Clinical / Counselling Psychologist or Psychotherapist

Are you a dedicated Clinical or Counselling Psychologist or Psychotherapist? If so, come and join us at Berkshire Healthcare, our CQC rated 'Outstanding' Trust. We have an incredible opportunity to make a genuine difference in the lives of adults in Berkshire who are struggling with the challenges of Emotionally Unstable Personality Disorder (EUPD) as part of our IMPACTT team. Join us and you will be welcomed by our friendly team and well supported to let your skills and expertise shine.

You'll be at the forefront of providing evidence-based psychological therapy, with a primary focus on Mentalisation-Based Treatment (MBT). You will be joining a MBT team that trains and supports therapists to work in a way that is adherent to the therapy model.

This role offers the perfect avenue to polish your expertise and expand your horizons, with an expected opportunity to complete MBT Practitioner level training leading to MBT Practitioner accreditation.

Staff wellbeing is paramount, and we deliver our therapies on a foundation of compassion. We are one of Berkshire Healthcare's compassionate teams, having participated in compassionate team training.

You will be based at Erlegh House, University of Reading and the Athena Centre in Slough, and will need to travel to other locations across the Trust as per service demands. The role will be carried out face-to-face and remotely using Microsoft Teams.

Main duties of the job

• You will deliver all aspects of Mentalisation-Based Treatment (MBT): individual therapy and groups sessions, and actively participating in MBT supervision.
• You will facilitate specialised psychological assessments, employing your expertise to facilitate these assessments effectively.
• Assessment and continuous monitoring of risks will be a crucial part of your role. Collaborating closely with colleagues, you'll implement strategies to manage risks effectively and ensure the safety and appropriateness of interventions.
• Engaging in regular supervision sessions will be integral to your professional growth, as well as providing supervision for others.
• Your active participation in IMPACTT meetings will contribute significantly to the collective efforts and collaborative approach within the team.
• Building strong connections and collaborating closely with key professionals will be pivotal in ensuring seamless and effective support for individuals under our care.

About us

Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust is a specialist mental health and community health services trust. Rated 'outstanding' by the CQC, we're committed to providing the best possible care to people across Berkshire. As an employer, we're committed to offering an inclusive and compassionate environment where our people share in a sense of belonging and are supported to flourish.

Our values at Berkshire Healthcare are:

• Caring for and about you is our top priority
• Committed to providing good quality, safe services
• Working Together with you to develop innovative solutions

Your wellbeing is important to us. Some of the benefits of working for us include:

• Flexible working options to support work-life balance
• 27 days' annual leave rising with service + opportunity to buy and sell
• Generous NHS pension scheme
• Excellent learning and career development opportunities
• 'Cycle to Work' and car leasing scheme including electric vehicles
• Access to a range of wellbeing tools and services
• Discounts at hundreds of popular retailers and restaurants
• Staff networks for race, diversity, disabilities, the environment and armed forces community to support equality
• Generous maternity, paternity, adoption and special leave
• Free parking across Trust sites

Job description

Job responsibilities

The must haves for this role:

• Doctoral level training in clinical or counselling psychology OR UKCP recognised individual psychotherapy training or group analytic training, with extensive NHS experience.
• Registered and accredited with Health Care Professional Council (HCPC) or UKCP.
• You must have a passion for working with people with a diagnosis of EUPD and have trained in MBT and have experience of delivering MBT.
• You must have experience of providing supervision and consultation.

For further information about the role, please see attached job description and person specification.

We strongly encourage you to review how you meet the criteria in the person specification and write about this point-by-point in your supporting statement for the best chance of being shortlisted.

We're committed to equal opportunities and welcome applications from all sections of the community. Our commitment to inclusion is reflected in our accreditations: Race Equality Matters Silver Trailblazer, Neurodiversity in Business Corporate Member, Disability Confident Leader, Carer Confident Level 2, and the Armed Forces Covenant Gold Award. Reasonable adjustments will be provided to candidates as needed.

Person Specification

Education/Qualifications/Training

Essential

• For Clinical/Counselling Psychologist: Post graduate doctoral qualification in clinical or counselling psychology (or equivalent for those who trained prior to 1996 or for those who completed their training overseas) which provides eligibility for Chartered Membership of British Psychological Society (BPS)
• Registered and accredited with the Health Care Professional Council (HCPC) as a Practitioner Psychologist
• For Psychotherapist: Recognised master's level qualification in psychodynamic psychotherapy or equivalent and registered with UKCP as a psychotherapist or with the British Psychoanalytic Council (BPC)
• For all: Additional training/ accreditations (willingness to undertake or working towards these) to reflect post qualification specialism (e.g. Health Psychology, Neuropsychology, BABCP, UKCP, ACAT, EMDR-UK, BPS).
• Trained in MBT and have experience of delivering MBT Or
• Trained in DBT with British Isles DBT and experience in delivering all components of DBT (i.e. individual therapy, skills group, telephone coaching and attending consult).

Continuous Professional Development

Essential

• Evidence of post-qualification training and expert knowledge in multiple psychological models and therapeutic approaches relevant to the service area. Having a robust awareness of the current evidence-base and new developments within the area of specialism.
• Training in clinical supervision.

Experience

Essential

• Demonstratable post qualification experience working as a qualified psychologist/psychotherapist in area of specialism.
• Experience of working in evidence-based ways with services users (and their carers/families) presenting with the full range of clinical severity across a range of settings. Also having the ability to maintain a high degree of professionalism in the face of emotive and distressing problems, verbal abuse and the threat of physical abuse.
• Experience of dealing with highly distressing or emotional circumstances, such as serious mental illness, child and sexual abuse, exploitation and complex family dynamics.
• Experience of delivering interventions across different modalities (e.g. individual, group and systemic-based approaches).
• Experience of working effectively in a multi-disciplinary team and multi-agency environments.
• Experience of providing specialist advice and consultation to MDT and multi-agency colleagues to support the psychological care of service users.
• Experience of supervision and/or mentoring and ability to offer effective supervision to junior staff.
• Experience of developing and delivering teaching to a range of staff groups.
• Experience of service development and carrying out clinical audit, evaluative research and applying the findings.
• Experience of service evaluation and implementing change from a national and local health or social care change agenda that impacts across services and professions.
• Experience of working with and addressing issues of diversity, including experience of working with diversity, multiculturalism, and equality of access to service.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

Essential

• Demonstrable knowledge, skills and abilities in the practice of highly specialised psychological/neuropsychological or psychotherapeutic assessment, formulation and intervention, relevant to the service area.
• Knowledge of evidence base, research, policy and legislation in relation to the service area.
• Ability to identify and employ mechanisms of clinical governance as appropriate, to support and maintain clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive material and challenging behaviour.
• Well-developed verbal and written communication skills enabling the sensitive communication of complex, technical and/or sensitive information to multiple stakeholders.
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to support, influence and engage with clinicians, stakeholders and service users to create change and improvement.
• The ability and skills to act as an advocate for the service, to engage and foster good professional relationships with all health professionals in promoting the good integration of this service with the wider health care system.
• Advanced IT skills and the ability to navigate various systems and software packages (such as RiO, Outlook, databases, MS Office/Teams, One Consultation and the Internet).

Additional Requirements

Essential

• Ability to travel across sites in Berkshire and beyond as required.
• Able to work flexibly as required and to travel independently between locations to fulfil the requirements and duties of the position.

Employer details

Employer name

Berkshire Healthcare Foundation Trust

Address

University of Reading
Earley Gate
Reading
RG6 6BZ

Any attachments will be accessible after you click to apply.

371-MHS523-B