Higher Assistant Psychologist

Tees Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Higher Assistant Psychologist, to join the Darlington Crisis Resolution and Home Treatment Team (CRHTT) in the Darlington and Durham locality within the AMH Durham Tees Valley Urgent Care Group.

The successful candidate will have a degree in Psychology and must possess excellent communication skills. Previous experience of working as an Assistant Psychologist and delivering psychologically informed interventions to people experiencing mental health difficulties is essential.

The nature of the role means that driving is essential. The post is offered on a permanent and full-time basis. The post holder will be based within the Darlington Crisis Service but may be required to cover into the Durham Crisis Service depending on service need.

Main duties of the job

You will join a welcoming multi-disciplinary team in the provision of compassionate, trauma informed care to individuals in need of Crisis services (as an alternative to hospital admission) and will work within home-based treatment. The post offers applicants an opportunity for direct and indirect work. The post holder will work under the supervision of an experienced Qualified Applied Psychologist in supporting the co-creation of MDT formulations and further assessment where needed to inform care planning. Delivery of brief psychologically informed interventions and further development of safety plans will also be part of the role. There may also be opportunities for audit and service evaluation as well as protected time for professional development.

Job responsibilities

Please see the job description and person specification which outlines the main duties and responsibilities of the role.

Person Specification

Qualifications

• Degree in psychology
• Eligible for graduate membership of the British Psychological Society
• Numeracy, Literacy and ITQ level 2 (or equivalent)
• Post-graduate training in a relevant area of professional psychology, mental health practice and/or research design and analysis.

Experience

• Experience working as an Assistant Psychologist (Band 4)
• Experience working with people with mental ill health difficulties (paid or voluntary)
• Experience using statistical software packages e.g. SPSS
• Experience of working within a team
• Experience of service development
• Experience of applied research
• Experience of working within the NHS

Knowledge

• An understanding of the needs and difficulties of people with mental ill health or learning disabilities.
• An understanding of the application of psychology to health care.
• Understanding of confidentiality.
• Knowledge of the British Psychological Society Code of Conduct.
• Knowledge of psychological wellbeing interventions and their use.

Skills

• Ability to communicate information (verbal and written) effectively
• Ability to analyse data and present information in a meaningful way
• Ability to organise own workload and work autonomously

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.