Devon Partnership NHS Trust

Senior Assistant Psychologist

The closing date is 23 June 2025

Job summary

This is an exciting opportunity to join our new Adult Eating Disorder Intensive Home Treatment Team (AED-IHTT) and to join the established psychological team at The Haldon Inpatient Eating Disorder Service. The postholder will work across both services with a mix of face to face and online working. The post banding is subject to banding review process.

The AED-IHTT will work with people and their families in their home and online to support both early transitions out of inpatient admissions and to work intensively to prevent inpatient admissions. With a small caseload we will be working closely with the person and their family to offer a mix of individual, group and family sessions including meal support and multidisciplinary interventions. The team consists of experienced professionals in this field and is led by an Occupational Therapist who alongside the Physiotherapist, Clinical Psychologist, and Consultant Psychiatrist will support Assistant Practitioners to offer the therapeutic programme.

The Haldon is a 10 bed unit in Exeter offering a therapeutic programme for patients diagnosed with an Eating Disorder. The psychology team work closely with the wider multidisciplinary team and offer both groups, individual therapy, family sessions and individual support for example with exposure for anxiety sessions or developing personalised emotional and sensory regulation plans.

Main duties of the job

The main duties for the Senior Assistant Psychologist are (all under weekly clinical supervision):

Ensure outcome measures are completed before, during and after the AED-IHTT programme, analyse these and present to senior leadership. Support junior Assistant Psychologist with outcome measures for Haldon.
Participate in pre-admission work to the AED-IHTT around developing treatment ownership plans around expectations and boundaries.
Develop and review personalised emotional and sensory regulation plans with the person and their family.
Facilitate face to face on the Haldon and online psychoeducation groups for the AED-IHTT with junior Assistant Psychologist/Trainee Clinical Psychologists.
Offer individual sessions e.g. managing anxiety around specific foods, managing urges to exercise, using mindfulness etc.
Participate in and document team formulation sessions.
Participate in family sessions as co-facilitator with qualified psychologist.
Offer meal support and post meal support both on the Haldon and online with the AED-IHTT.
Develop and co-facilitate training and ongoing skills development for less experienced staff.

About us

About Devon Partnership Trust

We provide mental health, learning disability and neurodiversity services, as well as a range of specialist & secure services for the wider south west region & nationally. We are passionate about promoting good mental health & wellbeing. We strive to use the expertise & resources within our organisation, and through our partnerships, to deliver high quality services that are safe & focused on people's recovery.

We are committed to developing a culture of coproduction, involving patients, families & carers in everything we do

Our values

We not only recruit based on qualifications & experience - we recruit individuals who possess & demonstrate the behaviours which underpin our Trusts core values. These include such attributes as showing a commitment to quality of care, improving lives of others, giving respect, dignity & compassion. We can bring those values to life in our everyday tasks by giving a smile; making time for people; challenging ourselves & others, & being open to new ideas.

We are committed to being an inclusive employer & applications are encouraged & welcomed from all sections of the community, regardless of any protected characteristics as governed by the Equality Act 2010. Part time & flexible working applications will be considered & supported, where possible. We particularly encourage applicants with lived experience of mental health conditions, neurodiversity or learning disabilities. We are a Disability Confident Leader.

Date posted

18 June 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 5

Salary

£29,970 to £36,483 a year

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time, Flexible working

Reference number

C9369-25-0457

Job locations

Wonford House

Dryden Road

Exeter

Devon

EX2 5AF

Job description

Job responsibilities

The principal purpose of this job is to support the team to improve the psychological health and wellbeing of people and their families who are being supported by the Adult Eating Disorder Intensive Home Treatment Team (IHTT) and The Haldon Inpatient Eating Disorder Service. The IHTT is a new service which aims to increase support to individuals by wrapping around the care provision provided by their Community Eating Disorder Team to promote recovery from an Eating Disorder.

This will be achieved in this post through undertaking the following areas of responsibility, all under psychological clinical supervision (and additional other discipline supervision as appropriate e.g. Occupation Therapy):

1. Contributing to psychological assessment and formulation within the Eating Disorder IHTT and The Haldon, ensuring interventions are formulation based, with clear goals and outcomes are measured.

2. Developing and delivering individual, family or group interventions as appropriate. This includes working autonomously, under supervision, with individuals, families or groups offering low level psychological interventions and supporting their nutritional intake. This involves both travel around rural Devon to patients homes and use of virtual platforms for online work.

3. Working with the psychology team to develop and deliver the multidisciplinary therapeutic programme within the Eating Disorder IHTT programme which will involve travel around Devon and use of virtual platforms for online sessions. Under clinical supervision, working with the multidisciplinary team on The Haldon to develop and deliver the therapeutic programme.

4. Working with the Professional Lead to undertake service audit and research activities to support the Haldon and Eating Disorder IHTT Senior Leadership Teams.

5. Supporting clinical staff to improve the quality and efficiency of reporting on Clinician Rated Outcome Measures, Patient Rated Outcome Measures, Patient Rated Experience Measures and Family/carers Rated Experience Measures within the The Haldon Eating Disorder Service and Eating Disorder IHTT programme.

6. The post holder will receive regular professional and psychological clinical supervision in accordance with Trust policy and with Professional Practice Guidelines set out by HCPC and the British Psychological Society.

7. The post holder will support and provide guidance to other assistant psychologists, Trainee Clinical Psychologists and other clinical staff as required within the team.

8. To work independently within a defined managed and occupational context. The post holder will work within professional guidelines and DPT procedures and protocols.

9. The post holder will be supported by qualified practitioner psychologists, including Clinical Psychologists and by senior colleagues within the specialism. The post holder will be expected to make good use of the expertise of others within the service to further develop their skills.

Duties and Responsibilities

Communication and Working Relationships

Multidisciplinary team colleagues: To work closely with colleagues in the multi-professional service on a day to day basis ensuring there is high quality communication and co-ordinated interventions. To provide support & guidance in the application of psychological principles and techniques, and to foster reflective practice.
Health & social care staff: To communicate with a wide range of health and social care staff in both hospital and community settings, communicating in a skilled and sensitive manner to manage complex and sensitive information. To provide support & guidance in the application of psychological principles and techniques, and to foster reflective practice.
Patients, family and carers: To communicate in a skilled and sensitive manner with patients and family/carers who may be highly distressed and may have communication needs.
Senior managers & professional staff: To maintain and build good working relationships with senior professional staff and managers in Eating Disorder Services and in DPT, to foster a positive approach to the integrated mental health and wellbeing service and to enable effective negotiation.

Planning and Organisation

To plan and prioritise own workload with support from line management, balancing the demands of patient care, support and guidance of carers and professionals, and service research and development activities.
To provide psychology knowledge to the multi-professional planning, development and marketing of mental health and wellbeing services.
Responsibility for Judgement and Analysis
In a supervised context, to undertake audit and research activities within the Haldon Eating Disorder service and Eating Disorder Intensive Home Treatment Team; to evaluate and disseminate the findings.

Responsibility for Patient/Client Care, Treatment and Therapy

Assessment & intervention: Under supervision to undertake assessments and contribute to individual, family or group psychological interventions as appropriate. Under supervision to contribute to the multidisciplinary team therapeutic programme on the Haldon. Under supervision to develop and deliver the multidisciplinary therapeutic programme for the IHTT which involves travel around Devon and use of online platforms for virtual interventions.
Consultation & guidance: To provide valuable feedback to individual clinicians and leadership team concerning therapeutic outcomes. To provide advice, guidance and consultation on psychological aspects of patient care to colleagues, other service providers, patients, supporters and families.

Analytical and Judgemental Skills

To be able to integrate complex clinical data and make clinical evaluation and formulations decisions.

Policy, Service, Research, Innovation and Improvement

Policy and service: To follow policy guidance in own role and to comment on proposed policy changes and service developments.

Responsibility for Finance, Equipment and Other Resources

To be responsible for the safe keeping of equipment under own use.

Responsibility for Supervision, Leadership & Management

To participate in regular clinical supervision and regular line management supervision. To participate in regular reflective practice.

Responsibility for Information Resources and Administrative Duties

To maintain accurate records, compliant with Trust Practice Standards.
To be involved with management and storage of outcome data.
To be responsible for using an email account to generate, monitor, and respond to the e-mail traffic by which the Trust conducts much of its internal communication.

Responsibility for Research and Development

To undertake service-relevant outcome development work
To support project work including specific areas of audit, research or service evaluation

Freedom to Act

The post holder is accountable for their own professional actions, acting within Trust policies and procedures and Professional Practice Guidelines
In a supervised context, to work within clinical professional guidelines and exercise responsibility for the governance of practice.

Job description

Job responsibilities

1. Contributing to psychological assessment and formulation within the Eating Disorder IHTT and The Haldon, ensuring interventions are formulation based, with clear goals and outcomes are measured.

4. Working with the Professional Lead to undertake service audit and research activities to support the Haldon and Eating Disorder IHTT Senior Leadership Teams.

7. The post holder will support and provide guidance to other assistant psychologists, Trainee Clinical Psychologists and other clinical staff as required within the team.

8. To work independently within a defined managed and occupational context. The post holder will work within professional guidelines and DPT procedures and protocols.

Duties and Responsibilities

Communication and Working Relationships

Multidisciplinary team colleagues: To work closely with colleagues in the multi-professional service on a day to day basis ensuring there is high quality communication and co-ordinated interventions. To provide support & guidance in the application of psychological principles and techniques, and to foster reflective practice.
Health & social care staff: To communicate with a wide range of health and social care staff in both hospital and community settings, communicating in a skilled and sensitive manner to manage complex and sensitive information. To provide support & guidance in the application of psychological principles and techniques, and to foster reflective practice.
Patients, family and carers: To communicate in a skilled and sensitive manner with patients and family/carers who may be highly distressed and may have communication needs.
Senior managers & professional staff: To maintain and build good working relationships with senior professional staff and managers in Eating Disorder Services and in DPT, to foster a positive approach to the integrated mental health and wellbeing service and to enable effective negotiation.

Planning and Organisation

To plan and prioritise own workload with support from line management, balancing the demands of patient care, support and guidance of carers and professionals, and service research and development activities.
To provide psychology knowledge to the multi-professional planning, development and marketing of mental health and wellbeing services.
Responsibility for Judgement and Analysis
In a supervised context, to undertake audit and research activities within the Haldon Eating Disorder service and Eating Disorder Intensive Home Treatment Team; to evaluate and disseminate the findings.

Responsibility for Patient/Client Care, Treatment and Therapy

Assessment & intervention: Under supervision to undertake assessments and contribute to individual, family or group psychological interventions as appropriate. Under supervision to contribute to the multidisciplinary team therapeutic programme on the Haldon. Under supervision to develop and deliver the multidisciplinary therapeutic programme for the IHTT which involves travel around Devon and use of online platforms for virtual interventions.
Consultation & guidance: To provide valuable feedback to individual clinicians and leadership team concerning therapeutic outcomes. To provide advice, guidance and consultation on psychological aspects of patient care to colleagues, other service providers, patients, supporters and families.

Analytical and Judgemental Skills

To be able to integrate complex clinical data and make clinical evaluation and formulations decisions.

Policy, Service, Research, Innovation and Improvement

Policy and service: To follow policy guidance in own role and to comment on proposed policy changes and service developments.

Responsibility for Finance, Equipment and Other Resources

To be responsible for the safe keeping of equipment under own use.

Responsibility for Supervision, Leadership & Management

To participate in regular clinical supervision and regular line management supervision. To participate in regular reflective practice.

Responsibility for Information Resources and Administrative Duties

To maintain accurate records, compliant with Trust Practice Standards.
To be involved with management and storage of outcome data.
To be responsible for using an email account to generate, monitor, and respond to the e-mail traffic by which the Trust conducts much of its internal communication.

Responsibility for Research and Development

To undertake service-relevant outcome development work
To support project work including specific areas of audit, research or service evaluation

Freedom to Act

The post holder is accountable for their own professional actions, acting within Trust policies and procedures and Professional Practice Guidelines
In a supervised context, to work within clinical professional guidelines and exercise responsibility for the governance of practice.

Person Specification

Skills and abilities

Essential

Excellent verbal, nonverbal skills for both in person and online/telephone as well as excellent written communication skills.
IT Skills including excellent knowledge and use of Microsoft software, completion of electronic patient records and creating digital resources and presentations.
Ability to work as a member of a multidisciplinary clinical team, using excellent communication skills, developing the teams psychological mindedness, knowledge and reflective practice skills.
Ability to integrate complex clinical data to support making highly skilled clinical evaluations and decisions within mental health settings.
Organisational, planning and time management skills to be able to complete complex projects, make clinical prioritisation decisions and ensure job tasks are completed in a timely manner.
Ability to work under pressure and cope with deadlines within a clinical setting context e.g. completing clinical tasks and documentation within working hours.
Ability to sit for long periods to conduct lengthy assessments/interventions.
Ability to drive and access to own vehicle or means to travel around Devon to patients home including to rural areas where there are no transport links.
An Enhanced DBS Check will be required for this role.
Ability to work independently under clinical supervision and within defined occupational procedures, using initiative yet communicating and working with multidisciplinary team members.
Ability to tolerate ambiguity and maintain own morale and motivation in challenging service delivery contexts, including lone working but under clinical supervision.

Knowledge

Desirable

Further post graduate training/experience in research and evaluation methods

Qualifications

Essential

BA or BSc in Psychology recognised by the British Psychological Society meaning the applicant is eligible for Graduate Basis for Recognition by the BPS.

Experience

Essential

Experience of Assistant Psychologist role working under clinical supervision by a practitioner psychologist e.g. Clinical Psychologist in secondary care adult mental health services.
Experience of multidisciplinary working within a clinical mental health setting.

Desirable

Experience of conducting specialist psychological research and audit of services under clinical supervision by a practitioner psychologist.
Experience, and/or training in diversity awareness and social inequality.
Experience of working clinically within inpatient settings.
Experience of clinically working with people and their families/carers who are diagnosed with an Eating Disorder.

Person Specification

Skills and abilities

Essential

Excellent verbal, nonverbal skills for both in person and online/telephone as well as excellent written communication skills.
IT Skills including excellent knowledge and use of Microsoft software, completion of electronic patient records and creating digital resources and presentations.
Ability to work as a member of a multidisciplinary clinical team, using excellent communication skills, developing the teams psychological mindedness, knowledge and reflective practice skills.
Ability to integrate complex clinical data to support making highly skilled clinical evaluations and decisions within mental health settings.
Organisational, planning and time management skills to be able to complete complex projects, make clinical prioritisation decisions and ensure job tasks are completed in a timely manner.
Ability to work under pressure and cope with deadlines within a clinical setting context e.g. completing clinical tasks and documentation within working hours.
Ability to sit for long periods to conduct lengthy assessments/interventions.
Ability to drive and access to own vehicle or means to travel around Devon to patients home including to rural areas where there are no transport links.
An Enhanced DBS Check will be required for this role.
Ability to work independently under clinical supervision and within defined occupational procedures, using initiative yet communicating and working with multidisciplinary team members.
Ability to tolerate ambiguity and maintain own morale and motivation in challenging service delivery contexts, including lone working but under clinical supervision.

Knowledge

Desirable

Further post graduate training/experience in research and evaluation methods

Qualifications

Essential

BA or BSc in Psychology recognised by the British Psychological Society meaning the applicant is eligible for Graduate Basis for Recognition by the BPS.

Experience

Essential

Experience of Assistant Psychologist role working under clinical supervision by a practitioner psychologist e.g. Clinical Psychologist in secondary care adult mental health services.
Experience of multidisciplinary working within a clinical mental health setting.

Desirable

Experience of conducting specialist psychological research and audit of services under clinical supervision by a practitioner psychologist.
Experience, and/or training in diversity awareness and social inequality.
Experience of working clinically within inpatient settings.
Experience of clinically working with people and their families/carers who are diagnosed with an Eating Disorder.

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.