Senior Psychologist

Transformation Unit; Gillingham; Hybrid; GBP 58,000 - 65,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health and wellbeing programme

Flexible working options

Staff recognition events

Job summary

Kent and Medway Mental Health NHS Trust is seeking a Senior Clinical Psychologist for Hospital Liaison Psychiatry in North Kent. The role focuses on high-quality assessments, brief interventions, and support within a CORE24 framework.

You will contribute to development of services, supervision of staff, and cross-disciplinary collaboration across hospital teams, with flexible working options and NHS benefits.

Qualifications

• Doctorate or equivalent, BPS and HCPC registration required.
• Experience in a range of clinical settings and ability to support people in acute distress.
• Ability to supervise and teach others, with reflective practice.

Responsibilities

• Provide high-quality assessment and brief interventions with a focus on distress related to mental and physical health.
• Support the Liaison Psychiatry team as part of CORE24 development.
• Offer consultation, supervision, and teaching to multidisciplinary staff.
• Travel between work bases as required.

Education

Doctorate or Equivalent, BPS, HCPC

Job description

Main area North Kent Directorate - Liaison Psychiatry Grade Band 8a Contract Permanent Hours

• Full time
• Flexible working

37.5 hours per week (Flexible work patterns available. Part time applications will be considered) Job ref 380-NK284-D

Employer Kent and Medway Mental Health NHS Trust Employer type NHS Site Medway Maritime Hospital, Gillingham Town Gillingham Salary £57,528 - £64,750 per annum pro rata Salary period Yearly Closing 19/11/2026 23:59

Band 8a

We are the Kent and Medway Mental Health NHS Trust. We offer a range ofongoing benefitsto our valued workforce. From an activehealth and wellbeing programme to regular recognition events, we work hard to provide varied benefits that make a difference to your work-life balance.

Here are some clips of our Kent and Medway Mental Health NHS Trust staff, speaking about their role and why they enjoy working for us
Would you like to work flexibly?In the NHS, we are reminded every day of how important life is. As a flexible working friendly organisation, we want to be sure that you can work in a way that is best for us, for our patients and for you.

Speak to us about how we might be able to accommodate a flexible working arrangement.

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Job overview

Are you a registered Clinical Psychologist with a passion for providing exceptional care?

We are looking for an enthusiastic and committed Senior Clinical Psychologist to join our well-established and dynamic Hospital Liaison Psychiatry service. This is a key role within the senior clinical team within the Liaison service.

It is fantastic time to join the Liaison Psychiatry service as we continue to develop our services to CORE24!

The Service – Liaison Psych y

The Liaison psychiatry service aims to provide mental health advice and support to individuals receiving care and treatment at general hospitals in Kent and Medway. The general hospital staff can refer anyone over the age of 18 who attends A&E or is an inpatient on a medical or surgical ward. The liaison team can then offer advice, support or a full mental and psychological health assessment as appropriate. By ensuring that an individual’s physical and mental health are considered holistically, it is possible for the whole healthcare team to ensure the most effective care is delivered in a collaborative way.

As a Senior Clinical Psychologist in our Liaison Service, you will be responsible for offering high quality assessment and brief interventions with a specific focus on people in distress, related to both mental and physical health conditions.

This is an exciting, varied role with opportunity for consultation, supervision of other practitioners, facilitation of reflective practice and teaching staff in the multi-disciplinary and hospital team.

You will have plenty of scope and support to develop your own practice, whilst supporting the team in balancing the challenges of providing flexible high-quality services, in a way that delivers quick, effective access and meets the expectations of patients, carers and the public.

Senior Clinical or Counselling Psychologist - Essential Qualifications and Experience

You will have a doctorate-level or equivalent BPS approved qualification in Clinical/Counselling psychology, with experience in a range of clinical settings, be able to support people in acute distress and hold HCPC registration.

We are serious about diversity and inclusion, and we are working hard to build this into our DNA. We warmly welcome applications for any of our roles from people from diverse backgrounds, and we are proactively encouraging applications from under-represented communities for our more senior roles, like this one

Working for our organisation

We are Kent and Medway Mental Health NHS Trust. We care for the mental health and wellbeing of people across Kent and Medway.

Our teams support children, young people and adults with a wide range of mental health needs. We also provide specialist services, including all-age eating disorder services and neurodevelopmental assessments for children and young people, such as autism and ADHD.

Because we work across the whole county and across hospital and community settings, we can make care more joined up and easier to access for the people we serve.

Our vision is simple: we are here to help communities not just live with mental illness, but live well. It’s why we’re passionate about working with communities to make mental health care better for everyone. Everything we do is guided by our values: caring, inclusive, curious and confident.

Join us if you share our passion for better mental health care and want to be part of a team that’s working well together.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please see the attached job description for full details of the main duties and responsibilities of the role.

The post holder must hold a full, valid, UK driving licence and have access to a car/vehicle to use for business purposes (unless you have a disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010).

Person specification

Qualifications

• Doctorate or Equivalent, BPS, HCPC
• Specialist training

Experience

• Years of Experience
• Hours of supervised practice
• Relevant AMH/ acute/urgent care/health psychology experience demonstrated
• Good assessment & formulation skills, psychometric testing
• Supervising & teaching others, Reflective practice
• Range of psychological models & able to flexibly adapt to needs/setting
• Previous A&E Liaison or long term conditions experience

In cases where we receive a high volume of applications for a post, it may be necessary to bring the closing date forward. Please submit your completed application as early as possible to avoid disappointment.

Due to the high volume of applications received, it is not possible to respond individually to your application. Should you not hear from us within six weeks of the vacancy closing, please assume that your application has not been successful.

Probation Period. New employees external to the trust are subject to a six-month probationary period.

To deliver an effective service it is essential in some of our roles that you are able to travel between work bases in a timely manner.

Production of false or forged documents/qualifications in order to obtain employment is a criminal offence and will be reported to the Police.

Disclosure and Barring Service Check.
Certain roles are subject to criminal record checks called Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks. Therefore, you will be required to submit a completed Disclosure form to the Disclosure and Barring Service.

Kent and Medway Mental Health NHS Trust are signed up to NHS England's Sexual Safety in Health Care Organisational Charter

The trust takes a systematic zero-tolerance approach to tackle any unwanted, inappropriate and/or harmful sexual behaviours within the workplace and in our care provision. We are committed to sexual safety which encompasses prevention, support and decisive action against perpetrators. We are committed to keeping you and our patients safe.

Use of AI when writing job applications

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AI cannot truly understand the specific job you're applying for or what makes you a good fit. Therefore, it's crucial to personalise any AI-generated content to accurately reflect your skills, experiences, and aspirations.

Relying solely on AI to write your application may result in generic, impersonal, and potentially inaccurate content. Always review and refine any AI-generated text to ensure it effectively communicates your experience, skills, accomplishments, and aspirations, and demonstrates your suitability for the position.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

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.