support the psychological assessment provided by team members.
• Provide specialist assessments and treatments for families.

Skills

Leadership skills

Communication skills

Psychological assessment

Education

Post-graduate doctoral level training in clinical/counselling psychology

Post-doctoral training in perinatal mental health

Currently registered with HCPC

Job description

Go back Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

Principal Clinical Psychologist

The closing date is 28 September 2025

The Brockington Parent and Baby Unit (PBU) Team deliver care to expectant and new mothers who are experiencing moderate to severe and complex mental health problems within the perinatal period. The Service is a part of MPFT Perinatal Services which includes South Staffordshire Perinatal and Maternal Mental Health Team, Shropshire Perinatal Community Mental Health Team. There are close working relationships across all Perinatal Services.

We are seeking an experienced Clinical Psychologist to join our service to help shape the future of the service for families during this transitional time. If you are creative, motivated, and have strong leadership skills, we would love to hear from you.

You will be responsible for leading the psychology provision within the PBU and will meet regularly with the multi-disciplinary team to co-ordinate the delivery of psychological interventions from other members of the team. You will be joining a supportive and engaged psychology team across perinatal services. You will receive regular supervision and CPD as well as informal support. Across MPFT Perinatal Services there is a strong psychological structure in place comprising of qualified clinical psychologists, psychological therapists and assistant psychologists, all supported by a Consultant Clinical Psychologist.

Main duties of the job

As the Principal Clinical Psychologist, you will be responsible for the systemic provision of high quality highly specialist perinatal clinical psychology service to women, babies and families of the service teams, within the Brockington Parent and Baby Unit. You will clinically lead psychological provision and contribute to the further development of the clinical psychology service. You will provide specialist assessment, treatment and consultancy services for individuals and their families with moderate to severe mental health difficulties during the perinatal period.

A key part of your role will be to supervise and support the psychological assessment and therapy provided by other psychologists and other clinical members of the team who provide psychologically based care and treatment. You will work autonomously within professional guidelines and exercise responsibility for the systemic governance of psychological practice within the service/team.

Clinical Psychologists play an integrative role in the MDT and are valued and well supported by colleagues. While this post will be primarily focused on the leadership of the psychological care within the service and the direct delivery of psychological support to individual families (both directly and by supervising and supporting MDT colleagues), there will also be scope for delivering training and consultation to partner agencies and being involved with service development.

About us

By joining Team MPFT, you will be helping your communities and in return for this, we will support you by;

• Supporting your career development and progression
• Generous maternity, paternity and adoption leave
• Options for flexible working
• Up to 27 days annual leave (increasing with service up to 33 days)
• Extensive Health and Wellbeing support and resources
• If you work in our community teams, we pay for your time travelling between patients
• Lease car if you complete more than 500 business miles per annum, fully insured and maintained (including tyres), mileage paid at lease car rate
• Salary sacrifice car - fully insured and maintained (including tyres), your gross pay is reduced by the cost of the vehicle before tax, NI and pension deductions are calculated, mileage paid at business rates
• Salary sacrifice bikes up to £2k
• Free car parking at all trust sites
• Free flu vaccinations every year
• Citizens Advice support linked with a Hardship Fund for one off additional support up to £250 (if the criteria is met)

We are proud to be a diverse and inclusive organisation and there is a choice of staff networks that help you meet like-minded people.

Please be aware that the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in completing application forms will be monitored to ensure fairness and transparency. If you have used AI you must state this in your application.

Please note, we may be required to close this vacancy early if we receive a high volume of applications

Job responsibilities

The psychology team have close connections with other psychologists within the Children and Families Care Group, the Maternal Mental Health Service within the Shropshire care group, and perinatal services in North Staffordshire, alongside the local DClinPsy courses offering regular trainee placements, research opportunities and perinatal course teaching.

The PBU is an eight bedded unit that accepts national referrals. We welcome applications for flexible and hybrid working.

For further information please contact Harriet Lambah-Heap, Ward Manager [e-mail]

Person Specification

Training

• Post-graduate doctoral level training in clinical/counselling psychology (or its equivalent prior to 1996) as accredited by the BPS, including models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology
• Post-doctoral training in one or more additional areas of specialised psychological practice directly relevant to perinatal mental health.
• Post-doctoral training in one or more additional areas of specialised psychological treatment approaches for Parent-Infant Mental Health and attachment.
• Post qualification training for role of clinical supervisor to Doctorate trainees in clinical psychology.
• Eligible for chartered status with the British Psychological Society. Eligible for full membership of the Division of Clinical Psychology (DCP) and/or Division of Perinatal Psychology
• Currently registered with HCPC.
• Well-developed skills to communicate effectively, both written and orally, complex highly technical and sensitive information to clients, families, carers, and lay and professional people both within and outside the NHS.
• Doctoral level knowledge of research design and methodology and its application to service evaluation.
• Evidence of continuing professional development as recommended by the BPS and HCPC.
• Additional post graduate level training in one or more therapeutic treatment approaches e.g. cognitive therapy, systemic/family therapy, EMDR
• Registration with BPS

Experience

• Assessed experience of working as a qualified clinical psychologist with substantial experience of working with people with perinatal mental health problems.
• Experiencing of working with mothers, infants, partners and families in both inpatient (MBU) and community settings.
• Experience of adapting psychological therapy to the perinatal period.
• Experience of delivering psychological therapies working with mothers and infants together to support bonding and attachment
• Experience of exercising full clinical responsibility for client's psychological care and treatment within the context of multidisciplinary care plans.
• Experience of teaching, training and providing professional/clinical supervision to others (including qualified psychologists and other professionals).
• Experience of providing clinical consultation to other professional staff.
• Experience of working in the NHS.
• Experience of planning and/or implementing perinatal MH service developments in accordance with local and national policy objectives.
• Training in EMDR or Trauma Focused CBT
• Training in Video Interactive Guidance
• Experience of delivering attachment based interventions to support the promotion of Infant Mental Health.
• Experience of the application of psychology in different cultural contexts.

Skills & Knowledge

• Skills in the use of complex methods of Psychological assessment intervention and management frequently requiring sustained and intense concentration.
• Well-developed knowledge of the theory and practice of specialised psychological therapies in the perinatal period addressing both perinatal and infant mental health difficulties.
• High level skills in the assessment and management of risk to both the mother and baby.
• Knowledge of maternal mental health, infant mental health and parent infant relationships.
• Well-developed skills to communicate effectively, both written and orally, complex highly technical and sensitive information to clients, families, carers, and lay and professional people both within and outside the NHS.
• Doctoral level knowledge of research design and methodology and its application to service evaluation.
• Evidence of continuing professional development as recommended by the BPS and HCPC.
• Demonstrated skills in providing liaison consultation and clinical supervision to professional and non-professional groups
• Knowledge of legislation relevant to the client group and mental health.

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.

Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Brockington Parent & Baby Unit

St George's Hospital, Corporation Street

St George's Hospital, Corporation Street