Job summary
Are you a qualified and experienced Cognitive Behavioural psychological therapist?
Would you like to be part of the expansion of Mental Health Support Teams in West Sussex as we move towards 100% coverage of children and young people by 2029?
Are you passionate about supporting children and young people?
Do you enjoy supervising, training, and mentoring others?
West Sussex County Councils Mental Health Support Team, known locally as Thought-Full, have a new opportunity to join us as a Senior Psychological Therapist.
As a Senior Psychological Therapist, you will be an accountable lead clinician within a multidisciplinary team, providing clinical leadership alongside two other Senior Psychological Therapists.
You will supervise Senior Mental Health Practitioners, advising and supporting the team through consultation, supervision, training, and education. This includes leadership and management of psychological practitioners such as low intensity practitioners and trainee and qualified psychological therapists.
Main duties of the job
The key responsibilities and tasks for a Senior Psychological Therapist include, but are not limited to:
Clinical
- Evaluating and making decisions about treatment options, using analytical and judgement skills for clinical management.
- Contributing to a psychologically based framework of understanding and care, using theoretical and therapeutic models.
- Promoting user and carer involvement in care planning.
Management, Leadership, Recruitment, Policy and Service Development
- Working within professional guidelines, advising on policy, and contributing to service development.
Research and Service Evaluation
- Researching, evaluating, and using evidence-based practice to undertake project management and development of service provision.
Teaching, Training, and Supervision
- Clinically supervising trainee and qualified psychological therapists.
- Developing skills, delivering training, and ensuring trainees acquire the necessary skills to fulfil their roles.
General duties
- Continued professional registration, complying with Continuous Professional Development.
- Contributing to the development of an open learning culture.
- Record keeping and maintaining up to date knowledge of legislation, national and local polices, procedures, HR policies, therapeutic modality, and mental health & wellbeing.
For more information on the Key Skills, Qualifications and/or Experience required, please refer to the Job Description attached.
About us
Our Mental Health Support Team is made up of over 70 professionals, and we are continuing to increase our services to support the growing needs of our communities in West Sussex. You will be working within our Mental Health Support Team (MHST) on exciting new initiatives and an important strand of the Governments 2017 Green Paper Transforming Children and Young Peoples Mental Health Provision, and as part of the Government ambition to achieve 100% coverage of MHSTs by 2029/30.
We fulfil 3 core functions:
- Delivering evidence-based interventions in education settings (primary and secondary schools and colleges) for mild to moderate mental health issues.
- Supporting the senior mental health lead in each education setting to introduce or develop their whole school or college approach.
- Giving timely advice to school and college staff, and liaising with external specialist services, to help children and young people to get the right support and stay in education.
For more information, please visit ourInstagram WS Thoughtfull pageand ourWSCC Services for Education website.
Job description
Job responsibilities
The Mental Health Support Teams sit between the getting advice and getting help aspects of the Thrive model. The post holder is responsible for supporting the development of the teams and embedding its services within educational settings. The Senior Psychological Therapist will work as an autonomous and accountable lead clinician within a multidisciplinary team. This involves the supervision of the senior mental health practitioners and providing clinical leadership within the service alongside two other Senior Psychological Therapists.
The post holder will also support psychological practice within the team through consultation, supervision, formulation and training and education and will contribute to systematic clinical governance. They will utilise research skills for audit, service development and research. The postholder will need to have a strong knowledge and experience in delivering Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) in both low and high intensity delivery.
Job description
Job responsibilities
The Mental Health Support Teams sit between the getting advice and getting help aspects of the Thrive model. The post holder is responsible for supporting the development of the teams and embedding its services within educational settings. The Senior Psychological Therapist will work as an autonomous and accountable lead clinician within a multidisciplinary team. This involves the supervision of the senior mental health practitioners and providing clinical leadership within the service alongside two other Senior Psychological Therapists.
The post holder will also support psychological practice within the team through consultation, supervision, formulation and training and education and will contribute to systematic clinical governance. They will utilise research skills for audit, service development and research. The postholder will need to have a strong knowledge and experience in delivering Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) in both low and high intensity delivery.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Recognised accredited post graduate level training in a psychological therapy.
- A recognised post graduate qualification in Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapy (or equivalent).
- Accreditation with the British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy (BABCP).
- A recognised qualification in one of the core mental health professions recognised by BABCP, e.g. psychiatric nursing, clinical psychology, medicine, social work, occupational therapy or counselling AND current registration with the core professional body, OR evidence of having achieved the Knowledge Skills and Attitudes (KSA) route to BABCP accreditation.
- Evidence of relevant continuing professional development.
- Evidence of post-qualification training in clinical supervision.
- Substantial experience in mental health after completing core professional qualification.
Experience
Essential
- Substantial experience as a qualified psychological therapist delivering specialist psychological therapy (assessment, formulation and treatment) with children, young people and families.
- Experience in the use of a range of methods of psychological assessment, formulation and management.
- Experience of the application of psychological therapy in different cultural contexts and experience of working within a multicultural framework.
- Experience of offering psychological therapy within the context of multidisciplinary care.
- Experience of offering teaching and training, using a variety of multi-media approaches, suitable for a range of professional and non-professional audiences.
- Experience of conducting formal research, audit or service evaluation in a healthcare setting.
- Knowledge of guidance and legislation in relation to the client group.
Key Skills
Essential
- Skills and experience in the clinical supervision of others using a clear and theoretically informed approach.
- Ability to communicate effectively verbally and in writing, presenting information that is accessible, engaging, and accurate including the communication of clinically sensitive, and sometimes highly technical, information to children and young people, their families and other professionals.
- Skills in providing consultation to other professional and non-professional groups.
- Ability to plan and implement projects.
- Skills in self-management including time management, ability to maintain sustained concentration and managing a high number of competing work demands whilst taking care of own wellbeing.
- Ability to identity 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.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Recognised accredited post graduate level training in a psychological therapy.
- A recognised post graduate qualification in Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapy (or equivalent).
- Accreditation with the British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy (BABCP).
- A recognised qualification in one of the core mental health professions recognised by BABCP, e.g. psychiatric nursing, clinical psychology, medicine, social work, occupational therapy or counselling AND current registration with the core professional body, OR evidence of having achieved the Knowledge Skills and Attitudes (KSA) route to BABCP accreditation.
- Evidence of relevant continuing professional development.
- Evidence of post-qualification training in clinical supervision.
- Substantial experience in mental health after completing core professional qualification.
Experience
Essential
- Substantial experience as a qualified psychological therapist delivering specialist psychological therapy (assessment, formulation and treatment) with children, young people and families.
- Experience in the use of a range of methods of psychological assessment, formulation and management.
- Experience of the application of psychological therapy in different cultural contexts and experience of working within a multicultural framework.
- Experience of offering psychological therapy within the context of multidisciplinary care.
- Experience of offering teaching and training, using a variety of multi-media approaches, suitable for a range of professional and non-professional audiences.
- Experience of conducting formal research, audit or service evaluation in a healthcare setting.
- Knowledge of guidance and legislation in relation to the client group.
Key Skills
Essential
- Skills and experience in the clinical supervision of others using a clear and theoretically informed approach.
- Ability to communicate effectively verbally and in writing, presenting information that is accessible, engaging, and accurate including the communication of clinically sensitive, and sometimes highly technical, information to children and young people, their families and other professionals.
- Skills in providing consultation to other professional and non-professional groups.
- Ability to plan and implement projects.
- Skills in self-management including time management, ability to maintain sustained concentration and managing a high number of competing work demands whilst taking care of own wellbeing.
- Ability to identity 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.
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).
