Specialist Clinical Psychologist

Employer South West London and St Georges Mental Health NHS Trust Location Mitcham, United Kingdom Salary Competitive Closing date 2 May 2025

Job summary

Merton Child and Adolescent Mental Health (CAMHS) is an exceptionally friendly and skilled service that provides community mental health services to children experiencing a range of mental health difficulties, some of whom have additional neurodevelopmental difficulties.

Merton CAMHS Tier 3 is a multidisciplinary team specialising in the provision of thoughtful high-quality interventions using evidence-based treatments for children, young people and their families entering the service with moderate to severe mental health problems and with high risk profiles.

The Tier 3 Team is based alongside a Single Point of Access Service (SPA) which manages all referrals for children and adolescents in Merton where there are concerns about emotional heath/mental health difficulties. The Merton T3 service and the SPA work in close collaboration to ensure positive child and young person journey

Main duties of the job

We are looking for a committed Clinical/Counselling Psychologist who is passionate about developing their skills and expertise in providing psychological therapies to children and young people with complex presentations, and who is also interested wider service development initiatives. There is opportunity to take advantage of continuing professional development opportunities to develop their career.

This role is open to qualified clinical / counselling psychologists with the following

Qualification as Clinical/Counselling Psychologist registered with the HCPC

Experience of working with children and young people

Experience of work within a multi-disciplinary team

The ability to relate and provide accessible services to a diverse community

The ability to efficiently manage a caseload

Knowledge and skills in risk management and safeguarding

The ability to deliver a range of evidence-based interventions

About us

We are Proud to Belong at South West London and St George's Mental Health NHS Trust.

We have expert services, a rich history and a clear commitment to providing the best quality care for those with mental ill-health. The Care Quality Commission already rates our services as 'good' - we aspire to be 'outstanding'.

This is a great time to join us. We are transforming the way we care for our communities to support our mission of Making Life Better Together. We have built two brand new mental health facilities at Springfield University Hospital, which are amongst the best in the world. More developments are planned across our sites and services.

We are inclusive and diverse and strive to be actively anti racist. We want to attract people from all backgrounds and experiences to enrich the work we do together. We are proud to co-produce and involve our local communities in all that we do.

We offer flexible working, career development and a variety ofbenefits to enable a positive, welcoming environment in which our people and their careers can thrive.

About our locations:

Merton CAMHS Tier 3 is based within a beautiful, listed building at Birches Close, Mitcham, CR4 4LQ. The Merton CAMHS site at Birches Close is accessible via public transport and there is free parking on-site.

Job description

Job responsibilities

1. To provide specialist assessments of children/ young people and their parents/carers referred to the service based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex data from a variety of sources including psychological and where appropriate, self-report measures, rating scales, direct and indirect structured observations and semi-structured interviews in line with CYP IAPT methodology.

2. To formulate and implement plans for evidence-based interventions, based upon an appropriate conceptual framework, and employing methods based upon evidence of efficacy, to improve the parent/child relationship.

3. To be responsible for implementing a range of psychotherapeutic interventions employed individually and in synthesis, maintaining a number of provisional hypotheses, adjusting and refining formulations or understandings, drawing upon different explanatory models and employing methods of intervention that are based upon evidence of efficacy.

4. To evaluate and make decisions about treatment options taking into account both theoretical and therapeutic models and highly complex factors concerning historical and developmental processes that have shaped the individual and the family.

5. To exercise autonomous professional responsibility for the assessment, treatment and discharge of clients whose problems are managed by psychologically based standard care plans

6. To provide specialist mental health advice guidance and consultation to other professionals contributing directly to the care of the young child and their parents/carers

7. To contribute to and/or use evidence-based, integrated working tools and processes, to ensure young children and their parents/carers receive holistic and co-ordinated services in response to their mental health needs.

8. To undertake risk assessment and risk management for young children and their parents/carers.

9. To communicate in a skilled and sensitive manner, information concerning the assessment, formulation and treatment plans of young children and their parents/carers who are under their care.

10. To monitor progress during the course of interventions, ensuring that all interventions are fully assessed, planned, implemented and evaluated in conjunction with CYP IAPT minimum dataset standards.

11. To maintain accurate and accessible health care records according to Trust policy and Information Governance requirements.

12. To demonstrate high level communication skills, both written and verbal, within all agencies.

Job description
Job responsibilities

1. To provide specialist assessments of children/ young people and their parents/carers referred to the service based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex data from a variety of sources including psychological and where appropriate, self-report measures, rating scales, direct and indirect structured observations and semi-structured interviews in line with CYP IAPT methodology.

2. To formulate and implement plans for evidence-based interventions, based upon an appropriate conceptual framework, and employing methods based upon evidence of efficacy, to improve the parent/child relationship.

3. To be responsible for implementing a range of psychotherapeutic interventions employed individually and in synthesis, maintaining a number of provisional hypotheses, adjusting and refining formulations or understandings, drawing upon different explanatory models and employing methods of intervention that are based upon evidence of efficacy.

4. To evaluate and make decisions about treatment options taking into account both theoretical and therapeutic models and highly complex factors concerning historical and developmental processes that have shaped the individual and the family.

5. To exercise autonomous professional responsibility for the assessment, treatment and discharge of clients whose problems are managed by psychologically based standard care plans

6. To provide specialist mental health advice guidance and consultation to other professionals contributing directly to the care of the young child and their parents/carers

7. To contribute to and/or use evidence-based, integrated working tools and processes, to ensure young children and their parents/carers receive holistic and co-ordinated services in response to their mental health needs.

8. To undertake risk assessment and risk management for young children and their parents/carers.

9. To communicate in a skilled and sensitive manner, information concerning the assessment, formulation and treatment plans of young children and their parents/carers who are under their care.

10. To monitor progress during the course of interventions, ensuring that all interventions are fully assessed, planned, implemented and evaluated in conjunction with CYP IAPT minimum dataset standards.

11. To maintain accurate and accessible health care records according to Trust policy and Information Governance requirements.

12. To demonstrate high level communication skills, both written and verbal, within all agencies.

Person Specification

TRAINING & QUALIFICATIONS

Essential

• oQualified Clinical or Counselling Psychologist registered with the HCPC as an applied psychologist
• oPost-graduate doctoral level training in clinical or counselling psychology (or its equivalent for those trained prior to 1996) as accredited by the BPS and HCPC, including specifically models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology.

Desirable

• oTraining as part of a CYP IAPT collaborative in a recognised evidenced based approach
• oOther relevant training related to neurodevelopment or child development.

EXPERIENCE

Essential

• oDemonstrable experience of working with children and young people in a variety of mental health settings
• oExperience of multi-disciplinary team working
• oExperience of inter-agency working
• oExperience of safeguarding and Child Protection

Desirable

• oExperience of leading case reviews
• oExperience of working in the NHS
• oExperience of teaching and liaising with other professional groups
• oExperience of working with neurodevelopmental disorders

Person Specification
TRAINING & QUALIFICATIONS

Essential

• oQualified Clinical or Counselling Psychologist registered with the HCPC as an applied psychologist
• oPost-graduate doctoral level training in clinical or counselling psychology (or its equivalent for those trained prior to 1996) as accredited by the BPS and HCPC, including specifically models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology.

Desirable

• oTraining as part of a CYP IAPT collaborative in a recognised evidenced based approach
• oOther relevant training related to neurodevelopment or child development.

EXPERIENCE

Essential

• oDemonstrable experience of working with children and young people in a variety of mental health settings
• oExperience of multi-disciplinary team working
• oExperience of inter-agency working
• oExperience of safeguarding and Child Protection

Desirable

• oExperience of leading case reviews
• oExperience of working in the NHS
• oExperience of teaching and liaising with other professional groups
• oExperience of working with neurodevelopmental disorders

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.
Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the .

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. .
UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see

Additional information
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.
Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the .

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. .
UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see

Employer details

Employer name

South West London and St Georges Mental Health NHS Trust
Address

Birches Close

Mitcham

CR4 4LQ

Employer's website

Create a job alert and receive personalised job recommendations straight to your inbox.