Job summary
With the support of the Children's Directorate Management Team, the post holder will provide professional leadership and strategic direction to support and promote the effective deployment of the Paediatric Psychological Therapies workforce. As an active member of the Directorate Management team the post holder will provide visible, accessible, professional and clinical leadership within the directorate and at corporate levels supporting local, Trust and Group aims. The post holder will support the systematic provision of a high-quality, specialist service to clients of the clinical service which they manage, acting as professional lead across all sectors of care.
The post-holder will work autonomously within professional guidelines and exercise responsibility for the systematic governance of psychological practice within the service, ensuring systems are in place to effectively support the clinical and professional supervision of all psychologists and psychological therapists within the service for which the post holder has designated professional responsibility. This includes clear systems for effective recruitment, professional appraisal, and the identification of CPD needs across the service.
The post holder will act as a highly specialist resource to the wider professional community and to propose and implement policy and service development changes relating to paediatric psychological therapies across the organisation.
Main duties of the job
For main duties of the role please see attached job description and person specification (JD &PS) document.
About us
St George's, Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals and Health Group cares for a population of four million people in South West London and North East Surrey.Our sites include St George's Hospital, one of 11 major trauma centres in the UK and the largest healthcare provider and major teaching hospital in the area; St Helier Hospital, home to the South West Thames Renal and Transplantation Unit and Queen Mary's Hospital for Children; and Epsom Hospital, home to the South West London Elective Orthopaedic Centre (SWLEOC).
After years of collaboration, our two Trusts became a hospitals group in 2021. While remaining as two separate Trusts, being a hospitals group will help us to collaborate more closely on research, and the development, education, and training of our 17,000-strong workforce.
Job description
Job responsibilities
For a detailed job description and person specification please see the attached documentation (JD&PS).
Job description
Job responsibilities
For a detailed job description and person specification please see the attached documentation (JD&PS).
Person Specification
Training and Qualifications
Essential
- Post-graduate doctoral level training in clinical psychology or equivalent post graduate qualification. For Clinical Psychologists this should be as accredited by the BPS, including specifically models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology.
- Evidence of continuing professional development
- Formal Training in supervision of psychologists/ psychological therapists
Desirable
- Post-doctoral training in one or more additional specialised areas of psychological practice
- Formal training in management/leadership
- Quality Improvement Training
Experience
Essential
- Substantial experience of working as a qualified clinical psychologist/psychological therapist in a paediatric setting.
- Experience of working with a wide variety of client groups, across the whole life course and presenting with the full range of clinical severity across the full range of care settings including outpatient, community, primary care, in-patient and residential care settings including maintaining a high degree of professionalism in the face of highly emotive and distressing problems, verbal abuse and the threat of physical abuse.
- Experience of professional management of qualified and pre-qualified clinical psychologists/psychological therapists.
- Experience of managing & leading a range of psychological therapies services.
- Experience of providing professional, clinical and operational supervision to Psychologists and Psychological Therapists.
- Experience of multi-professional management of teams or services within the designated specialty
- Experience of exercising full clinical responsibility for clients' psychological care and treatment, both as a professionally qualified care co-ordinator and also within the context of a multi-disciplinary care plan.
Desirable
- Experience of representing the profession in local policy fora.
- Experience of the application of psychology in different cultural contexts.
- Experience of budget management for a range of services and funding streams.
Knowledge and Skills
Essential
- Doctoral level knowledge of clinical psychology including highly developed knowledge of lifespan developmental psychology, models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, and two or more distinct psychological therapies.
- Skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment intervention and management frequently requiring sustained and intense concentration.
- A high level ability to communicate effectively at both a written and oral level complex, highly technical and clinically sensitive information to clients, their families, carers and a wide range of lay and professional persons within and outside the NHS.
- Skills in providing consultation to other professional and non-professional groups.
- Doctoral level knowledge of research design and methodology, including complex multivariate data analysis as practiced within the field of clinical psychology.
- Additional relevant clinical and managerial knowledge and skills acquired through formal training, long or short courses, formal supervision (individual and/or group), structured self-study or experience (or a combination of these)
- Ability to support and co-ordinate the work of Psychologists and Psychological Therapists colleagues including administrative staff
- Ability to lead and implement continuous service improvement and to embed new organisational models, services and pathways
- Knowledge of legislation and its implications for both clinical practice and professional management in relation to the client group and mental health.
Other
Essential
- Ability to identify provide and promote appropriate means of support to carers and staff exposed to highly distressing situations and severely challenging behaviours.
- Ability to identify, and employ, as appropriate, clinical governance mechanisms for the support and maintenance of clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive material and challenging behaviour.
- Record of having published in peer reviewed academic journals and/or books.
- Record of attracting funding for Research in the field of Paediatric Psychology
Person Specification
Training and Qualifications
Essential
- Post-graduate doctoral level training in clinical psychology or equivalent post graduate qualification. For Clinical Psychologists this should be as accredited by the BPS, including specifically models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology.
- Evidence of continuing professional development
- Formal Training in supervision of psychologists/ psychological therapists
Desirable
- Post-doctoral training in one or more additional specialised areas of psychological practice
- Formal training in management/leadership
- Quality Improvement Training
Experience
Essential
- Substantial experience of working as a qualified clinical psychologist/psychological therapist in a paediatric setting.
- Experience of working with a wide variety of client groups, across the whole life course and presenting with the full range of clinical severity across the full range of care settings including outpatient, community, primary care, in-patient and residential care settings including maintaining a high degree of professionalism in the face of highly emotive and distressing problems, verbal abuse and the threat of physical abuse.
- Experience of professional management of qualified and pre-qualified clinical psychologists/psychological therapists.
- Experience of managing & leading a range of psychological therapies services.
- Experience of providing professional, clinical and operational supervision to Psychologists and Psychological Therapists.
- Experience of multi-professional management of teams or services within the designated specialty
- Experience of exercising full clinical responsibility for clients' psychological care and treatment, both as a professionally qualified care co-ordinator and also within the context of a multi-disciplinary care plan.
Desirable
- Experience of representing the profession in local policy fora.
- Experience of the application of psychology in different cultural contexts.
- Experience of budget management for a range of services and funding streams.
Knowledge and Skills
Essential
- Doctoral level knowledge of clinical psychology including highly developed knowledge of lifespan developmental psychology, models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, and two or more distinct psychological therapies.
- Skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment intervention and management frequently requiring sustained and intense concentration.
- A high level ability to communicate effectively at both a written and oral level complex, highly technical and clinically sensitive information to clients, their families, carers and a wide range of lay and professional persons within and outside the NHS.
- Skills in providing consultation to other professional and non-professional groups.
- Doctoral level knowledge of research design and methodology, including complex multivariate data analysis as practiced within the field of clinical psychology.
- Additional relevant clinical and managerial knowledge and skills acquired through formal training, long or short courses, formal supervision (individual and/or group), structured self-study or experience (or a combination of these)
- Ability to support and co-ordinate the work of Psychologists and Psychological Therapists colleagues including administrative staff
- Ability to lead and implement continuous service improvement and to embed new organisational models, services and pathways
- Knowledge of legislation and its implications for both clinical practice and professional management in relation to the client group and mental health.
Other
Essential
- Ability to identify provide and promote appropriate means of support to carers and staff exposed to highly distressing situations and severely challenging behaviours.
- Ability to identify, and employ, as appropriate, clinical governance mechanisms for the support and maintenance of clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive material and challenging behaviour.
- Record of having published in peer reviewed academic journals and/or books.
- Record of attracting funding for Research in the field of Paediatric Psychology
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).
