Senior Autism Assessor for Children and Young People

Job description

Job responsibilities

About Paloma

Please apply here - https://job boards.eu.greenhouse.io/palomahealthuk/jobs/4577188101We aim to provide families with high-quality NHS neurodevelopmental assessments within 4 weeks of GP referral.

Our children and young peoples autism assessments went live in November 2024, and we are launching childrens ADHD assessments and treatment in the summer of 2025.

We were founded as we are deeply annoyed that families are waiting 2-10 years for NHS childrens autism and ADHD assessments, and this crisis has recently been highlighted by the Childrens Commissioner for England:https://www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/blog/childrens-commissioner-warns-of-invisible-crisis-as-delays-and-inequalities-laid-bare-among-children-with-neurodevelopmental-conditions/

How is Paloma different?

• We are clinically led, and Care Quality Commission (CQC) registered, with a friendly and approachable team
• We have built our own software platform to:
• Give our patients a more consumer-like experience of healthcare
• Free our assessors from admin to focus on patient care
• Our strong culture, including transparency, a sense of community, and supporting staff career development
• The experience of our founders (Dr Mark Jenkins & Darshak Shah), who have previously built tech-enabled NHS obesity and ophthalmology services. Combined, their previous companies have treated over 1 million NHS patients in the last 15 years!
• Being backed by leading healthcare investors (Triple Point Ventures and Heal Capital) allows us to move fast

The Opportunity

Paloma Health has developed a new gold-standard autism assessment pathway and our own Patient Record software system, which allows us to offer:

• An exceptional service and timely assessments, as well as clear strengths and needs-based outcomes, regardless of whether an autism diagnosis is made.
• High assessor role satisfaction by improving the experience of delivering assessments. For example, we are building an AI tool to streamline diagnostic report writing, which we know is a pressure of the role.

You will be a Senior Assessor within our multidisciplinary assessment team, delivering:

• Remote parental interviews and observations (via video calls)
• Peer MDT diagnostic decision-making, with the support of the senior clinical MDT where required
• Tech-enabled outcome report writing
• Outcome calls with parents and families (via video call)
• Quality Assurance reviews of our Autism Assessor team, under the direction of our Quality Assurance Specialist and Clinical Lead.

From a cultural perspective, you are:

• Comfortable working in a dynamic environment and embracing change
• Excited about using new technologies in your role
• Always looking for ways to improve our staff and patient experience

We commit to supporting your development and well-being, including:

• The Paloma Clinical Academy programme supports all clinicians at all stages of their careers to develop (e.g. to our Senior Assessor role) and cross-skill (e.g. into ADHD when we launch that)
• 1 protected day per month for assessor team training, Continuing Professional Development (CPD), clinical supervision and reflection.
• Quarterly development conversations with clear career progression pathways
• Clear weekly timetables that support a role mix across appointments, administration, development, and team building.

Responsibilities:

• Conduct high-quality autism assessments.
• Undertake Quality Assurance reviews of our autism assessor team, under the direction of our Quality Assurance Specialist
• Act by our Safeguarding Policy, including conducting a risk assessment where necessary.
• Keep updated with mandatory training and your professional qualification requirements, including CPD.

Qualifications and experience:

Required:

• Registration as any one of the following:
• Psychologist, including clinical psychologist, counselling psychologist, and educational psychologist (HCPC)
• Occupational therapist (HCPC)
• Speech and language therapist (HCPC)
• Nurse, including mental health or learning disability nurse (NMC)
• Medical doctor (GMC)
• Social Worker (Social Work England)
• Assistant psychologist (BPS registered)
• At least 4 years experience in children and young people's autism diagnostic assessments with specific knowledge, including:
• A sound understanding of co-occurring conditions and differentials.
• Ability to present findings, including diagnostic formulation, concisely into a client-centred clinical report that includes strengths and needs profile.
• Demonstrated ability to Quality Assure Autism Assessors, including clinical notes, appointments and outcome reports
• Completion of a recognised ADOS-2 course
• Good time management skills, including caseload management
• High-quality parent and patient communication skills
• Enhanced DBS with barred list check (as you will be working with children)

Desirable:

• Formal training in autism developmental histories e.g. ADI-R
• Experience in conducting risk assessments within an autism assessment service
• Evidence of Safeguarding training (Level 3 and above)

Dont meet every requirement?

Studies have shown that women and people from ethnic minority groups are less likely to apply for jobs unless they meet every qualification. Paloma is dedicated to building a diverse and top-performing workplace, so if youre excited about this role but your past experience doesnt align with every qualification, we strongly encourage you to apply. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles!

Time commitment

Full-time employment is preferred, though we can also offer part-time.

Location

This is a fully remote role, though candidates must live within the UK.

We also have in-person roles at our clinic in Exeter. Please see the separate job advert for this.

Reporting to:Autism Service Team Manager

Why join Paloma?

You will be part of a mission-driven organisation transforming access to Autism Assessments in England. We offer:

• A strong and positive culture that prioritises staff well-being, transparency, and career development.
• Protected time and budget for team connection, learning, and community-building.
• Salary of £45,000-80,000 per year based on experience and clinical background
• Annual salary reviews, 5% employer pension, and company laptop.
• Share options in Paloma Health. We all benefit from our success!
• A unique leave benefits package includes 25 days of annual leave, your birthday off, and 10 days of paid sabbatical leave every three years.
• Access to NHS discounts, including the Blue Light Card (as we are an NHS provider)

Equality & Diversity

Paloma Health is an equal-opportunity employer committed to diversity and inclusion in the workplace and throughout the application process. We do not discriminate based on any protected characteristic.

Application process

Please apply via our website. We understand that applying for a new job takes a lot of work, and we value your time. We are looking forward to reading your application.

Join us and be part of our journey to revolutionise access to Autism Assessments in England!

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• Registration as any one of the following:
• Psychologist, including clinical psychologist, counselling psychologist, and educational psychologist (HCPC)
• Occupational therapist (HCPC)
• Speech and language therapist (HCPC)
• Nurse, including mental health or learning disability nurse (NMC)
• Medical doctor (GMC)
• Social Worker (Social Work England)
• Assistant psychologist (BPS registered)
• At least 4 years experience in children and young people's autism diagnostic assessments with specific knowledge, including:
• A sound understanding of co-occurring conditions and differentials.
• Ability to present findings, including diagnostic formulation, concisely into a client-centred clinical report that includes strengths and needs profile.
• Demonstrated ability to Quality Assure Autism Assessors, including clinical notes, appointments and outcome reports
• Completion of a recognised ADOS-2 course
• Good time management skills, including caseload management
• High-quality parent and patient communication skills
• Enhanced DBS with barred list check (as you will be working with children)

Desirable

• Desirable:
• Formal training in autism developmental histories e.g. ADI-R
• Experience in conducting risk assessments within an autism assessment service
• Evidence of Safeguarding training (Level 3 and above)

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).

Employer details

Employer name

Paloma Health

Address

The Typewriter Building

140 Borough High Street

London

Greater London

SE1 1LB

Employer's website

https://www.paloma.health/ (Opens in a new tab)