Main area Clinical Psychologist – Older People’s Community Mental Health Grade Band 8a Contract Fixed term: 12 months (To cover maternity leave) Hours Part time – 30 hours per week Job ref 246-WSU8228107-B
Site G Block Town Bury St. Edmunds Salary £57,528 – £64,750 pro rata Salary period Yearly Closing 11/11/2026 23:59
Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust provides child and adult mental health services, learning disability, wellbeing, older people’s and eating disorder services across Norfolk and Suffolk.
We are committed to equality, diversity and inclusion and want to reflect the diversity of our local communities within our teams. We welcome applications from all talented individuals with the relevant qualifications, skills, knowledge and experience.
Please note due to the nature of our roles and patient demographic, you will be required to undertake physical intervention training and remain trained, as required by your role.
Job overview
We currently have an opportunity to provide a 1-year fixed-term maternity cover (0.8wte) for our Clinical Psychologist in a dedicated mental health service for older adults. The Trust’s Older People’s service has been rated as ‘good’ by the CQC. We are committed to further improving care and delivering excellent quality services in the context of the ongoing transformation plan.
As the team psychologist, you will provide specialist clinical psychological assessments of individuals, carers and families of service users, using and interpreting complex psychological data from a variety of sources. This will include neuropsychological assessment and formulation. You will also provide formulation and implementation of formal psychological treatment and/or management plans, based upon an appropriate conceptual framework of the service user. You will play a key role in supporting and developing team formulation and the implementation of a range of psychological interventions for service users, and, where appropriate, carers and families.
Main duties of the job
You will need to make highly skilled evaluations and decisions about treatment options taking into account theoretical and therapeutic models and highly complex factors concerning historical and developmental processes and provide specialist clinical psychology expertise, knowledge, advice and guidance to facilitate the effective and appropriate provision of psychological care.
You will be joining a very warm, positive and psychologically-minded team who are strong in their own professions (nurses, medics, occupational therapists, support workers and social care), able to reflect on their clinical practice and contribute to formulations. The team are used to hosting Trainee Clinical Psychologists, as well as other students, and you will have the opportunity to continue to provide clinical placements for the University of East Anglia (UEA). The feedback from our Trainees is that the team is fun, welcoming and nurturing. We also have strong links with UEA in lecturing and research. Your role will include a mixture of direct clinical work, groups, consultation, supervision, training and evaluation/research to ensure the team has the widest possible impact.
Working for our organisation
The team works with older people who may have a range of complex mental health difficulties, including difficulties relating to attachment issues, trauma, people with dementia, including Behavioural and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (BPSD), anxiety and depression.
Within West Suffolk Older People’s services you will join a small team of psychologists, psychology assistants and Trainee Clinical Psychologists who have experience in CBT, CFT, ACT and Neuropsychology and we are currently looking to expand the access to and range of psychological therapies on offer to older people within our services.
We have excellent connections with other Older People’s services across the Trust. There is a Trust wide Older People’s Clinical Collaborative to promote clinically-led, evidenced based, practice. We also have a number of QI Projects happening within our West Suffolk OP teams currently underway include improving physical health monitoring for older people, research into co-production, and improving referrals through training Care Home colleagues. We are also involved with the Trust’s LiA project to promote Proactive Resolutions.
Clinical supervision will be provided by the Consultant Clinical Neuropsychologist.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
If you are passionate about, or want to develop skills in, working with older people and you want to be part of developing mental health interventions for older adults at an exciting time of change and improvement then please get in touch.
Please see Job description for full details.
Other
- Able to identify, provide and promote appropriate support strategies to carers and staff exposed to highly distressing situations and challenging behaviours.
- Ability to travel independently – Has full UK driving licence and access to a vehicle
Qualifications
- Post‑graduate degree (or its equivalent if trained prior to 1996) in clinical psychology, accredited by BPS
- Registered as a practitioner psychologist with the Health Care Professions Council (HCPC)
Experience
- Experience working as a qualified clinical psychologist (Band 7) and able to evidence appropriate knowledge and experience in practice to enable the post holder to clinically supervise trainee clinical psychologist
- Experience of working with a range of complex and challenging behaviours and exercising full clinical responsibility for psychological treatment.
Skills
- Skilled in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment, intervention and management.
- Able to effectively communicate technical and clinically sensitive information to service users, families, carers and other professionals, within and outside NHS.
EQUAL OPPORTUNITIESApart from its legal duties in relation to equality and diversity, the Trust recognises and actively promotes the benefits of a diverse workforce and is committed to treating all employees with dignity and respect regardless of race, gender, disability, age, sexual orientation, religion or belief.
As a part of the Disability Confident Employer Guaranteed Interview Scheme we interview all disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the job vacancy (outlined in the Person Specification).. We encourage you to indicate your eligibility through TRAC jobs when applying.
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post may be 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.
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.
Name Rebecca Poz Job title Consultant Clinical Psychologist Email address Rebecca.poz@nsft.nhs.uk Telephone number 01284733188 Additional information
Vanessa Cotter – West Suffolk Older People’s Services Community Matron – 01284 733188
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