Job overview

We are looking for an enthusiastic and skilled Clinical/ Counselling Psychologist or CBT Therapist to join our committed and friendly team of clinicians. You will be providing Step 3 diagnostic assessments and evidence-based CBT treatment on an individual and group basis to clients aged 18 and over presenting with depression and anxiety disorders. You may also be involved in the clinical supervision of Psychological Wellbeing Practitioners, Low Intensity Trainees and High Intensity Trainees, for which training will be provided. There will be opportunities to develop areas of interest such as working with long term health conditions, working with clients with learning disabilities, working with perinatal clients, by contributing to project groups or taking a Champion role. The five IAPT services in SWLSTG Trust work closely together to develop care pathways and share expertise.

High-quality supervision and CPD are a priority for the team. You will receive regular weekly individual clinical supervision from one of our band 8a Clinical/Counselling Psychologists or CBT Therapists working within the service. You will also have the opportunity to attend a monthly clinical training session facilitated by lead clinicians from across the SWLSTG Trust and to attend quarterly CBT training workshops led by highly respected clinicians in their field, for example, we have previously welcomed Andrew Beck, Anke Ehlers and Martina Mueller.

Main duties of the job

To provide specialist psychology service for anxiety and depression to patients referred to NHS Sutton Talking Therapies (WTT). This will include the provision of specialist psychological assessment and therapy within one or more psychological therapy models specified by the NHS Talking Therapies for Anxiety and Depression Manual.

To provide advice and consultation on patients’ psychological care to other members of the STT team and to other non-professional carers. This includes supervision of other colleagues including trainee High Intensity Therapists and Psychological Wellbeing Practitioners, as well as trainees from other professional groups as appropriate.

The post holder will be expected to operate within recognised professional guidelines and the overall framework of the service’s operational policy and guidelines. The service operates from 9am to 8pm Monday to Friday. The post holder will be required to work flexible hours in line with this. This can be negotiated via the trust’s flexible working scheme.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• To deliver 20 attended clinical contacts per week if full-time.
• To provide specialist psychological therapy assessments with clients referred to the NHS Talking Therapies service based on the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex data from a variety of sources. This will include client 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 provide at least one NICE recommended psychological therapy for anxiety disorders and/or depression.
• To formulate and implement 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.
• To be knowledgeable about DSM-V diagnosis of common mental health problems (as relevant to NHS Talking Therapies) and skilled in the differential diagnosis of clinical disorders.
• To be able to clinically formulate clients’ problems and develop and implement plans for the formal Step 3 treatment and/or management of a client’s problems, based upon an appropriate conceptual framework and employing methods based upon evidence of efficacy.
• A good understanding and ability to apply CBT treatment strategies flexibly across the whole range of disorders seen in NHS Talking Therapies (particularly common mood disorders).
• To be responsible for implementing psychological interventions for individuals, carers, families and groups, adjusting and refining psychological formulations and drawing upon relevant explanatory models. To be able to use a specific psychological therapy for anxiety and/or depression, in line with NICE guidance, at a specialist level in assessments and interventions.
• 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.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in job applications

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Please remember, your application is your opportunity to tell us about your skills, experience and motivation for the role. We encourage applicants to complete their application and supporting statement in their own words wherever possible. We recognise that AI tools can be helpful in supporting accessibility, and for improving spelling, grammar and structure.

Applications that rely heavily on AI-generated content can become generic and fail to accurately reflect an applicant's individual experience. Applications that clearly demonstrate your own voice, reflections and experiences are often the most effective and help us better understand your suitability for the role.

Please be aware that information provided in your application and supporting statement may be explored further during the selection process. It is important that all applications accurately represent your own knowledge, skills and experience.

Applicant requirements

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.

Person specification:

Experience

Essential

• Experience of specialist psychological assessment and treatment of clients within an NHS Talking Therapies service
• Experience of working with a variety of client groups and presenting problems that reflect a range of clinical severity including maintaining a high degree of professionalism in the face of highly emotive and distressing problems, verbal abuse and the threat of physical abuse.
• Experience in establishing DSM-V diagnoses and in clinical formulation
• Experience of assessment and treatment of people with common mental health problems, of varying severity and complexity, using evidence based psychological therapies, particularly CBT
• Experience with routine outcome data collection and monitoring

Desirable

• Experience of meeting agreed/specified service targets in an NHS setting
• Experience in running Step 3 therapy groups
• Experience of working within a multicultural framework
• Experience of specialist psychological therapy assessment and treatment of clients across a range of care settings relevant to an NHS Talking Therapies service, including outpatient, community, and primary care settings

KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS

Essential

• Experience at working with one or more NHS Talking Therapies recognised psychological therapies at a specialist level
• Psychological assessment skills and skills in DSM-V- based diagnostic assessment
• Advanced practitioner skills in cogntive behavioural therapy (CBT)
• High -level knowledge of the theory and practice of one or more NHS Talking Therapies recognised psychological therapies.
• Skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment and intervention which require sustained and intense concentration
• Knowledge of effective care pathway navigation across primary and secondary care psychological therapies services
• 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

Desirable

• Knowledge of the academic literature concerning common mental disorders and their treatment within an IAPT service
• Knowledge of the theory and practice of adapting specific NHS Talking Therapies-recognised psychological therapies for anxiety and/or depression in the context of co-morbidity and complexity (e.g. personality disorder, additional disabilities etc)
• Knowledge of research methodology, research design and complex, multivariate data analysis as practiced within the clinical field of psychological therapies

TRAINING & QUALIFICATIONS

Essential

• Doctoral level training in clinical or counselling psychology (or its equivalent for those trained prior to 1996) as accredited by the BPS including models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and (for Clinical Psychologists) neuropsychology, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology; or alternative training outside of the UK that is recognised by the Health & Care Professions Council leading to registration in the UK as a Clinical or Counselling psychologist or Post-graduate level training in CBT from an Accredited course recognized by NHS Talking Therapies and accredited as a cognitive behavioural psychotherapist by the British Association of Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies (BABCP) or eligibility for accreditation and working towards completing accreditation within one year

Desirable

• Accredited in another modality of therapy (such as IPT or EMDR)
• Training in the supervision of Step 2 clinicians (GMHWs and PWPs)
• Training in working with clients experiencing long term conditions