Job summary
We invite you to join us in making a real difference for children and families here at UHP. We're looking for a passionate and experienced Clinical Psychologist to help shape and lead needs-led psychological care across community and acute paediatric services.
This is a unique opportunity to work across the whole system--supporting children and young people with complex needs, strengthening teams, and improving how care is delivered across hospital and community settings. You'll play a key role in bringing a psychologically informed, compassionate approach to paediatric care, helping reduce fragmentation and ensuring families get the right support at the right time.
If you're motivated by improving outcomes, supporting staff, and working creatively across boundaries, we'd love to hear from you.
***Preference will be given to internal Trust staff, as well as 'Priority' and 'At Risk' status including NHS At Risk staff throughout Devon who are able to display recent relevant experience as dictated by the Person Specification.***
Main duties of the job
The post holder will provide highly specialist clinical, professional and strategic leadership for psychological services within the Children's Psychological Health and Wellbeing at University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust.
The post holder will lead the delivery, development and evaluation of psychologically informed pathways for children with highly complex presentations, including neurodivergence, complex health, mental health, persistent physical symptoms and significant psychosocial complexity.
The post holder will work autonomously as an advanced clinical practitioner within professional guidelines and exercise responsibility for the systematic governance of psychological practice within paediatric services. The role includes responsibility for service development, policy implementation, workforce development, supervision, audit, research and quality improvement.
The post holder will act as a highly specialist psychological resource to Children's services (acute and community service lines) at UHP, and the wider Trust, contributing expert consultation and leadership regarding the psychological management of paediatrics, neurodivergence and complex physical health conditions.
About us
We are a people business - where every member of staff matters and can make a difference. Patients are at the heart of everything we do. Joining University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust means becoming part of a team of dedicated staff, who are committed to leading the way through innovation, clinical excellence and great customer care. The Trust has great opportunities for career development in a highly progressive working environment. We offer all of this in a vibrant, modern city with a historic reputation for adventure.
PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL COMMUNICATION WILL BE ELECTRONIC, PLEASE CHECK YOUR EMAIL ACCOUNT REGULARLY.
If you have any issues with applying online and need additional support including reasonable adjustments with the application process, please contact the recruitment manager for this post who will put you into contact with the recruitment team. We recognise that work life balance is important for our colleagues and so we invite requests from applicants around less than full time/flexible working for our advertised roles. Please contact the recruiting manager to discuss this prior to your application submission. We commit to giving this full consideration in each case. We encourage people from diverse backgrounds to apply for our roles, as diversity strengthens our teams. It is sometimes necessary to close vacancies before the closing date. If you have not heard from us within 4 weeks of the closing date, please assume that you have not been shortlisted.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Clinical Duties
- To provide highly specialist psychological assessment, formulation and intervention for children with highly complex presentations and co-morbid neurodivergence, physical and mental health conditions.
- To undertake comprehensive specialist assessments utilising psychological interviews, psychometric assessment, behavioural observation, risk assessment and multidisciplinary information.
- To analyse highly complex clinical information where presentations may be ambiguous, multifactorial or characterised by conflicting evidence or differing professional opinion.
- To formulate complex biopsychosocial understandings of distress integrating developmental, relational, behavioural, neuropsychological, systemic and physical health factors.
- To provide highly specialist evidence-based interventions for example CBT, ACT, mindfulness-based interventions, motivational interviewing, systemic approaches and trauma-informed interventions.
- To provide highly specialist assessment and psychological recommendations regarding psychological treatment for children and young people.
- To manage and prioritise a highly specialist caseload of patients
- To undertake complex risk assessments relating to self-harm, suicide risk, safeguarding concerns, substance misuse and psychological distress.
- To communicate highly complex and highly sensitive information to patients, carers and professionals in situations involving significant distress, conflict, resistance or barriers to understanding.
- To provide expert psychological consultation and advice to Consultant Paediatricians, MDT colleagues and external agencies regarding complex patient presentations and psychologically informed care planning.
For further information please see attached job description
Person Specification
Knowledge and experience
Essential
- Post-qualification demonstrable experience as a qualified Clinical/Counselling/Health Psychologist within Children's/Paediatric services
- Demonstrable experience of administering specialist neuropsychological and psychometric assessments until fully competent
- Demonstrable experience of interpreting both verbally and in written form complex neuropsychological and psychometric assessments and presenting this information to patients and professionals.
- Demonstrable experience of providing assessment and intervention to patients with a wide range of different neurological and psychological disorders, and drawing on several theoretical and therapeutic models to do this.
Desirable
- Significant specialist demonstrable experience in Children/Young People who are neurodivergence and/or have complex comorbid physical and mental health presentations
Qualifications
Essential
- Accredited postgraduate Doctoral level training in Clinical Psychology (DClinPsy).
- Proven specialist clinical supervision in neuropsychology
- Registered as a Clinical Psychologist with the HCPC.
Desirable
- Post-doctoral training/ recorded CPD events in adult neuropsychology
- Record of having published in peer reviewed or academic or professional
- Full practitioner member of BPS Division of Neuropsychology (or working towards it)
Aptitude and abilities
Essential
- Doctoral level proven knowledge of Clinical Psychology, and corresponding high level of skills in assessment and treatment.
- Further specialist training in clinical neuropsychology to a level to be able to competently assess and treat patients with complex neurological presentations.
- Able to supervise other qualified clinical psychologists, trainee clinical psychologists, assistant psychologists and undergraduate placement students.
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 UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
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. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
Employer details
Employer name
University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust
Address
Child Development Centre
Scott Business Park
Plymouth
PL2 2PQ
United Kingdom
Employer's website
https://www.plymouthhospitals.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)
This listing was aggregated from publicly-available sources. The employer holds an A-rated sponsor licence at the time of this listing, but sponsorship of this specific role is not guaranteed — the employer's offer and UK Visas and Immigration are the final authority. Details may have changed since our last update — verify with the employer via the Apply link.