Norfolk & Suffolk Foundation NHS Trust

Clinical/Counselling Psychologist

The closing date is 19 October 2025

Job summary

The Suffolk Therapeutic fostering team provides a county wide therapeutic support service to Suffolk foster carers. Alongside you there is a Lead Clinical Psychologist who will offer clinical support and advice to the team, other professionals and to foster carers as well as developing and delivering therapeutic courses and training days. You can expect to be an integral part of this multi-agency team working with social workers, course trainers and facilitators, and other family support practitioners and contribute to the therapeutic relationship between carers, children, and professionals. The team are a busy, friendly, and highly supportive team with lots of creativity and passion in the work we do to support children and families.

Main duties of the job

Exciting and Unique opportunity to work alongside adults, social workers and children in care in a variety of ways! Do you have skills in working with systems, in considering models of developmental trauma, attachment and therapeutic parenting? Do you like a varied role in which you work as a team and contribute broadly across systems and organisations? We are looking for a passionate individual who loves to work creatively with children and their families and networks around them.

2 days per week you will join the Suffolk Therapeutic Fostering team (STF) of multi-professionals providing training and consultations to foster carers in Suffolk. You will contribute to this busy team by supporting and training foster carers and Social Workers in therapeutic parenting techniques and sharing insights from up to date literature on areas such as Developmental Trauma and early attachment difficulties, contributing to the prevention of placement breakdowns in Foster care. You will provide Clinical supervision to some of the STF team and be part of the group training service offer. It is preferred that one of the days is a Wednesday as this is the day the whole team come together at their base in Saxon House, Hadleigh Road industrial estate, Ipswich.

About us

Why work for us? We have challenges as a Trust, but we have ambitious aspirations, are pushing ahead with exciting transformation work and we need dedicated individuals to support us on our journey. We have strong, established professional networks coupled with an exceptional leadership team who will ensure you are truly cared for and cared about.

Here at NSFT we pride ourselves on being welcoming, talented, friendly and supportive. In addition to consolidating our NICE-recommended treatment offer, we also welcome innovative treatment approaches to delivering eating disorder care. We will support you to access relevant specialist training and contribute to treatment evaluation.

Recognising the value of our psychological workforce, you will be part of a psychology-led care group, which is currently offering a competitive recruitment incentive.

Benefits included with this role are:-

  • NHS pension
  • a comprehensive in house & external training programmes
  • career progression
  • starting annual leave of 27 days per annum increasing to 33 days pa based on length of service (plus paid bank holidays)
  • staff physio service
  • NHS discounts and many more.

Details

Date posted

07 October 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 8a

Salary

£55,690 to £62,682 a year gross per annum (pro rata)

Contract

Fixed term

Duration

12 months

Working pattern

Part-time

Reference number

246-ESU7455364

Job locations

Murrayside Youth and Community Centre

Nacton Road

Ipswich

IP3 9JL


Job description

Job responsibilities

The post holder will have experience of working with a range of complex and challenging behaviours exercising full clinical responsibility for psychological treatment.

You will be skills in use of complex methods of psychological assessment, intervention and management and possess well developed communication skills. You will be working closely with the already established psychological workforce in the service, as well as the senior leadership teams.

We would welcome informal visits or phone calls, please do not hesitate to contact to arrange!

For full details of your responsibilities, please see attached job description.

Job description

Job responsibilities

The post holder will have experience of working with a range of complex and challenging behaviours exercising full clinical responsibility for psychological treatment.

You will be skills in use of complex methods of psychological assessment, intervention and management and possess well developed communication skills. You will be working closely with the already established psychological workforce in the service, as well as the senior leadership teams.

We would welcome informal visits or phone calls, please do not hesitate to contact to arrange!

For full details of your responsibilities, please see attached job description.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

  • 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)
  • Ongoing further specialist training/accredited short courses

Desirable

  • Evidence of CPD in one or more additional specialised areas of psychological practice

Experience

Essential

  • oExperience of mental health practice with children, young people and families
  • oEvidence of continuing professional development
  • Experience of multi disciplinary working

Desirable

  • - Experience of working with care experienced children and young people
  • - Experience of assessing and managing risk with children and young people
  • - Experience of working within Social Care systems

Skills

Essential

  • Skilled in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment, intervention and management
  • Skills in training and supervision. Skills in creating and delivering presentations and training programmes
  • Skills in neuropsychological assessment.

Knowledge

Essential

  • Doctor level knowledge of research design and methodology, including complex multivariate data analysis
  • Knowledge of mental health legislation within specialist clinical context
  • Evidence of CPD as recommended by BPS

Desirable

  • Well-developed knowledge of theory and practice of specialised psychological intervention and assessment in specialist clinical service-user groups

desirable

Desirable

  • Experience of providing specific support intervention and strategy for staff
Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

  • 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)
  • Ongoing further specialist training/accredited short courses

Desirable

  • Evidence of CPD in one or more additional specialised areas of psychological practice

Experience

Essential

  • oExperience of mental health practice with children, young people and families
  • oEvidence of continuing professional development
  • Experience of multi disciplinary working

Desirable

  • - Experience of working with care experienced children and young people
  • - Experience of assessing and managing risk with children and young people
  • - Experience of working within Social Care systems

Skills

Essential

  • Skilled in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment, intervention and management
  • Skills in training and supervision. Skills in creating and delivering presentations and training programmes
  • Skills in neuropsychological assessment.

Knowledge

Essential

  • Doctor level knowledge of research design and methodology, including complex multivariate data analysis
  • Knowledge of mental health legislation within specialist clinical context
  • Evidence of CPD as recommended by BPS

Desirable

  • Well-developed knowledge of theory and practice of specialised psychological intervention and assessment in specialist clinical service-user groups

desirable

Desirable

  • Experience of providing specific support intervention and strategy for staff

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.

Certificate of Sponsorship

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.

Certificate of Sponsorship

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).

Employer details

Employer name

Norfolk & Suffolk Foundation NHS Trust

Address

Murrayside Youth and Community Centre

Nacton Road

Ipswich

IP3 9JL


Employer's website

https://www.nsft.nhs.uk/Pages/Home.aspx (Opens in a new tab)


Employer details

Employer name

Norfolk & Suffolk Foundation NHS Trust

Address

Murrayside Youth and Community Centre

Nacton Road

Ipswich

IP3 9JL


Employer's website

https://www.nsft.nhs.uk/Pages/Home.aspx (Opens in a new tab)


Employer contact details

For questions about the job, contact:

Principal Clinical Psychologist and Clinical Lead

Dr Jessica Austin

jessica.austin@nsft.nhs.uk

07785515626

Details

Date posted

07 October 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 8a

Salary

£55,690 to £62,682 a year gross per annum (pro rata)

Contract

Fixed term

Duration

12 months

Working pattern

Part-time

Reference number

246-ESU7455364

Job locations

Murrayside Youth and Community Centre

Nacton Road

Ipswich

IP3 9JL


Supporting documents

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