Highly Specialist Applied Psychologist - IST - South Staffs

NHS; Kansas; On-site; USD 80,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

Join as a Highly Specialist Applied Psychologist with the NHS, contributing to the Intensive Support Team in South Staffordshire. This role involves providing specialist psychological assessments and interventions for individuals with learning disabilities and complex needs. The successful candidate will work collaboratively within a multi-disciplinary team and engage in ongoing professional development.

Benefits

Generous maternity, paternity, and adoption leave

Up to 27 days annual leave

Extensive Health and Wellbeing support

Flexible working options

Qualifications

• Registered as Practitioner Psychologist with the HCPC.
• Experience of working with learning disabilities and complex needs.
• Trained in clinical supervision.

Responsibilities

• Provide psychological input to the Intensive Support Team.
• Conduct specialist psychological assessments of service users.
• Implement treatment plans for individuals with learning disabilities.

Skills

Advanced skills in assessment

Communication skills

Education

Post-graduate doctoral level training in clinical or counselling psychology

Job description

Go back Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

Highly Specialist Applied Psychologist - IST - South Staffs

The closing date is 07 July 2025

Clinical PsychologistBand: 8aWe are seeking an experienced psychological practitioner with excellent communication skills to join our well established and recently expanded Intensive Support Team (IST) in South Staffordshire.Working as part of our IST, you will provide effective, evidence-based interventions with the aim of improving quality of life, autonomy, psychological wellbeing and reducing the risk of placement breakdowns, inappropriate admissions to specialist hospital and the use of restrictive practices.You will have experience of Positive Behavioural Support and of working therapeutically with people with learning disabilities in a variety of settings; including working with people who have complex mental and/or physical health needs, autism, and complex behavioural needs. You will be an experienced psychological practitioner who relishes multi-disciplinary and multi-agency working, and someone who can work creatively to secure good outcomes. An active interest in research is also highly desirable.Your colleagues within the IST will include nurses, speech and language therapists, occupational therapists, and an assistant psychologist. Support from physiotherapists and psychiatry colleagues are available from the wider Community Learning Disability Team (CLDT).As a psychologist in the IST, you will benefit from the support of a large number of highly talented, enthusiastic and friendly psychological practitioner colleagues from within the CLDT.

Main duties of the job

To provide highly specialist clinical psychology input to South Staffordshire's Intensive Support Team (IST). Working as part of a multi-disciplinary team to offer effective and evidence based interventions with the aim of improving quality of life, autonomy and psychological wellbeing; and reducing the risk of placement breakdowns, inappropriate admissions to specialist hospital and the use of restrictive practices.To provide specialist psychological assessments of service users referred to the IST, based on the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex data from a variety of sources. Psychological formulations will then contribute significantly to the development of detailed PBS plans and risk assessments etc. Clinical work will take place across all settings and agencies.To formulate and implement plans for the psychological treatment and management of people with learning disabilities who may have mental health problems and/or complex behavioural needs and/or Autistic Spectrum Diagnoses. There will be a need to; adjust and refine psychological formulations drawing upon different explanatory models and maintaining a number of provisional hypotheses.To evaluate and make decisions about treatment options based upon evidence of efficacy, across the full range of care settings.

About us

By joining Team MPFT, you will be helping your communities and in return for this, we will support you by;

• Supporting your career development and progression
• Generous maternity, paternity and adoption leave
• Options for flexible working
• Up to 27 days annual leave (increasing with service up to 33 days)
• Extensive Health and Wellbeing support and resources
• If you work in our community teams, we pay for your time travelling between patients
• Lease car if you complete more than 500 business miles per annum, fully insured and maintained (including tyres), mileage paid at lease car rate
• Salary sacrifice car - fully insured and maintained (including tyres), your gross pay is reduced by the cost of the vehicle before tax, NI and pension deductions are calculated, mileage paid at business rates
• Salary sacrifice bikes up to £2k
• Free car parking at all trust sites
• Free flu vaccinations every year
• Citizens Advice support linked with a Hardship Fund for one off additional support up to £250 (if the criteria is met)

We are proud to be a diverse and inclusive organisation and there is a choice of staff networks that help you meet like-minded people.

Please be aware that the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in completing application forms will be monitored to ensure fairness and transparency. If you have used AI you must state this in your application.

Please note, we may be required to close this vacancy early if we receive a high volume of applications

Job responsibilities

To be responsible for psychological input to South Staffordshires Intensive Support Team (IST) as part of a multi-disciplinary team.

The post holder will take the lead in developing psychology inputs within the IST, linking in with IST clinicians and the wider Community Learning Disability Team. Propose and contribute to service development specifically within the IST but also the wider Learning Disabilities Service under the guidance of the Professional Lead and Local Lead Consultant Clinical Psychologist.Providing specialist psychological advice, guidance and consultation to other professionals contributing directly to service users care; and to contribute to a psychologically based framework of understanding and care, to the benefit of all users of the service.MPFTs Learning Disability Psychological Services colleagues (from both South Staffordshire and Shropshire) meet regularly for joint CPD events and facilitate a number of local special interest groups. You would also have scope within your role to hold a small caseload of people with a learning disability referred to the wider CLDT.*Please see the attached Job Description and Person Specification for further details.*

Person Specification

Qualifications & Training

• Post-graduate doctoral level training in clinical or counselling psychology (or its equivalent for those trained prior to 1996) as accredited by the BPS, including specifically models of psycho-pathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology.
• Trained in clinical supervision of doctoral trainees (completed all required STAR Training).
• Currently registered as Practitioner Psychologist with the HCPC.

Experience

• Working as part of a multi-disciplinary team, seeing service users presenting with a wide variety of mental health and behavioural needs in a range of settings. Offering evidence-based psychological interventions and adhering to appropriate best practice and professional guidance as a qualified clinician.
• Experience of working therapeutically with services users with a learning disability and with people on the autistic continuum; including those presenting with behavioural needs which challenges services.
• Undertaking multi-dimensional risk assessment, developing and implementing risk mitigation strategies.
• Experience of clinical supervision of others.

Skills, Knowledge & Abilities

• Advanced skills in the assessment, formulation, and treatment of people with learning disabilities.

Personal Attributes

• Ability to work effectively within a multi-disciplinary and Psychology team and form good working relationships with other professionals.

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.

Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

Address

The Flanagan Centre, St George's Hospital

The Flanagan Centre, St George's Hospital