Specialist Psychological Practitioner

Berkshire Healthcare Nhs Foundation Trust; Reading; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible working

NHS pension

Learning and career development

Car leasing / cycle to work

Free parking

Job summary

Berkshire CAMHS Getting Help Services is seeking an experienced senior clinician to lead specialist psychological therapies for children and young people with anxiety and related conditions. You will undertake assessments, develop formulations, deliver CBT-based interventions, and contribute to risk management.

You will supervise, teach, and mentor junior staff while promoting service quality and innovation.

Skills

Clinical leadership

Supervision

Teaching / training

Education

Postgraduate Doctoral qualification in clinical psychology

Job description

Job summary

Join Berkshire CAMHS Getting Help Services and help deliver high-quality, evidence-based psychological care to children and young people with anxiety and related mental health difficulties. Working within a supportive multidisciplinary team, you will undertake specialist assessments, develop formulation-led care plans, deliver evidence-based cognitive-behavioural interventions, and contribute to effective risk assessment and management. You will work collaboratively with families, colleagues, and partner agencies to provide coordinated, psychologically informed care. As a senior clinician, you will provide supervision, consultation, teaching, and training to junior colleagues, trainees, and the wider team, supporting service quality and professional development. Initially, you will work within a specialist team delivering interventions for young people with anxiety disorders, OCD, BDD and tic disorders. Over time, you will move into a Berkshire locality Getting Help Team, providing evidence-based interventions for a range of mild to moderate mental health difficulties, including mood disorders. This role may be based in any Berkshire locality. This is an exciting opportunity for an experienced clinician to develop specialist expertise, leadership skills, and contribute to the ongoing development of an innovative CAMHS service.

Main duties of the job

• To be responsible for the delivery of psychological therapy, providing expert professional leadership and advice relating to the delivery of psychological therapy for complex presentations requiring multiple interventions, complex or intensive risk management plans and high levels of multiagency working in order to ensure and develop consistently high quality, safe and cost effective services for users, working in partnership with key stakeholders internal and external to the Trust.
• As we develop our on-line offer, to undertake a role in moderating service user activity on the Trust Support, Hope, Recovery On-Line Network (SHaRON) and to participate in on-line discussions and care delivery via this modality.
• The post holder will be responsible for expert psychological assessment, case formulation, risk assessment and treatment for a designated number of patients presenting with complex mental health difficulties.
• To provide supervision and mentoring to clinicians and trainees contributing to their professional development and improving the quality of the treatment provided.
• Regularly lead on and undertake audit and research, adding to the evidence base for practice, development activities and participate in quality improvement initiatives to enhance the overall effectiveness of clinical services.

About us

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 are:

• 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

Job responsibilities

The must haves for this role:

• Post graduate doctoral qualification in clinical psychology (or equivalent).
• Registered and accredited with Health Care Professional Council (HCPC) or UKCP/BPC
• Evidence of post-qualification training and expert knowledge in multiple psychological models and therapeutic approaches relevant to the service area.
• Experience of working in evidence-based ways with services users (and their carers/families) presenting with the full range of clinical severity across a range of settings.
• Experience of managing complex situations concerning safeguarding, risk management, complaints and investigations.

Person Specification

Education/Qualifications/Training

Essential

• Post graduate Diploma in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
• Accreditation with the British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy (BABCP), achieved through training and experience with young people with anxiety and depression.
• Accredited Postgraduate Master's degree in CBT OR
• Acceptable evidence of equivalence: o Postgraduate certificate-level training relevant to the role (e.g. CBT, research methodology, or supervision). o Recognised clinical supervision from a qualified supervisor, possibly within a specialist area. o Experience in area of specialism, such as: 1. Leading or contributing to research or service improvement projects (e.g. CBT, treatment of depression/anxiety, clinical supervision). 2. Delivering specialist therapy in CBT-focused assessment and treatment pathways. 3. Providing teaching and/or training in CBT, depression/anxiety treatment, or supervision. 4. Offering clinical leadership or management in CBT treatment or supervision practices. Candidates without a relevant Postgraduate Master's qualification must submit a portfolio of evidence demonstrating equivalent competence, referencing frameworks such as the Higher Education Credit Framework for England.
• Evidence of post qualification training in clinical supervision (may be included in portfolio evidence above)
• Evidence of post qualification training in leadership or equivalent level of substantial experience (may be included in portfolio of evidence above)

Continuous Professional Development

Essential

• Continued Professional Development, including relevant post graduate courses/ workshops/ modules, in the area of specialism, covering the following: Assessment/ Formulation/ Specialist Interventions/ Research Methodology, Leadership

Experience

Essential

• Demonstrable post qualification experience working as a qualified high intensity CBT therapist with a high level of expertise in area of clinical specialism
• Experience of specialist CBT psychological assessment and treatment of clients within one or more services relevant to the service area
• Extensive experience of working in evidence-based ways with a variety of client groups and presenting problems, including comorbidities that reflect a range of clinical severity while maintaining a high degree of professionalism in the face of emotive and distressing problems, verbal abuse and the threat of physical abuse
• Experience of providing effective postgraduate teaching, training and clinical supervision within the modality/ area of specialism
• Experience of providing expert clinical leadership within a specialist area of practice
• Experience of coordinating cognitive behavioural therapies provision across CAMHS services, developing and implementing policy based on relevant NHS guidance
• Experience of clinical governance, including quality assurance measures, service development and carrying out clinical audit, evaluative research and applying the findings
• Experience of service evaluation, audit, and implementing change from a national and local health or social care change agenda that impacts across services and professions
• Experience of working with and addressing issues of diversity, including experience of working with diversity, multiculturalism, and equality of access to service

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

Essential

• High-level knowledge of the theory and practice of one or more recognised psychological therapies relevant to the service.
• Knowledge of effective care pathway navigation across primary and secondary care psychological therapies services
• A high level of expertise in a specialism of practice within the service area, supported by additional education or experience
• Advanced specialist knowledge of the theory and practice of adapting specific psychological therapies in the context of co-morbidity and complexity (e.g. neurodivergent conditions, frailty, etc).
• Understanding of the psychological professions working within the service, the relevant professional bodies and guidelines for practice
• Knowledge of legislation in relation to the client group and mental health.
• Knowledge of research methodology, research design and complex, multivariate data analysis as practiced within the clinical field of psychological therapies
• Skills in providing consultation to other professional and non -professional groups including across agencies.
• Skills in co-ordination of psychological therapy provision, and in interpretation, development and implementation of policy across a service.
• Ability to identify and employ mechanisms of clinical governance as appropriate, to support and maintain clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive material and challenging behaviour.
• Ability to plan and organise a broad range of complex activities, including programmes of care and governance structures that impact across and between service areas
• Ability to maintain intense concentration for prolonged periods, managing individual and group supervision formats. Must be capable of handling exposure to traumatic and highly emotional clinical case content
• Well-developed verbal and written communication skills enabling the sensitive communication of complex, technical and/or sensitive information to multiple stakeholders.
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to support, influence and engage with clinicians, stakeholders and service users to create change and improvement.
• The ability and skills to act as an advocate for service users and the service, to engage and foster good professional relationships with all health professionals in promoting the good integration of this service with the wider health care system.
• Exceptional IT skills and the ability to navigate various systems and software packages (such as RiO, Outlook, databases, MS Office/Teams, One Consultation and the Internet)

Additional Requirements

Essential

• Ability to work clinically and effectively with interpreters
• Ability to work flexibly around working patterns as required
• Ability to travel independently between locations in Berkshire to fulfil the requirements and duties of the position

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.

Applicants must have current UK professional registration.

We're committed to equal opportunities and welcome applications from all sections of the community. Our commitment to inclusion is reflected in our accreditations: Stonewall Proud Employer, 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.