Psychologist

Become part of our team. We care for you as much as you care for others. There’s a place for you at CNWL. We’re passionate about delivering first‑class patient‑centred, safe and effective care, whether it is in a hospital setting, in a community clinic or in the patient’s own home. Patients are at the heart of everything we do. Providing top quality care depends on our ability to employ the best people. We’re always looking to recruit outstanding people who will go the extra mile to support our patients, colleagues, teams and the Trust. With every new employee we’re hoping to find our future leaders and we’ll support our staff by providing opportunities to develop your career.

With a diverse culture and equally diverse range of opportunities across mental health, community services, addictions, eating disorders, learning disabilities and more – whatever stage of your career you’re at, there’s always a place for you at CNWL.

CNWL (Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust) has almost 8,000 staff providing integrated healthcare to a third of London's population, Milton Keynes and areas beyond. We involve service users, carers, the public, staff and partner organisations in the way that we are run. Our catchment area spans diverse communities, with over 100 first languages spoken. It contains areas of great affluence as well as areas of much deprivation. We are committed to providing services that meet the needs of the people who use them, and we actively encourage involvement from local people who can help make a difference. We’re proud of our diversity and we continue to undertake new initiatives to advance equality for LGBT+, BME and people with disabilities to promote good relations and understanding between our staff.

We are recognised locally, nationally and internationally for providing high quality, innovative healthcare. We aim to employ only the best people, and our experts are frequently called upon to contribute to national health strategy and policy, and many models of our care have been adapted for use in other countries.

We offer a generous relocation package (subject to eligibility assessment) and flexible working options, including bank assignments for most roles. For more information on these and other benefits of working for us, see our Benefits, Reward and Wellbeing page.

CNWL NHS Foundation Trust are committed to safeguarding all children and vulnerable adults and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. We follow safe recruitment practices to protect children and vulnerable adults.

Job overview

The post holder will be responsible for delivering services under the national Offender Personality Disorder (OPD) Pathway programme to men and women with complex personality difficulties and serious offending histories. This provision will focus on supporting the effective management and engagement of these service users whilst in the community. The NW ICPS incorporates both Core Offender Management (CORE-OM) services, which deliver consultation, training, formulation and joint casework support to the National Probation Service (NPS), and case management and therapeutic interventions through Intensive Intervention and Risk Management Services (IIRMS).

Main duties of the job

• Within the Core-OM provision, the postholders will contribute to a consultation and liaison service to Offender Managers/National Probation Service within North West London and more widely across London. This work involves evidence‑based screening of caseloads, the facilitation of individual and group consultation/formulation meetings and the promotion of workforce development through the delivery of training.
• There will also be a requirement to contribute to multi‑agency working where appropriate, for example through attendance at MAPPA meetings and liaising with Community Mental Health Teams.
• Within the IIRMS provision, the postholders will provide a specialist psychological service to the multi‑disciplinary team and to offenders with personality disorder/difficulties. This work involves the completion of holistic clinical assessments/formulations/risk management plans, informed by best practice in risk assessment and literature on working with personality disordered offenders, with an emphasis on desistance.
• There may be opportunities to deliver into the Enhanced IIRMS treatments, which includes MBT, Schema therapy, Challenge (for male sexual offenders) and EMDR.
• The postholders will utilise research skills to enhance service development and delivery. This will involve the completion of audits and other research and development activities.
• The postholders may be required to supervise and direct the work of assistant and trainee psychologists as required.

Working for our organisation

The delivery of the NW ICPS is a partnership between North London and Central and North‑West London NHS Foundation Trusts. This post is hosted by North London and forms part of the wider London Pathways Partnership (LPP). LPP is a consortium of five London NHS Trusts co‑delivering services under the national Offender Personality Disorder (OPD) Pathway programme in partnership with colleagues in the National Probation Service (NPS) and HM Prison Service. LPP provides community OPD Pathway services across London, as well as in prisons within and outside London. The LPP staff group, mainly comprising psychological therapists and clinical practitioners, is among the most experienced teams nationally working with men and women who have serious offence histories that are linked to their personality difficulties.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Clinical

• To provide specialist psychological assessments of clients, based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex data from a variety of sources including psychological and neuropsychological tests, self‑report measures, rating scales, direct and indirect structured observations and semi‑structured interviews with clients, family members and others involved in the client’s care.
• To formulate, implement and provide ongoing oversight of plans for the formal psychological treatment and/or management of a client’s mental health problems, based upon an appropriate conceptual framework of the client’s problems, and employing methods based upon evidence of efficacy, across the full range of care settings.
• To be responsible for implementing a range of psychological interventions for individuals, and groups, within and across teams employed individually and in synthesis, adjusting and refining psychological formulations drawing upon different explanatory models and maintaining a number of provisional hypotheses.
• 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, family or group.
• To exercise autonomous professional responsibility for the assessment, treatment and discharge of clients whose problems are managed by psychologically based standard care plans.
• To provide specialist psychological advice, guidance and consultation to other professionals contributing directly to clients’ formulations, diagnoses and treatment plans.
• To facilitate cross‑ and multi‑agency meetings and to offer psychological opinion about clinical risk management and subsequent intervention pathways.
• To undertake risk assessment and risk management for individual clients and to provide advice to other professions on psychological aspects of risk assessment and risk management.
• To act as care coordinator, where appropriate, taking responsibility for initiating, planning and review of care plans including clients, their carers, referring agents and others involved the network of care.
• To communicate in a skilled and sensitive manner, information concerning the assessment, formulation and treatment plans of clients under their care and to monitor progress during the course of both uni‑ and multi‑disciplinary care.
• To maintain the highest standards of clinical record keeping, including electronic data entry and recording, and report writing and the responsible exercise of professional self‑governance, in accordance with professional codes of practice of required professional accrediting body, and Trust policies and procedures.
• To work innovatively and in conjunction with colleagues (both LPP and probation staff) to develop appropriate, evidence based and effective services for those on the OPD pathway.

Teaching, training, and supervision

• To receive regular clinical supervision from a suitably qualified and experienced psychological therapist and, where appropriate, other professional colleagues.
• To develop skills in the area of professional post‑graduate teaching, training and supervision and to provide supervision to other MDT staff’s psychological work, as appropriate.
• To provide professional and clinical supervision of Band 6 psychological therapists, assistant/graduate psychologists and, as appropriate, to contribute to the supervision of individual cases for trainee psychologists and psychological therapists.
• To contribute to the pre‑ and post‑qualification teaching of applied psychology and psychological therapy, as appropriate.
• To provide advice, consultation and training to staff working with the client group across a range of agencies and settings, where appropriate.

Management, recruitment, policy and service development

• To contribute to the development, evaluation and monitoring of the team’s operational policies and services, through the deployment of professional skills in research, service evaluation and audit.
• To advise both service and professional management on those aspects of the service where psychological and/or organisational matters need addressing.
• To manage the workloads of Band 6 psychological therapists, assistant and graduate psychologists, within the framework of the service’s policies and procedures.
• To develop, with colleagues from probation, health and third‑sector organisations peer led/service‑user facilitated support, education and treatment programmes.

Research and service evaluation

• To utilise theory, evidence‑based literature and research to support evidence‑based practice in individual work and work with other team members.
• To undertake appropriate research and provide research advice to other staff undertaking research.
• To undertake project management, including complex audit and service evaluation, with colleagues to help develop service provision.
• To familiarise themselves with, and to comply with, the Trust’s requirements on research governance.

IT responsibilities (other than those used for research)

• The postholders will input and maintain, appropriate computer and manual clinical records and statistical data and provide this to the Service Manager/Head of Speciality when necessary.
• The postholders will engage in relevant computer and IT training as required.
• The postholders will be responsible for ensuring that the psychology service staff they are responsible for/supervise engage in relevant computer and IT training as required and will input and maintain, appropriate computer and manual clinical records and statistical data.

General

• To contribute to the development and maintenance of the highest professional standards of practice, through active participation in internal and external CPD training and development programmes, in consultation with the postholders’ professional and service manager.
• To contribute to the development and articulation of best practice in psychology across the service, by continuing to develop the skills of a reflexive and reflective scientist practitioner, taking part in regular professional supervision and appraisal and maintaining an active engagement with current developments in the field of applied psychology and related disciplines.
• To maintain up to date knowledge of legislation, national and local policies and issues in relation to both the specific client group and mental health.

Person specification

TRAINING & QUALIFICATIONS

• Doctoral level training in clinical, counselling or forensic psychology or its equivalent, accredited by the BPS. Training in models of developmental lifespan psychology, psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology and two or more distinct psychological therapies.
• HCPC Registered as a Practitioner Psychologist.
• Other relevant CPD qualifications, pre‑ or post‑training. Especially training in working with people with trauma presentations, research methodology, staff training and/or other fields of applied psychology.
• Training in more than one psychological therapy.

EXPERIENCE

• Experience of specialist psychological assessment and treatment of clients across the full range of care settings, including outpatient, community, primary care and inpatient settings.
• Experience of working with a wide variety of client groups, across the whole life course presenting problems that reflect the full range of clinical severity. Maintaining a high degree of professionalism in the face of highly emotive and distressing problems, verbal abuse and the threat of physical abuse.
• Experience working with and delivering psychological therapy to those with a diagnosis of personality disorder and/or a history of self‑harm and substance misuse and experience of working with complex trauma.
• Experience of delivering brief, primary care, CBT interventions or equivalent.
• Experience of working effectively in multidisciplinary settings.
• Experience of teaching and training.
• Experience of the application of psychology in different cultural and specialist contexts.
• Experience of working within a criminal justice or forensic mental health service.
• Experience of working with service‑users to develop peer facilitated support or treatment initiatives.
• Experience of working using multitherapeutic approaches.
• Experience of using a trauma informed approach.
• Experience in supervising others in the delivery of psychological therapy.

KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS

• Skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment, intervention and management frequently requiring sustained and intense concentration.
• Well developed skills in the ability to communicate effectively, orally and in writing, complex, highly technical and/or clinically sensitive information to clients, their families, carers and other professional colleagues both within and outside the NHS.
• Skills in providing training, advice and psychological information and consultation to other professional and non‑professional groups.
• High level knowledge of research methodology, research design and complex, multivariate data analysis as practiced within the clinical fields of psychology.
• Broad knowledge of models of assessment, management and treatment of mentally disordered and PD offenders.
• Knowledge of the theory and practice of specialised psychological therapies in specific difficult to treat groups (e.g. personality disorder, dual diagnoses).
• Ability to work intensively with people who present challenges in the complexity of their problems and needs, including sexual and violent offending and self‑harming and suicidal behaviours.
• High level knowledge of the theory and practice of at least two specialised psychological therapies.
• Knowledge of legislation in relation to the client group and mental health.

OTHER

• Ability to teach and train others, using a variety of complex multi‑media materials suitable for presentations within public, professional and academic settings.
• 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.
• Good understanding of the current context of service provision within the NHS.
• Willingness to work flexibly to meet demands of contracts, commissioners and other stakeholders to provide high‑quality and effective care.
• Ability to work in probation services, in line with HMPPS policy and procedures and obtain and maintain enhanced security clearance.
• Experience of working within a multicultural framework.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

AI can be used as a support tool, not a replacement for the applicant’s own work. Applications must remain personal, accurate, and reflective of the candidate’s real experience. AI‑generated content must not misrepresent skills, qualifications, or experience. Over reliance on AI‑generated content is discouraged and may diminish the applicant’s chances of success. We monitor applications for any behaviour that could create an unfair advantage, and we check all references carefully. You are likely to be tested on your experience at interview, so be honest and make sure all the information in your application is correct. Please note that the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is prohibited during the interview process.

The successful applicant may have contact with patients or service users. As an NHS Trust we strongly encourage and support vaccination as this remains the best way to protect yourself, your family, your colleagues and of course patients and service users when working on our healthcare settings.

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.