Job summary
The Perinatal Mental Health Service (PMHS) and Maternal Mental Health Service (MMHS) are looking for a Clinical or Counselling Psychologist to join our friendly and supportive team. This is a fixed-term 27-month post to cover a career break.
Your role will be to improve the psychological health and well-being of women/birthing people and their infants. You will work closely with multidisciplinary colleagues to manage patient caseloads, provide expert assessment, formulate treatment plans, deliver a range of evidence-based psychological interventions, and offer consultation and guidance to support individuals, families, and professionals.
You will also have the opportunity to shape the future of these services, contribute to ongoing service development, learn from current research and practice, and undertake specialist perinatal intervention training.
Main duties of the job
Manage a varied caseload within the PMHS and/or MMHS.
Provide comprehensive psychological assessments, formulations, and evidence-based treatments for individuals, couples, families, and groups.
Offer interventions such as Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT), Video Interaction Guidance (VIG), Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), systemic therapy, and psychodynamic therapy.
Deliver ante- and post-natal individual or group sessions.
Provide expert consultation, advice, and clinical supervision to colleagues and other professionals.
Undertake risk assessment and management, ensuring safety and appropriate intervention.
Contribute to the multidisciplinary planning and development of perinatal and maternal mental health services.
Maintain accurate clinical records in line with Trust policies and professional standards.
About us
At Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, we're committed to supporting our employees with a range of benefits designed to enhance your professional and personal life. We offer:
- Flexible working options to help you balance work and life
- NHS pension scheme for long-term financial security
- Generous annual leave allowance to recharge and relax
- A strong focus on career development to help you grow and achieve your potential
Additionally, you'll gain access to our Blue Light Card, unlocking exclusive discounts on shopping, dining, and leisure activities, as well as NHS-specific perks to support you both inside and outside of work.
We are proud to foster a diverse, skilled, and inclusive workforce, and we encourage applications from all backgrounds.
Why Somerset? Somerset offers the perfect blend of idyllic countryside, outstanding areas of natural beauty, and breathtaking coastlines, with vibrant cities like Bristol, Bath, and Exeter just a short drive away - and only two hours to London.
The region is home to excellent educational facilities, and with affordable housing compared to other parts of the country, it's a great place to build both your career and your future.
Somerset truly has it all - the peaceful countryside and cosmopolitan city life, with something for everyone to enjoy.
Job description
Job responsibilities
As a Practitioner Psychologist within PMHS and/or MMHS, you will play a key role in delivering high-quality, specialist psychological care to women/birthing people and their infants. You will:
Assessment & Formulation - Use a variety of psychological and neuropsychological tools, structured interviews, and observations to assess mental health, emotional, and behavioural needs. Develop clear, evidence-based formulations to guide intervention.
Therapeutic Interventions - Provide and adapt psychological therapies to meet the needs of individuals, dyads, and groups, drawing on a range of models and approaches.
Consultation & Supervision - Offer expert psychological guidance to other professionals, supporting reflective practice and fostering a psychologically informed approach across the team.
Service Development & Research - Engage in service improvement projects, audits, and evaluation. Contribute to policy development and innovation in care pathways.
Professional Practice - Work within HCPC and British Psychological Society guidelines, ensuring ethical, evidence-based, and inclusive practice.
Collaboration - Build effective working relationships with internal teams, mother and baby units, GPs, social care, and community agencies to provide holistic and integrated support.
This role offers a unique opportunity to influence service delivery at a time of national development in perinatal and maternal mental health care. You will be supported by experienced colleagues, have access to CPD opportunities, and be part of a service that values compassion, respect, and teamwork.
Job description
Job responsibilities
As a Practitioner Psychologist within PMHS and/or MMHS, you will play a key role in delivering high-quality, specialist psychological care to women/birthing people and their infants. You will:
Assessment & Formulation - Use a variety of psychological and neuropsychological tools, structured interviews, and observations to assess mental health, emotional, and behavioural needs. Develop clear, evidence-based formulations to guide intervention.
Therapeutic Interventions - Provide and adapt psychological therapies to meet the needs of individuals, dyads, and groups, drawing on a range of models and approaches.
Consultation & Supervision - Offer expert psychological guidance to other professionals, supporting reflective practice and fostering a psychologically informed approach across the team.
Service Development & Research - Engage in service improvement projects, audits, and evaluation. Contribute to policy development and innovation in care pathways.
Professional Practice - Work within HCPC and British Psychological Society guidelines, ensuring ethical, evidence-based, and inclusive practice.
Collaboration - Build effective working relationships with internal teams, mother and baby units, GPs, social care, and community agencies to provide holistic and integrated support.
This role offers a unique opportunity to influence service delivery at a time of national development in perinatal and maternal mental health care. You will be supported by experienced colleagues, have access to CPD opportunities, and be part of a service that values compassion, respect, and teamwork.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Registered with HCPC
- Qualified Clinical or Counselling Psychologist (D.Clin.Psychol. or equivalent), eligible for Chartered Clinical or Counselling Psychologist Status with the British Psychological Society
Desirable
- Further training or experience in Perinatal Mental Health/ related area
- Further training in at least one (other) psychological therapy, e.g. cognitive analytic psychotherapy, EMDR dialectical behaviour therapy.
Experience
Essential
- Experience of work across service settings and agencies and participation in working parties.
- Experience of applying therapeutic approaches to the work with people with complex mental health presentations
- Experience of conducting clinical audit
Desirable
- Experience of teaching, training and/ or proving consultation to health professionals
- Experience of working with women with complex mental health difficulties
- Experience of working with Dyads or Triads or systemically or parent-baby relationships
- Experience of working from a community psychology approach
- Supervision provision experience.
Additional Criteria
Essential
- Must be a car driver with a valid driving licence or have access to transport with appropriate business insurance in order to travel throughout the Trust, to meet the needs of the service.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Registered with HCPC
- Qualified Clinical or Counselling Psychologist (D.Clin.Psychol. or equivalent), eligible for Chartered Clinical or Counselling Psychologist Status with the British Psychological Society
Desirable
- Further training or experience in Perinatal Mental Health/ related area
- Further training in at least one (other) psychological therapy, e.g. cognitive analytic psychotherapy, EMDR dialectical behaviour therapy.
Experience
Essential
- Experience of work across service settings and agencies and participation in working parties.
- Experience of applying therapeutic approaches to the work with people with complex mental health presentations
- Experience of conducting clinical audit
Desirable
- Experience of teaching, training and/ or proving consultation to health professionals
- Experience of working with women with complex mental health difficulties
- Experience of working with Dyads or Triads or systemically or parent-baby relationships
- Experience of working from a community psychology approach
- Supervision provision experience.
Additional Criteria
Essential
- Must be a car driver with a valid driving licence or have access to transport with appropriate business insurance in order to travel throughout the Trust, to meet the needs of the service.
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.
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see
NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
Additional information
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.
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see
NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
