Principal Clinical/Counselling Psychologist or Psychological Therapist
Band 8b
Main area Mental Health Grade Band 8b Contract Permanent Hours Full time – 37.5 hours per week (Happy to discuss flexible working) Job ref 437-8304402
Site Wigan CMHT Town Phoenix Way Salary £66,582 – £77,368 per annum Salary period Yearly Closing 14/10/2026 23:59
Job overview
We are excited to invite applications for the role of Principal Clinical/Counselling Psychologist or Principal Psychological Therapist, to work across and provide clinical leadership to psychology staff within Wigan Specialist Community Mental Health Team (SCMHT, working age adults) in relation to all aspects of direct and indirect psychological work.
We are seeking an innovative, responsive, and adaptable Principal Psychologist / Psychological Therapist who will drive service development, support the wider team, and promote collaborative, team-based ways of working that deliver high-quality care and positive outcomes for service users.
Main duties of the job
The postholder will be employed by Greater Manchester Mental Health Trust (GMMH) to work across and provide clinical leadership to psychology staff within the Wigan Specialist Community Mental Health Team (SCMHT, working age adults) in relation to all aspects of direct and indirect psychological work.
T he post holder will maintain oversight of the work of more junior psychologists/psychological therapists and Mental Health Wellbeing Practitioners based within the Wigan community teams. They will ensure that all psychological aspects of SCMHT service provision continue to be maintained at the highest possible standards, ensuring people who use the service, and their carers/families, receive high quality care.
The postholder will maintain an overview of non-psychology practitioners’ psychosocial intervention work via the provision of co-working opportunities and case formulation, clinical supervision, reflective practice, and training sessions as needed.
They will provide expert psychological assessment, formulation, consultation, and intervention, and play a key role in the continued development of the Psychological Therapies Hub and the wider transformation of community mental health services.
The successful candidate will be trained/accredited, or willing to undertake training/accreditation, in one of the six core therapeutic modalities: SCM, MBT, EMDR, CBT-P&B, CAT, or BFT.
Working for our organisation
Greater Manchester Mental Health (GMMH) Foundation Trust employs over 7000 members of staff, who deliver services from more than 122 locations.
We provide inpatient and community-based mental health care for people living in Bolton, the city of Manchester, Salford,Trafford and the borough of Wigan, and a wide range of specialist mental health and substance misuse services across Greater Manchester, the north west of England and beyond.
Greater Manchester is one of the world’s most innovative, original and exciting places to live and work. From the beauty of the surrounding countryside to the heart of the vibrant inner city with great shopping, entertainment and dining options.
Wherever you go you will experience a great northern welcome with people famed for their warmth, humour and generosity.
Our people enjoy their work, have opportunities to learn and develop their skills and are encouraged to generate new ideas that improve care for our service users.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Please see attached job description and person specification for detailed job description and main responsibilities.
Person specification
Qualifications
- qualification – doctorate in clinical/counselling psychology or accredited psychological therapist in a NICE recommended talking therapy e.g., accredited CBT therapist, accredited CAT therapist.
- Completion of further post qualification training within psychological therapies (e.g., CAT, CBT, EMDR etc.).
Experience
- Demonstrable significant post-qualification experience of specialist psychological work with adults with complex needs within a secondary care setting and MDT
- Demonstrable experience of providing clinical supervision and consultation to psychologists, psychological therapists, or other core health professions and non-therapists
- Experience of leadership (e.g. clinical leadership, teaching/training, leading service development, chairing meetings)
Knowledge
- Understanding of a trauma informed approach to distress and the value and purpose of therapeutic relationships as a tool for intervention
- Understanding of the national guidance, and policy directives in relation to the development and delivery of psychological therapies within community services.
Important Information about working for GMMH:
All positions within the Trust are subject to satisfactory pre-employment checks, for further information on the checks required please visit the NHS Employers website www.nhsemployers.org
The Trust mandates all post holders who require a DBS for their role to subscribe to the DBS Update Service. You will be required to enrol for this service for a fee of £16 per year and maintain registration throughout your employment with GMMH.
Applicants are encouraged to apply for posts at Greater Manchester Mental Health who have direct experience of mental health, learning disability or drug and alcohol services either as a service user or a carer.
The Trust is also committed to safeguarding children, young people and vulnerable adults and requires all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.
We are aspiring to ensure our workforce is representative of the diverse communities that we serve, and we are strongly committed to removing barriers to employment for candidates from under-represented groups, for example BAME, Disabled and LGBT+ communities. If you would like to have an informal chat about the recruitment process for this role or would value some additional support, we’d love to hear from you.
Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) when writing job applications
A candidate may utilise the help of AI when writing job application.The assessment of an application is made on its entirety and most times AI-generated content does not fully grasp the context and requirements of the job one applies for thus producing inaccurate and misleading information, especially in the supporting statement section of an application that can lack real life examples of one’s achievements, success and challenges.
We have added a disclaimer to our application process advising that the use of AI is monitored. GMMH reserves the right to follow up with a candidate at the interview on specific responses and those examples used in the supporting statement to explore it further.
Sponsorship
We are proud to be an approved sponsor for the Skilled Worker visa. Applications from individuals who require sponsorship will be considered alongside all other applications. Please be aware that not all roles are eligible for sponsorship. You can review the list of eligible roles and salary requirements on the UK Government’s website – click here .
If you are offered a role with us and you require sponsorship, we will check your eligibility in line with the information on the above website. Your offer of employment could be withdrawn if the role is not eligible for sponsorship, and you are not otherwise able to evidence your right to work in the UK.
The Home Office introduces new changes from 22/07/2025 that impact the health and care sector, you may wish to familiarise with it here .
Do you have experience outside the NHS?
We want to attract and retain people with diverse skills and experience, to deliver inclusive healthcare services to our communities.
We will consider relevant experience outside the NHS to calculate your salary on appointment. Please contact our Recruitment Team for more information.
**Please note, this vacancy may be closed at any time if sufficient applications have been received**
Employer certification / accreditation badges
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.
As a service user, relative or carer using our services, sometimes you may need to turn to someone for help, advice, and support.
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