Job summary
We are recruiting a 0.6 x 8a clinical psychologist for Ealing Children's Social Care Locality Safeguarding teams (MAST) who work with children, young people and parents/ families supported under Child in Need (CIN) and Child Protection (CP) processes. The clinical psychologist will work closely alongside the child's social worker and with the wider professional network offering case consultation and psychological formulation, training and workshops, as well as direct assessment and intervention work with children and families. A key aspect of this work is a committed, empathic and trauma-informed and responsive approach with children, young people and their carers, building on strengths and resilience. The post holder will join a small MAST clinical psychology sub-team (4) of clinical psychologists which sits within the wider Brighter Futures Clinical Psychology Service in Ealing. The Brighter Futures Clinical Psychology Team has clinical psychologists embedded across other children's social care teams (Children Looked After, Leaving Care and Adoption). 'Brighter Futures' in Ealing is a practice model across children's services which draws upon mentalization based approaches and attachment and trauma- informed care approaches to centralise the relationship as key to supporting children and families. The post holder will be expected to model, support, and sustain this approach with social care colleagues through training, workshops and consultation.
Main duties of the job
The post holder will provide a highly specialist clinical psychology service to young people (0-18) and their families who present with complex difficulties and are under the local authority child in need (CIN) or child protection (CP) processes. This may be due to challenges within the family relationships and/or wider community (e.g., contextual safeguarding concerns). The clinical psychologist will be expected to provide psychological consultation to social workers and the network around them; developing shared understanding, supporting their work with families, and offering reflective space to consider the impact of the work upon them. Social care colleagues will also be supported by the post holder to develop their reflective practice and case formulation skills through group supervision/ reflective practice groups and training. The clinical psychologist role will also provide a specialist and intensive psychological assessment, support and therapeutic intervention offer which may include parenting work, groups, and direct work with young people (who may or may not also be open other Ealing CAMHS services). There will be training available for the post holder to support them in their role (including mentalization based approaches and dyadic developmental psychotherapy (DDP).
About us
West London NHS Trust is one of the most diverse providers of mental and physical health, community and social care in the UK.
Our 3,982 staff care for people in hospital and in the community, helping them to recover and go on to lead full and productive lives. We aim to be the best organisation of our kind in the country.
We provide care and treatment for more than 800,000 people living in the London boroughs of Ealing, Hammersmith & Fulham and Hounslow, delivering services in the community (at home, in GP surgeries and care homes), hospital, specialist clinics and forensic (secure) units.
We arerated good overall by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).
Together, we're committed to promoting hope and wellbeing, working with patients, service users, carers, families and partners across the communities we serve.
We are keen to ensure that our workforce reflects the community it serves, particularly in terms of ethnicity, gender, disability, LGBTQ+ and experience of mental illness.
Covid-19 vaccination is a condition of employment for this role, unless an exemption applies. The successful applicant may have contact with vulnerable service users and we will therefore seek proof of being fully vaccinated during the recruitment process.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Clinical
- To provide highly specialist psychological advice, guidance and consultation to social care colleagues/ professionals contributing directly to shared understanding of the key difficulties for child/young person/family and social care intervention plans.
- To develop collaborative and effective working links with social care colleagues and other agencies.
- To provide highly specialist psychological assessments of children and families supported by the team based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex data from a variety of sources.
- To be responsible for implementing a range of psychological interventions for individuals, carers, families and groups, within and across teams employed individually and in synthesis, adjusting and refining psychological formulations drawing upon different explanatory models and maintaining a number of provisional hypotheses.
- 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 provide advice, consultation and training to social care staff in connection with ongoing casework and referrals received and from initiatives aimed at boosting the capacity of social care colleagues.
- To work closely with the wider Brighter Futures clinical psychology team to support and sustain an approach to practice within social care which focuses on relationship based and trauma responsive ways of working with families in need.
- To undertake risk assessment and risk management for individual clients and to provide advice to other professions on psychological aspects of risk assessment and risk management.
Teaching, training, and supervision:
- To gain additional highly specialist experience and skills relevant to clinical psychology and/or the service.
- To maintain up to date knowledge and skills in the field of child and adolescent mental health by relevant study and attendance at training events, courses and conferences.
- To develop skills in the area of professional post-graduate teaching, training and supervision and to provide supervision to other MDT staffs psychological work, as appropriate.
- To provide professional and clinical supervision to more junior clinical psychologists, trainee and assistant psychologists.
- To contribute to the pre and post qualification teaching of clinical psychology.
To provide advice, consultation and training to social care staff and foster carers in connection with ongoing casework and referrals received and from initiatives aimed at boosting the capacity of social care colleagues and foster carers to manage mental health issues constructively. Training will also be provided to further frontline workers in education, health and social care settings as regards the mental health needs of the client group as appropriate
Job description
Job responsibilities
Clinical
- To provide highly specialist psychological advice, guidance and consultation to social care colleagues/ professionals contributing directly to shared understanding of the key difficulties for child/young person/family and social care intervention plans.
- To develop collaborative and effective working links with social care colleagues and other agencies.
- To provide highly specialist psychological assessments of children and families supported by the team based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex data from a variety of sources.
- To be responsible for implementing a range of psychological interventions for individuals, carers, families and groups, within and across teams employed individually and in synthesis, adjusting and refining psychological formulations drawing upon different explanatory models and maintaining a number of provisional hypotheses.
- 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 provide advice, consultation and training to social care staff in connection with ongoing casework and referrals received and from initiatives aimed at boosting the capacity of social care colleagues.
- To work closely with the wider Brighter Futures clinical psychology team to support and sustain an approach to practice within social care which focuses on relationship based and trauma responsive ways of working with families in need.
- To undertake risk assessment and risk management for individual clients and to provide advice to other professions on psychological aspects of risk assessment and risk management.
Teaching, training, and supervision:
- To gain additional highly specialist experience and skills relevant to clinical psychology and/or the service.
- To maintain up to date knowledge and skills in the field of child and adolescent mental health by relevant study and attendance at training events, courses and conferences.
- To develop skills in the area of professional post-graduate teaching, training and supervision and to provide supervision to other MDT staffs psychological work, as appropriate.
- To provide professional and clinical supervision to more junior clinical psychologists, trainee and assistant psychologists.
- To contribute to the pre and post qualification teaching of clinical psychology.
To provide advice, consultation and training to social care staff and foster carers in connection with ongoing casework and referrals received and from initiatives aimed at boosting the capacity of social care colleagues and foster carers to manage mental health issues constructively. Training will also be provided to further frontline workers in education, health and social care settings as regards the mental health needs of the client group as appropriate
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Doctoral level training in clinical psychology, including specifically models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology as accredited by the British Psychological Society.
- Eligible to work as a Practitioner Psychologist as approved by the Health Care Professions Council.
- Experience of specialist psychological assessment and treatment of clients across a range of care settings, (e.g. outpatient, community, primary care, in patient settings).
- Experience of working with a wide variety of client groups, including maintaining a high degree of professionalism in the face of highly emotive and distressing problems, verbal abuse and the threat of physical abuse.
- Demonstrate further specialist training/experience through having received a minimum of 50 hours clinical supervision of working as a specialist clinical psychologist over a minimum of 18 months, or an alternative agreed by the Child Clinical Psychology Lead.
- Experience working with children and young people in a CAMH setting.
Desirable
- Training and qualifications in research methodology, staff training and/or other fields of applied psychology.
- Experience of teaching, training and/or supervision.
- Experience of working with other agencies.
- Experience of the application of clinical psychology in different cultural contexts.
- Experience of working in Social Care settings.
- Experience of working with children and families under Social Services, including looked after Children and Children under Child in Need/Child Protection Plans who may also have mental health needs.
Other Requirements
Essential
- Doctoral level training in clinical psychology, including specifically models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology as accredited by the British Psychological Society.
- Eligible to work as a Practitioner Psychologist as approved by the Health Care Professions Council.
Desirable
- Training and qualifications in research methodology, staff training and/or other fields of applied psychology.
Experience
Essential
- Skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment, intervention and management frequently requiring sustained and intense concentration.
- 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.
- Skills in providing consultation to other professional and non-professional groups.
- Doctoral level knowledge of research methodology, research design and complex, multivariate data analysis as practiced within the clinical fields of psychology.
- Knowledge of legislation in relation to the client group and mental health.
- Evidence of continuing professional development as recommended by the BPS (dependent on grade).
- Ability to teach and train others, using a variety of complex multi-media materials suitable for presentations within public, professional and academic settings.
- Ability to identify and employ mechanisms of clinical governance as appropriate, to support and maintain clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive material and challenging behaviour.
- Commitment to provide support to children, their families/carers and linked professionals and maintain high levels of aspiration for the population referred to the service.
- Willingness to work flexibly when necessary.
- Commitment to working flexibly and collaboratively with team colleagues and to support innovative ways of working.
- To approach clients with empathy and adaptability and to be open to development of new approaches to work with clients.
Desirable
- Knowledge and skills in specialist psychological assessment and treatment of specific groups (e.g. looked after children, learning disabilities, neurodevelopmental disorders, adolescent mental health, trauma, anxiety and mood disorders).
- High level knowledge of the theory and practice of at least two specialised psychological therapies.
- Knowledge of legislation in relation to children and families and mental health and children's social care.
- Knowledge of application of therapeutic models to children who have a history of family trauma, loss and/or attachment difficulties
- Experience of working within a multicultural framework.
Knowledge
Essential
- Doctoral level training in clinical psychology, including specifically models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology as accredited by the British Psychological Society.
- Eligible to work as a Practitioner Psychologist as approved by the Health Care Professions Council
- Experience of specialist psychological assessment and treatment of clients across a range of care settings, (e.g. outpatient, community, primary care, in patient settings).
- Experience of working with a wide variety of client groups, including maintaining a high degree of professionalism in the face of highly emotive and distressing problems, verbal abuse and the threat of physical abuse.
- Demonstrate further specialist training/experience through having received a minimum of 50 hours clinical supervision of working as a specialist clinical psychologist over a minimum of 18 months, or an alternative agreed by the Child Clinical Psychology Lead
- Experience working with children and young people in a CAMH setting.
Desirable
- Training and qualifications in research methodology, staff training and/or other fields of applied psychology.
- Experience of teaching, training and/or supervision
- Experience of working with other agencies.
- Experience of the application of clinical psychology in different cultural contexts.
- Experience of working in Social Care settings.
- Experience of working with children and families under Social Services, including looked after Children and Children under Child in Need/Child Protection Plans who may also have mental health needs.
Skills
Essential
- Skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment, intervention and management frequently requiring sustained and intense concentration.
- 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
- Skills in providing consultation to other professional and non-professional groups.
- Doctoral level knowledge of research methodology, research design and complex, multivariate data analysis as practiced within the clinical fields of psychology
- Knowledge of legislation in relation to the client group and mental health.
- Evidence of continuing professional development as recommended by the BPS (dependent on grade).
- Ability to teach and train others, using a variety of complex multi-media materials suitable for presentations within public, professional and academic settings.
- Ability to identify and employ mechanisms of clinical governance as appropriate, to support and maintain clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive material and challenging behaviour
- Commitment to provide support to children, their families/carers and linked professionals and maintain high levels of aspiration for the population referred to the service.
- Willingness to work flexibly when necessary.
- Commitment to working flexibly and collaboratively with team colleagues and to support innovative ways of working.
- To approach clients with empathy and adaptability and to be open to development of new approaches to work with clients.
Desirable
- Knowledge and skills in specialist psychological assessment and treatment of specific groups (e.g. looked after children, learning disabilities, neurodevelopmental disorders, adolescent mental health, trauma, anxiety and mood disorders).
- High level knowledge of the theory and practice of at least two specialised psychological therapies.
- Knowledge of legislation in relation to children and families and mental health and children's social care.
- Knowledge of application of therapeutic models to children who have a history of family trauma, loss and/or attachment difficulties
- Experience of working within a multicultural framework.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Doctoral level training in clinical psychology, including specifically models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology as accredited by the British Psychological Society.
- Eligible to work as a Practitioner Psychologist as approved by the Health Care Professions Council.
- Experience of specialist psychological assessment and treatment of clients across a range of care settings, (e.g. outpatient, community, primary care, in patient settings).
- Experience of working with a wide variety of client groups, including maintaining a high degree of professionalism in the face of highly emotive and distressing problems, verbal abuse and the threat of physical abuse.
- Demonstrate further specialist training/experience through having received a minimum of 50 hours clinical supervision of working as a specialist clinical psychologist over a minimum of 18 months, or an alternative agreed by the Child Clinical Psychology Lead.
- Experience working with children and young people in a CAMH setting.
Desirable
- Training and qualifications in research methodology, staff training and/or other fields of applied psychology.
- Experience of teaching, training and/or supervision.
- Experience of working with other agencies.
- Experience of the application of clinical psychology in different cultural contexts.
- Experience of working in Social Care settings.
- Experience of working with children and families under Social Services, including looked after Children and Children under Child in Need/Child Protection Plans who may also have mental health needs.
Other Requirements
Essential
- Doctoral level training in clinical psychology, including specifically models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology as accredited by the British Psychological Society.
- Eligible to work as a Practitioner Psychologist as approved by the Health Care Professions Council.
Desirable
- Training and qualifications in research methodology, staff training and/or other fields of applied psychology.
Experience
Essential
- Skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment, intervention and management frequently requiring sustained and intense concentration.
- 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.
- Skills in providing consultation to other professional and non-professional groups.
- Doctoral level knowledge of research methodology, research design and complex, multivariate data analysis as practiced within the clinical fields of psychology.
- Knowledge of legislation in relation to the client group and mental health.
- Evidence of continuing professional development as recommended by the BPS (dependent on grade).
- Ability to teach and train others, using a variety of complex multi-media materials suitable for presentations within public, professional and academic settings.
- Ability to identify and employ mechanisms of clinical governance as appropriate, to support and maintain clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive material and challenging behaviour.
- Commitment to provide support to children, their families/carers and linked professionals and maintain high levels of aspiration for the population referred to the service.
- Willingness to work flexibly when necessary.
- Commitment to working flexibly and collaboratively with team colleagues and to support innovative ways of working.
- To approach clients with empathy and adaptability and to be open to development of new approaches to work with clients.
Desirable
- Knowledge and skills in specialist psychological assessment and treatment of specific groups (e.g. looked after children, learning disabilities, neurodevelopmental disorders, adolescent mental health, trauma, anxiety and mood disorders).
- High level knowledge of the theory and practice of at least two specialised psychological therapies.
- Knowledge of legislation in relation to children and families and mental health and children's social care.
- Knowledge of application of therapeutic models to children who have a history of family trauma, loss and/or attachment difficulties
- Experience of working within a multicultural framework.
Knowledge
Essential
- Doctoral level training in clinical psychology, including specifically models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology as accredited by the British Psychological Society.
- Eligible to work as a Practitioner Psychologist as approved by the Health Care Professions Council
- Experience of specialist psychological assessment and treatment of clients across a range of care settings, (e.g. outpatient, community, primary care, in patient settings).
- Experience of working with a wide variety of client groups, including maintaining a high degree of professionalism in the face of highly emotive and distressing problems, verbal abuse and the threat of physical abuse.
- Demonstrate further specialist training/experience through having received a minimum of 50 hours clinical supervision of working as a specialist clinical psychologist over a minimum of 18 months, or an alternative agreed by the Child Clinical Psychology Lead
- Experience working with children and young people in a CAMH setting.
Desirable
- Training and qualifications in research methodology, staff training and/or other fields of applied psychology.
- Experience of teaching, training and/or supervision
- Experience of working with other agencies.
- Experience of the application of clinical psychology in different cultural contexts.
- Experience of working in Social Care settings.
- Experience of working with children and families under Social Services, including looked after Children and Children under Child in Need/Child Protection Plans who may also have mental health needs.
Skills
Essential
- Skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment, intervention and management frequently requiring sustained and intense concentration.
- 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
- Skills in providing consultation to other professional and non-professional groups.
- Doctoral level knowledge of research methodology, research design and complex, multivariate data analysis as practiced within the clinical fields of psychology
- Knowledge of legislation in relation to the client group and mental health.
- Evidence of continuing professional development as recommended by the BPS (dependent on grade).
- Ability to teach and train others, using a variety of complex multi-media materials suitable for presentations within public, professional and academic settings.
- Ability to identify and employ mechanisms of clinical governance as appropriate, to support and maintain clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive material and challenging behaviour
- Commitment to provide support to children, their families/carers and linked professionals and maintain high levels of aspiration for the population referred to the service.
- Willingness to work flexibly when necessary.
- Commitment to working flexibly and collaboratively with team colleagues and to support innovative ways of working.
- To approach clients with empathy and adaptability and to be open to development of new approaches to work with clients.
Desirable
- Knowledge and skills in specialist psychological assessment and treatment of specific groups (e.g. looked after children, learning disabilities, neurodevelopmental disorders, adolescent mental health, trauma, anxiety and mood disorders).
- High level knowledge of the theory and practice of at least two specialised psychological therapies.
- Knowledge of legislation in relation to children and families and mental health and children's social care.
- Knowledge of application of therapeutic models to children who have a history of family trauma, loss and/or attachment difficulties
- Experience of working within a multicultural framework.
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.
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).
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.
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).
