Tees Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust

Highly Specialist Clinical Psychologist

The closing date is 05 November 2025

Job summary

This vacancy is for a 12 month post covering maternity leave.

A fantastic opportunity has arisen for a dynamic and motivated Clinical Psychologist to join Durham Children and Young Peoples Service in-house therapeutic team - The Full Circle, based in Annfield Plain, County Durham.

The Full Circle's focus is to support children and young people who have experienced developmental trauma due to experiences of neglect and abuse. The team works in close partnership with children looked after, children in need, residential, fostering and adoption services and has close links with partnership agencies including Education and the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services within Durham.The post holder will have theopportunity to develop boththeir clinical and leadership skills and be an integral member of a strong leadership team. The Full Circle team is committed to providing a trauma informed approach and supporting wider children and young people services to understand and respond to children's trauma in the most helpful way.

Main duties of the job

The post involves offering clinical support and guidance to the team which consists of therapeutic social workers, a clinical nurse specialist and an existing consultant clinical psychologist. It also includes consultation and training to social workers and other professionals working across CYPS along with support to foster carers, parents and residential services. The post involves working with children complex needs requiring collaboration and partnership working with a range of systems. Part of this role will be to support Durham County Council's growing residential services and working in innovative and creative ways to support the most complex young people in Durham's care.

About us

The Full Circle are proud of their Investing in Children Membership Award(TM) status, which recognises and celebrates examples of imaginative and inclusive practice with children and young people.

Ofsted have also recognised how valuable Full Circle Support is"The therapeutic service provided by Full Circle is invaluable. Using evidence based research, the service is making a real difference to children who have been traumatised by adverse childhood experiences, as well as supporting their carers." (September 2019). At their more recent inspection, Ofsted said of children, young people and families, "They receive tailored and highly effective support with their emotional needs from the specialist therapeutic Full Circle team. Foster carers and adopters are well supported by social workers and Full Circle in the transition and continuing care of children placed with them." (May 2022)

Details

Date posted

29 October 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 8a

Salary

£55,690 to £62,682 a year per annum

Contract

Fixed term

Duration

12 months

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

346-DDC-051-25-A

Job locations

Full Circle

Morrison Road

Annfield Plain

DH9 7XW


Job description

Job responsibilities

The post holder will provide a range of roles and responsibilities as detailed within the job description. This will include the delivery of highly specialist psychological assessment, formulation and interventions to children and their carers with complex needs through direct clinical work, offering clinical supervision and multiagency consultation, staff training alongside leading on service development and evaluation.

Candidates should be significantly experienced clinicians with excellent interdisciplinary working skills and interested in developing and delivering an innovative service. Experience in the field of community child and adolescent mental health including with children who are looked after is essential. Leadership skills and behaviours are integral to the recruitment process.

Please refer to the attached job description and person specification for further detailed information to ensure that you meet the role criteria before applying.

For more information on the role please contact in the first instance, Dr Alison Foster, Consultant Clinical Psychologist - alison.foster@durham.gov.uk

Job description

Job responsibilities

The post holder will provide a range of roles and responsibilities as detailed within the job description. This will include the delivery of highly specialist psychological assessment, formulation and interventions to children and their carers with complex needs through direct clinical work, offering clinical supervision and multiagency consultation, staff training alongside leading on service development and evaluation.

Candidates should be significantly experienced clinicians with excellent interdisciplinary working skills and interested in developing and delivering an innovative service. Experience in the field of community child and adolescent mental health including with children who are looked after is essential. Leadership skills and behaviours are integral to the recruitment process.

Please refer to the attached job description and person specification for further detailed information to ensure that you meet the role criteria before applying.

For more information on the role please contact in the first instance, Dr Alison Foster, Consultant Clinical Psychologist - alison.foster@durham.gov.uk

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

  • Post-graduate training (doctoral level equivalent) in clinical / counselling / forensic psychology (or its equivalent prior to 1996) as accredited by the BPS.
  • Post doctoral training in one or more additional specialised areas of psychological practice
  • HCPC registration as a Practitioner Psychologist
  • Trained in clinical supervision and the supervision of doctoral trainees
  • Trained in care co-ordination
  • Evidence of continuing professional development

Desirable

  • Registration with BPS

Experience

Essential

  • Working as a qualified applied psychologist within the designated service including a wide variety of client groups, across the whole life course and a range of clinical severity across a range of care settings.
  • Exercising full clinical responsibility for clients' psychological care as a care coordinator within the context of a multidisciplinary team.
  • Teaching, training and clinical supervision and field supervisor for doctoral theses.
  • Quality and service improvement and evaluation.

Skills

Essential

  • Communicate highly complex and highly sensitive information effectively, to a wide range of people
  • Provide effective teaching, training and clinical supervision for the multidisciplinary team.
  • Work effectively as part of a multidisciplinary team and undertake care co-ordination/lead practitioner responsibilities
  • Utilise psychometric tests competently
  • Undertake complex multiagency working and liaise with multiple systems
  • Identify, provide and promote appropriate interventions / means of support for carers and staff exposed to highly distressing situations and challenging behaviours.
Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

  • Post-graduate training (doctoral level equivalent) in clinical / counselling / forensic psychology (or its equivalent prior to 1996) as accredited by the BPS.
  • Post doctoral training in one or more additional specialised areas of psychological practice
  • HCPC registration as a Practitioner Psychologist
  • Trained in clinical supervision and the supervision of doctoral trainees
  • Trained in care co-ordination
  • Evidence of continuing professional development

Desirable

  • Registration with BPS

Experience

Essential

  • Working as a qualified applied psychologist within the designated service including a wide variety of client groups, across the whole life course and a range of clinical severity across a range of care settings.
  • Exercising full clinical responsibility for clients' psychological care as a care coordinator within the context of a multidisciplinary team.
  • Teaching, training and clinical supervision and field supervisor for doctoral theses.
  • Quality and service improvement and evaluation.

Skills

Essential

  • Communicate highly complex and highly sensitive information effectively, to a wide range of people
  • Provide effective teaching, training and clinical supervision for the multidisciplinary team.
  • Work effectively as part of a multidisciplinary team and undertake care co-ordination/lead practitioner responsibilities
  • Utilise psychometric tests competently
  • Undertake complex multiagency working and liaise with multiple systems
  • Identify, provide and promote appropriate interventions / means of support for carers and staff exposed to highly distressing situations and challenging behaviours.

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

Tees Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Full Circle

Morrison Road

Annfield Plain

DH9 7XW


Employer's website

https://www.tewv.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)

Employer details

Employer name

Tees Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Full Circle

Morrison Road

Annfield Plain

DH9 7XW


Employer's website

https://www.tewv.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)

Employer contact details

For questions about the job, contact:

Consultant Clinical Psychologist

Dr Alison Foster

alison.foster@durham.gov.uk

03000264735

Details

Date posted

29 October 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 8a

Salary

£55,690 to £62,682 a year per annum

Contract

Fixed term

Duration

12 months

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

346-DDC-051-25-A

Job locations

Full Circle

Morrison Road

Annfield Plain

DH9 7XW


Supporting documents

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