Principal Practitioner Psychologist - Older Adult

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

Job summary

A leading healthcare provider in Wales seeks an experienced Principal Practitioner Psychologist for its Older Adult Mental Health Service. This role involves providing specialized psychological services, clinical supervision, and developing strategies for service improvement. Candidates should hold a doctorate in clinical counselling or health psychology and be registered with the HCPC. Competitive salary and development opportunities provided.

Benefits

Support for continuing professional development

Bilingual support for Welsh language requirement

Qualifications

• Advanced knowledge of clinical assessment, formulation and psychological treatments.
• Experience in working psychologically in adult, child and adolescent mental health, and older adults mental health.
• High-level knowledge of specialized psychological therapies.

Responsibilities

• Oversee and coordinate provision of specialized psychological services.
• Lead assessments, psychological interventions, and delivery of clinical supervision.
• Assist in service delivery and improvement projects.

Skills

Compassion

Expertise in mental health care

Clinical supervision

Psychotherapeutic modalities

Education

Doctorate in clinical counselling or health psychology

Registered with HCPC as Practitioner Psychologist

Job description

The post is advertised as a Band 8b. However, applicants who do not currently meet all the skills and competencies for the Band 8b role are encouraged to apply and, if successful, will be appointed under Annex 21 rules andsupported by a development plan for up to 4 years.

We would like to welcome an experienced Principal Practitioner Psychologist into our Older Adult Mental Health Service wo can demonstrate the following:

Compassion whilst working with and supporting the rights and equalities of older people experiencing mental health difficulties in later life.

Expertise to help us shape the way we transform and deliver specialist mental health care pathways for our aging population.

Added value in our efforts to develop, support and upskill our workforce in psychologically informed practice in the face of a changing population demographic.

Click here to hear a member of the Psychology Team;Psychology Recruitment Services Campaign

Main duties of the job

Oversee and coordinate the provision of high quality, highly specialist, psychological services to service users in the older adult mental health service (geographically dispersedcommunity&inpatient);

Clinical, professional&managerial governance responsibility for psychological practitioners;

Lead role assessing, developing and implementing psychological interventions: including specialist psychological assessment; formulation; intervention; evaluation; consultation and teaching:

Deliver highly specialist clinical supervision to other psychologist, psychological therapy practitioners and non-psychology staff;identifyingand address learning&training needs;

Work autonomously (within professional guidelines,policy&procedures) and exercise responsibility for systematic governance of psychological practice within service;

Assist the Head of Service and Consultant Psychologist with the design, implementation and coordination of service delivery and improvement projects across the service;

Expertise and skills (direct application in the older adult population or transferrable) in a range of psychotherapeutic modalities as well as applied clinical risk management, including clinical experience of suicide prevention, risk management, care and treatment pathways, aligning with service delivery priorities.

About us

Hywel Dda University Health Board plans and provides NHS healthcare services for people living in Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion, Pembrokeshire, and bordering counties.

We have over 13,000 staff and together we provide primary, community, in-hospital, mental health and learning disabilities services.

We work in partnership with the three local authorities, as well as public, private and third sector colleagues, including our valued team of volunteers.

Our services are provided in:

• Four main hospitals: Bronglais Hospital in Aberystwyth; Glangwili Hospital in Carmarthen; Prince Philip Hospital in Llanelli; and Withybush Hospital in Haverfordwest
• Five community hospitals: Amman Valley and Llandovery hospitals in Carmarthenshire; Tregaron Hospital in Ceredigion; and Tenby and South Pembrokeshire hospitals in Pembrokeshire
• Two integrated care centres: Aberaeron and Cardigan in Ceredigion, and several other community settings
• 47 general practices (six of which are health board managed practices); dental practices (including four orthodontic); 97 community pharmacies; 43 general ophthalmic practices; and 8 ophthalmic domiciliary providers
• Numerous mental health and learning disabilities services

Job responsibilities

The ability to speak Welsh is desirable for this post; English and/or Welsh speakers are equally welcome to apply.

This will be an excellent opportunity for a qualified practitioner looking for career development. As part of the Annex 21 process, there is no financial penalty to those who apply for this role where the percentage will cause a reduction in pay, subsequently a local protection would be put in place until the pay has caught up.

During the first year payment will be 60% of the top rate of Band 8b pay, second year 65%, third year 70% and fourth year 75%).

Following successful completion and successful attainment of skills and competencies for the role, the post holder will then be paid at Band 8b (minimum point on that scale). Continued support and supervision will be provided in order to develop the practitioner to the Band 8b role.

Failure to achieve the competencies in the designated timeframe could result in redeployment.

The ability to speak Welsh is desirable for this post; English and/or Welsh speakers are equally welcome to apply.

Three county remit: negotiable base, can be in Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion or Pembrokeshire.

You will be able to find a full job description and person specification attached within the supporting documents.

The Health Board is committed to supporting its staff to fully embrace the need for bilingualism thereby enhancing patient and service user experiences. In our commitment to increase the number of staff who are able to communicate in Welsh with patients and professionals, we welcome applications from Welsh speakers.

The ability to communicate in Welsh is desirable for this post. If you do not meet the Welsh Language requirements specified, the Health Board offers a variety of learning options and staff support to help you meet these minimal desirable requirements during the course of your employment with us.

Interviews will be held on 07/11/2025

Person Specification

Qualifications & Knowledge

• Postgraduate qualification to doctorate level in clinical counselling or other health psychology recognised for registration by the Health & Care Professions Council (HCPC)
• Registered with Health & Care Professions Council (HCPC) as qualified Practitioner Psychologist.
• To have advanced specialist and practical knowledge of clinical assessment, formulation and psychological treatments as well as experience in working psychologically in all core specialities being a) adult mental health; b) child and adolescent mental health; c) older adults mental health and d) learning disabilities
• To have advanced knowledge of specific models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and cognitive psychology, two or more distinct Psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology.
• Short specialist courses
• Demonstrate further advanced specialist training
• Specialist training in the delivery of clinical supervision
• Doctoral level knowledge of research methodology, research design and complex, multivariate data analysis as practiced within the clinical fields of Psychology.
• Evidence of continuing professional development as recommended by the BPS.
• Knowledge of legislation in relation to the client group
• Post-doctoral recognised training in one or more additional specialised areas of psychological practice.
• Knowledge of the theory and practice of Specialised Psychological therapies in specific difficult to treat groups (e.g. people with complex mental health difficulties, personality disorder, dual diagnosis, people with additional disabilities etc.).
• High-level knowledge of the theory and practice of at least two specialised Psychological therapies

Experience

• Experience of working with a wide variety of client groups, across the whole life course with presenting problems that reflect the full range of clinical severity.
• Post qualification experience working in at least one clinical speciality
• Experience of highly specialist Psychological assessment and treatment of clients across the full range of care settings, including outpatient, community, primary care and inpatient settings.
• Experience of working flexibly and sensitively with a wide variety of client groups, 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 clients' psychological care and treatment within the context of a multidisciplinary care plan
• Significant experience of teaching, training and clinical supervision of staff
• Further advanced specialist and practical clinical experience over a significant number of years
• Experience of the application of psychology in different cultural contexts.
• Experience of clinically leading and operationally managing staff
• Experience of working within a multicultural framework

Language Skills

• For non-Welsh speakers, commitment to learn conversational Welsh
• Welsh Speaker (Level 1)

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.

Carmarthenshire/Ceredigion/Pembrokeshire - To be confirmed

Carmarthenshire/Ceredigion/Pembrokeshire - To be confirmed

Carmarthenshire/Ceredigion/Pembrokeshire - To be confirmed

Carmarthenshire/Ceredigion/Pembrokeshire - To be confirmed