Job Description

Become part of a vibrant team of experienced clinicians and innovators in service improvement, recently winning a national award for their DBT skills groups and Positive Behaviour Support Plans.
Working in an Inpatient Children and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) can be an incredibly rewarding and challenging career path.
As a Clinical/Counselling Psychologist at EPUT, you will work with children and adolescents who are experiencing a wide range of mental health challenges, including emotion dysregulation, trauma, and psychosis. You provide assessment, formulation, and treatment in a collaborative setting with other mental health professionals, including psychiatrists, social workers, family therapists, art psychotherapists and nurses.
These Services offer short-term admission to young people with complex mental health needs. Both Poplar Ward and The St. Aubyn Centre are trauma, DBT and systemic informed services that work with young people and carers in collaborative ways to effect change. You will be joining a team that has a strong ethos of evidence-based practice and implements DBT, systemic and trauma-informed models across the service.
Main duties of the job
This post is suitable for:

• Experienced Applied Psychologists who will be appointed to an 8a position.
• Newly qualified Clinical Psychologist who will take on responsibilities based on ability and experience and be appointed to a band 7 position. A preceptorship plan will be put in place to support the post holder working toward band 8a.

Main Duties for this role include:

• Conduct comprehensive psychological assessments of children and adolescents to determine their mental health needs.
• Develop and implement individualised treatment plans tailored to each client's needs and challenges.
• Work autonomously and collaboratively with clinicians in the multi-disciplinary team and with external professional networks.
• Educate families and caregivers about their child's mental health condition and provide support and guidance.
• Offer bespoke training packages and reflective practice spaces to inpatient colleagues.

About us
Applications for Job Share are positively welcomed, and if you plan to relocate to Essex, we will support you with up to 8K relocation package, calculated pro rata.
We welcome you for who you are and what you do and encourage you to bring your authentic self to work every day. We welcome applications from all backgrounds as we highly value the talents of people with different views and experiences as together, we can do our best work, support one another and care for our patients.
Starting at EPUT is just the beginning, and we want you to thrive and grow. We seek motivated staff who share our Trust values of We Care, We Learn, and We Empower. In return, we offer a range of benefits, including flexible working, seasonal ticket loans, long annual leave entitlement, a cycle-to-work scheme, excellent training, personal and professional development opportunities and one of the best pension schemes in the country with generous employer contributions.
Join us, and you'll do your life's best work - and make a difference to others.
Details
Date posted
01 July 2025
Pay scheme
Agenda for change
Band
Band 7
Salary
46,148 to 60,504 a year per annum
Contract
Permanent
Working pattern
Part-time, Flexible working
Reference number
364-A-9130
Job locations
St. Aubyn Centre
Colchester
CO4 5HG
Job description
Job responsibilities
Alongside the clinical roles outlined in the advert, the post also has a range of supervisory, consultation, teaching/ training, auditing/research and staff support roles dependent on interest and experience.
Such as:

• To assess patient systems where there are highly complex problems. Using advanced skills of analysis and interpretation, make appropriate formulations and interventions.This may include working with families under highly emotive conditions, e.g. family breakdown, sexual abuse, self-harm.
• Provide generic and specialist psychology assessments and devise highly specialised programmes of care and services to improve outcomes for young people and their families
• Formulate and implement plans for the formal psychological treatment and/or management of Young Peoples mental health problems and practice within the context of evidence-based approaches and the overall therapeutic approach/philosophy of the service.
• To be responsible for providing expert specialist psychological consultation, support and advice to professionals both within and external to the unit. This will include liaison and working with professional networks involved with complex issues such as child protection, self-harm, violence and trauma.
• Provide mental health advice and support for staff as required.
• Lead therapy groups and promote understanding of group dynamics using a psychological perspective.
• Organise and lead psychology teaching and training in the Unit in line with service and training needs.
• Collaborate with other multidisciplinary professionals across the system to ensure comprehensive care for each patient.
• Provide professional and clinical supervision and training placements to psychology trainees, including preparing placement reports in line with training organisation, HCPC and BPS codes of ethics and good practice.
• To exercise full responsibility and autonomy for one's own professional practice, working within professional ethics and Trust policies

Job description
Job responsibilities
Alongside the clinical roles outlined in the advert, the post also has a range of supervisory, consultation, teaching/ training, auditing/research and staff support roles dependent on interest and experience.
Such as:

• To assess patient systems where there are highly complex problems. Using advanced skills of analysis and interpretation, make appropriate formulations and interventions.This may include working with families under highly emotive conditions, e.g. family breakdown, sexual abuse, self-harm.
• Provide generic and specialist psychology assessments and devise highly specialised programmes of care and services to improve outcomes for young people and their families
• Formulate and implement plans for the formal psychological treatment and/or management of Young Peoples mental health problems and practice within the context of evidence-based approaches and the overall therapeutic approach/philosophy of the service.
• To be responsible for providing expert specialist psychological consultation, support and advice to professionals both within and external to the unit. This will include liaison and working with professional networks involved with complex issues such as child protection, self-harm, violence and trauma.
• Provide mental health advice and support for staff as required.
• Lead therapy groups and promote understanding of group dynamics using a psychological perspective.
• Organise and lead psychology teaching and training in the Unit in line with service and training needs.
• Collaborate with other multidisciplinary professionals across the system to ensure comprehensive care for each patient.
• Provide professional and clinical supervision and training placements to psychology trainees, including preparing placement reports in line with training organisation, HCPC and BPS codes of ethics and good practice.
• To exercise full responsibility and autonomy for one's own professional practice, working within professional ethics and Trust policies

Person Specification
Knowledge
Essential

• Doctoral or equivalent level knowledge of research methodology, research design and complex, multivariate data analysis as practiced within the clinical fields of psychology.
• Knowledge of legislation, and its implications in relation to the client group and mental health.
• Well-developed knowledge of theory and practice of highly specialised psychological therapies and assessment methodologies.

Desirable

• Formal training in supervision of psychological therapists (band 8a only)
• Well-developed knowledge of the theory and practice of specialised psychological therapies in specific difficult to treat groups (e.g. personality disorder, dual diagnoses, people with additional disabilities etc.).

Education / Qualifications
Essential

• Doctoral level training in clinical psychology, including two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology as accredited by the appropriate professional accreditation body.
• Pre-qualification training and qualifications in research methodology, staff training and/or other fields of applied psychology.
• HCPC (and/or UKCP) registered, and eligible for registration with a professional clinical body (BPS).
• Evidence of continuing professional development as recommended by the HPCP and UKCP/BPS by completion of CPD log demonstrating a minimum of 40 hours per year

Person Specification
Knowledge
Essential

• Doctoral or equivalent level knowledge of research methodology, research design and complex, multivariate data analysis as practiced within the clinical fields of psychology.
• Knowledge of legislation, and its implications in relation to the client group and mental health.
• Well-developed knowledge of theory and practice of highly specialised psychological therapies and assessment methodologies.

Desirable

• Formal training in supervision of psychological therapists (band 8a only)
• Well-developed knowledge of the theory and practice of specialised psychological therapies in specific difficult to treat groups (e.g. personality disorder, dual diagnoses, people with additional disabilities etc.).

Education / Qualifications
Essential

• Doctoral level training in clinical psychology, including two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology as accredited by the appropriate professional accreditation body.
• Pre-qualification training and qualifications in research methodology, staff training and/or other fields of applied psychology.
• HCPC (and/or UKCP) registered, and eligible for registration with a professional clinical body (BPS).
• Evidence of continuing professional development as recommended by the HPCP and UKCP/BPS by completion of CPD log demonstrating a minimum of 40 hours per year