Specialist Clinical Counselling Psychologist

Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust; Reading; Hybrid; GBP 47,000 - 54,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading healthcare provider in Reading seeks a Specialist Clinical/Counselling Psychologist to join their Clinical Health Psychology Service. This hybrid role involves conducting psychological assessments and delivering evidence-based interventions for complex cases. Ideal candidates will have a postgraduate doctorate in psychology and registration with HCPC. The position offers opportunities for supervision, training, and significant professional development while promoting a supportive work environment.

Benefits

Flexible working options

27 days annual leave

Generous NHS pension scheme

Career development opportunities

Discounts at retailers and restaurants

Free parking across Trust sites

Qualifications

• Experience in providing psychological assessments and evidence-based interventions.
• Ability to work as part of a multi-disciplinary team.
• Capable of mentoring and supervising junior staff.

Responsibilities

• Deliver psychological assessments and interventions for patients.
• Conduct risk assessments and develop management plans.
• Provide supervision, mentoring, and training to junior psychologists.

Skills

Clinical assessments

Psychological intervention

Supervision

Team collaboration

Education

Postgraduate doctorate in Clinical or Counselling Psychology

Registration with HCPC

Eligibility for BPS Chartered Membership

Job description

Specialist Clinical/Counselling Psychologist

Band: 8A
Base: Royal Berkshire Hospital & Trust sites across Berkshire (hybrid working)

Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, in partnership with Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust, is seeking an experienced & motivated Specialist Clinical/Counselling Psychologist to join our Clinical Health Psychology Service.

This is a unique split role, offering the opportunity to work acrossGastroenterology (0.6) and ME/CFS services (0.4), delivering high-quality, safe & psychological intervention.

Working as a senior clinician you will have the opportunity to contribute to multidisciplinary teamwork & service & person-centred psychological interventions across hospital and community settings.

You will be responsible for conducting highly specialist psychological assessments, case formulations & delivering specialised evidence-based psychological interventions to service users presenting with physical health problems. You will also undertake comprehensive risk assessments, develop and implement risk management plans, and work collaboratively with partner agencies where wider case management is required.

You will work closely with psychological therapists, medical colleagues, & the wider system to develop individualised treatment plans & promote psychologically informed care across services.

If you are an experienced psychologist looking for a varied, impactful & rewarding senior role, we would welcome your application.

Clinical Provision

Deliver psychological assessment, formulation & evidence-based interventions for individuals, families & groups with complex physical & emotional health needs. Manage a specialist caseload. Provide specialist consultation & psychologically informed advice to professionals, agencies & carers. Communicate clinical findings & care plans clearly with service users, families & MDTs, promoting inclusive, culturally sensitive, trauma-informed & recovery-focused care.

Teaching, Training & Supervision

Provide clinical supervision, mentoring & training to junior & trainee psychologists, other professionals & MDTs. Develop & deliver high-quality teaching materials, CPD sessions & training programmes.

Leadership & Operational Responsibilities

Contribute to team leadership, service planning & workforce management, including work allocation & recruitment. Lead & participate in clinical governance, quality assurance & performance monitoring. Provide psychological expertise to service & policy development.

Research, Service Evaluation & Development

Undertake audit, service evaluation & applied research to inform best practice & service improvement. Support implementation of findings into practice & facilitate service user & carer involvement in service design & delivery.

Health & Wellbeing

Promote staff wellbeing & psychologically safe working environments, contributing to Trust-wide psychological support initiatives & major incident responses where required.

Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust is a specialist mental health and community health services trust. Rated ‘outstanding’ by the CQC, we’re committed to providing the best possible care to people across Berkshire. As an employer, we’re committed to offering an inclusive and compassionate environment where our people share in a sense of belonging and are supported to flourish.

Our Values at Berkshire Healthcare

• Caring for and about you is our top priority
• Committed to providing good quality, safe services
• Working Together with you to develop innovative solutions

Your wellbeing is important to us. Some of the benefits of working for us include:

• Flexible working options to support work-life balance
• 27 days’ annual leave rising with service + opportunity to buy and sell
• Generous NHS pension scheme
• Excellent learning and career development opportunities
• ‘Cycle to Work’ and car leasing scheme including electric vehicles
• Access to a range of wellbeing tools and services
• Discounts at hundreds of popular retailers and restaurants
• Staff networks for race, diversity, disabilities, the environment and armed forces community to support equality
• Generous maternity, paternity, adoption and special leave
• Free parking across Trust sites

The "must haves" for this role

• Postgraduate doctorate in Clinical or Counselling Psychology (or equivalent for those trained prior to 1996 or overseas)
• Registration with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) as a Practitioner Psychologist (Clinical or Counselling)
• Eligibility for Chartered Membership of the British Psychological Society (BPS)

For further information about the role, please see attached job description and person specification.

We strongly encourage you to review how you meet the criteria in the person specification and write about this point-by-point in your supporting statement for the best chance of being shortlisted.

We’re committed to equal opportunities and welcome applications from all sections of the community. Our commitment to inclusion is reflected in our accreditations: Race Equality Matters Silver Trailblazer, Neurodiversity in Business Corporate Member, Disability Confident Leader, Carer Confident Level 2, and the Armed Forces Covenant Gold Award. Reasonable adjustments will be provided to candidates as needed.

We welcome a conversation about flexibility and any other questions you may have. Please don’t hesitate to call: Abigail Wroeon 0118 9296474 [e-mail]’ll be delighted to help.

Applications for this role will be considered on a first come first serve basis and we may close the vacancy early if the right candidate is found.

Please note, we may close this role earlier than the advertised closing date, so pleasesubmityour application as soon as possible.

This advert closes on Wednesday 28 Jan 2026