Job summary
12 Month Fixed Term Contract
The Beacon are looking for an experienced Assistant Psychologist with the right skills to complement our small multidisciplinary team.
The Beacon provides intensive day treatment for young people aged between 13 and 18 years old who have been diagnosed with an eating disorder.
You will work within our newly commissioned day service and network closely with our existing community teams helping families and young people to thrive. As a new service there will be lots of opportunity for contributing to the new model of care for eating disorders in the region.
We will provide Supervision, reflective practice, training, and opportunities for professional development. We are passionate about improving standards and service user/carer experiences.
If you have experienced working with Children and Families, are keen to use data to improve outcomes and develop services we want to hear from you.
This role will initially be based at our Ida Darwin site in Fulbourn before relocating to our Brookside Family Consultation Clinic in Cambridge in summer 2026.
Main duties of the job
The main duties of the post are to support the psychological work with the service including the delivery of MET, supporting group work (including family day), assisting with surveys and collating data when needed, under direct supervision of the clinical psychologist as well as working independently, according to a plan agreed with the qualified psychologists and within the overall framework of the team's policies and procedures.
Additionally, this role will involve assistance in clinically related administration, assessment and conduct of audits, teaching and project work.
The ideal candidate would demonstrate excellent communication and relationship building skills, have experience of supporting young people with mental health difficulties, and have an ability to work flexibly and autonomously. This job requires a mix of skills and behaviours both academic (e.g. academic training; knowledge of the evidence base on demographic and clinical factors regarding mental health) and inter-personal, particularly with regards to engagement (e.g. ability to engage with a diverse population; ability to communicate with the other professionals).
About us
Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust is a health and social care organisation dedicated to providing high-quality care with compassion to improve the health and wellbeing of the people we care for, as well as supporting andempowering them to lead a fulfilling life.
Our clinical teams deliver many NHS services, not only via inpatient and primary care settings, but also within the community. These services include children's, adult and older people's mental health, forensic and specialist mental health, learning disabilities, primary care and liaison psychiatry, substance misuse, social care, research and development.
To achieve our goal, we look to recruit high-calibre candidates who share our vision and values. As an equal opportunities employer, we encourage applications from all sectors of the community, particularly from under-represented groups including people with long term conditions and members of our ethnic minority and LGBTQ+ communities.
Please be advised we reserve the right to close adverts earlier than the closing date should we receive sufficient applications.
Regrettably, we cannot offer sponsorship for all our job roles. If you apply for a role that we cannot offer sponsorship for, unfortunately, your application form will be rejected from the process.
For further information on CPFT, please visit our website at www.cpft.nhs.uk
For further information on CPFT, please visit our website at www.cpft.nhs.uk
Job description
Job responsibilities
Please refer to the attached job description and person specification for full details of responsibilities
1. To support the clinical psychology work on the unit and to deliver, under supervision of the clinical psychologist, psychological interventions such as MET, basic CBT, exposure therapy and psychoeducation.2. To support with clinically related administration.3. To complete protocol-based data collection procedures with parents/ patients/referrers, to administer/collect self-report measures, rating scales, direct and indirect structured observations and semi-structured interviews with clients, family members and others involved in the patients care. To then support the analysis and reporting of this information.4. To assist in the development of a psychologically based framework of understanding and care to the benefit of all clients of the service, across all settings where care takes place. 5. To attend and contribute to appropriate multi-disciplinary meetings.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Please refer to the attached job description and person specification for full details of responsibilities
1. To support the clinical psychology work on the unit and to deliver, under supervision of the clinical psychologist, psychological interventions such as MET, basic CBT, exposure therapy and psychoeducation.2. To support with clinically related administration.3. To complete protocol-based data collection procedures with parents/ patients/referrers, to administer/collect self-report measures, rating scales, direct and indirect structured observations and semi-structured interviews with clients, family members and others involved in the patients care. To then support the analysis and reporting of this information.4. To assist in the development of a psychologically based framework of understanding and care to the benefit of all clients of the service, across all settings where care takes place. 5. To attend and contribute to appropriate multi-disciplinary meetings.
Person Specification
Education/Qualifications
Essential
- Upper second class honours degree or higher in psychology
Desirable
- Further post-graduate training in relevant areas of professional psychology, mental health practice and/or research design and analysis
Experience
Essential
- Experience of working with young people and families who have mental health difficulties.
- Experience of working with adolescents with eating disorders
Desirable
- Experience of assisting in the production of audits or service evaluation projects.
Knowledge & Skills
Essential
- High level communication skills (written and verbal) including an ability to communicate and work in settings in which the atmosphere may be highly emotive
- Understanding of needs and difficulties of children and young people with mental health challenges
Desirable
- Awareness of child protection issues and other relevant professional guidelines which inform these
- Demonstrate an understanding of the need to use evidence-based psychological therapies.
Personal Qualities
Essential
- An ability to self-reflect to improve own personal development and practice
Person Specification
Education/Qualifications
Essential
- Upper second class honours degree or higher in psychology
Desirable
- Further post-graduate training in relevant areas of professional psychology, mental health practice and/or research design and analysis
Experience
Essential
- Experience of working with young people and families who have mental health difficulties.
- Experience of working with adolescents with eating disorders
Desirable
- Experience of assisting in the production of audits or service evaluation projects.
Knowledge & Skills
Essential
- High level communication skills (written and verbal) including an ability to communicate and work in settings in which the atmosphere may be highly emotive
- Understanding of needs and difficulties of children and young people with mental health challenges
Desirable
- Awareness of child protection issues and other relevant professional guidelines which inform these
- Demonstrate an understanding of the need to use evidence-based psychological therapies.
Personal Qualities
Essential
- An ability to self-reflect to improve own personal development and practice
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).
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).
