Principal Clinical / Counselling Psychologist

Band 8b Principal Clinical/Counselling Psychologist or Psychotherapist - Southwark Assertive Outreach and Rehabilitation Teams (AORT)
Lead Clinical/Counselling Psychologist for three AORT branches, including one Assertive Outreach Team and two Community Rehabilitation Teams.
The three branches provide enhanced support for people with a severe and enduring mental health problem, either due to their needs not being met within a traditional community team or because the service user has been placed within a block-funded rehabilitation placement within the borough. A range of psychological therapies are offered by the psychology and psychotherapy team within AORT and although NICE guidelines constitute the core offer (e.g., CBT for psychosis, Family Interventions for service users with a schizophrenia-spectrum diagnosis), flexibility, creativity and practice-based evidence is supported. This includes psychodynamic psychotherapy, narrative practices and Open Dialogue., The post holder will provide operational leadership to the psychology and psychotherapy team within AORT. In addition to operating as the lead for psychology and psychotherapy, the postholder will also hold a leadership and consultation role across the wider AORT multi-disciplinary teams.
They will provide highly specialist direct and indirect psychological input within all three AORT branches. Direct work will include individual, family/network and group work. Of particular note, is the current need within the service for directly providing and/or supervising the administration, interpretation and feeding back of cognitive assessments, which the postholder will lead on within the service.
Each AORT branch has team formulation meetings underpinned by the Power Threat Meaning Framework (PTMF), which is a key part of the strategy to embed trauma informed care within the teams. The postholder will be expected to support and lead on this ambition within AORT. To supplement individual supervision received from the interim psychosis pathway lead for psychology and psychotherapy, the postholder will join a monthly supervision group facilitated by Dr Lucy Johnstone (one of the PTMF authors) that has been commissioned until at least March 2025. They will also have the opportunity to take advantage of other supervision groups and/or special interest groups within the Southwark directorate and/or wider Trust.

Working for our organisation
South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust has a rich history, well-established community links and an international reputation. We deliver specialist services in the London boroughs of Croydon, Lambeth, Lewisham and Southwark, Bexley, Bromley, Greenwich, Wandsworth and Richmond.
We are committed to provide a high quality and specialist care to our service users and we are recognised for our care and treatment we provide. The Care Quality Commission already rates our services as 'good'.
We launched our five-year strategy, Aiming High; Changing Lives in 2021 together with Our Care Improvement System as our quality management system methodology to make a positive impact on patient care, outcomes and staff experience. By joining SLaM, all staff will get the opportunity to be part of this exciting improvement journey supported with learning and development to harness everyone's potential as change makers.
The Trust recognises the unique and valuable contribution that people with lived experience of mental illness can bring to a role. We therefore welcome applications from people with lived experience and consider them as an asset to the Trust., This role will be based within the Assertive Outreach and Rehabilitation Teams (AORT) in Southwark, which is part of our borough Complex Care Pathway. AORT is a multi-disciplinary team that has a commitment to deliver excellent and responsive assessment, treatment and rehabilitation for people with severe and enduring mental health problems, who often present with a level of co-existing complex needs, including substance misuse, significant risk, engagement and social exclusion and who at times may present with extremely challenging behaviours.
· To develop, co-ordinate and ensure the systematic provision of a specialist psychology and psychotherapy service to service users and carers within the Southwark Assertive Outreach and Rehabilitation Team (AORT), and personally provide highly specialist clinical input. This includes administering and supervising the administration of cognitive assessments.
· To lead on further embedding trauma-informed care and the Power Threat Meaning Framework within the service.
· To contribute to enabling other staff, service users and carers from diverse backgrounds to flourish by working to create a psychologically safe environment.
+ To provide clinical supervision and consultation as appropriate, functioning as a lead specialist in complex care.
+ To ensure that systems are in place and working effectively for the clinical and professional supervision and support of other psychologists and psychotherapists within AORT.
+ To undertake service evaluation, audit, research and policy development.
+ To work as an autonomous professional within BPS and HCPC guidelines and codes of conduct, and guided by principles and policies or procedures of the service, taking responsibility for interpreting policies within defined parameters.
+ To agree outcomes/results with clinical/professional lead and to decide how they are best achieved.
The Trust is committed to providing services which embrace diversity and that promote equality of opportunity. We are a Disability Confident Employer, we welcome applicants from all sections of the community and people of all protected characteristics. We provide reasonable adjustments for candidates with a disability and are committed to treating people fairly with compassion, respect and dignity and in promoting equality and human rights. We aim to put this commitment into practice by:
+ Embedding our commitment to tackling inequality, eliminating discrimination and harassment; promoting equality of opportunity and fostering good relations in our everyday practice
+ Ensuring that all our services and all staff understand and support our commitment
+ We believe that people who use our services, their carers and our staff, should be treated with compassion, respect and dignity
Please note:
+ That all applications for this post will need to be made online
+ That you read and understand the Job Description and Personal Specification attached to the role. Your Statement in Support should reflect the requirements specified as your application will be judged against these criteria
+ That the closing date listed is a guide only and that the vacancy may close earlier should sufficient number of applicants have been received. We advise that you submit your application as early as possible
+ That once you have submitted your application you agree to your application being transferred to a 3rd party e-recruitment system. All subsequent information regarding your application will be generated from apps.trac.jobs
+ That should you not have heard from us within three weeks from the closing date your application has not successful
+ That priority consideration for applications may be given to at-risk NHS employees
+ That should you be successful and appointed, you authorise South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust to confirm your previous NHS service via an Inter Authority Transfer (IAT) process
+ That we are a smoke-free Trust
SLaM is a Stonewall Diversity Champion , Stonewall is the largest Lesbian, Gay, Bi and Trans (LGBT) rights charity in Europe'

Band 8b
South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust has a rich history, well-established community links and an international reputation. We deliver specialist services in the London boroughs of Croydon, Lambeth, Lewisham and Southwark, Bexley, Bromley, Greenwich, Wandsworth and Richmond.
We are committed to provide a high quality and specialist care to our service users and we are recognised for our care and treatment we provide. The Care Quality Commission already rates our services as 'good'.
We launched our five-year strategy, Aiming High; Changing Lives in 2021 together with Our Care Improvement System as our quality management system methodology to make a positive impact on patient care, outcomes and staff experience. By joining SLaM, all staff will get the opportunity to be part of this exciting improvement journey supported with learning and development to harness everyone's potential as change makers.
The trust recognises the unique and valuable contribution that people with lived experience of mental illness can bring to a role. We therefore welcome applications from people with lived experience and consider them as an asset to the Trust.
Our Values
We take pride in providing specialist care to our service users where our Trust values and our promise to be caring, kind, polite, prompt, honest, listen and do what I say I'm going to do is at the heart of everything we do. When you join us, you'll be part of something special.
As a Trust we are happy to talk flexible working.