We are looking for an assistant psychologist to work in Mental Health Treatment Requirement (MHTR) element of Community Sentence Treatment Requirements in Durham and Tees Valley. The MHTR is one of the twelve community sentencing options available to magistrates and judges. Introduced in 2005, the MHTR provides a mechanism to ensure that certain offenders with mental health problems who are given Community Orders and/or Suspended Sentence Orders are able to access appropriate treatment. This service is to provide the primary care element of the MHTR. The aims and objectives of the provision of Primary Care MHTR are to:

• Reduce offending/reoffending by improving the health and social outcomes
• Provide alternatives to short custodial sentences
• Improve health outcomes
• Provide accessible service which enable engagement
• Strive for early sentencing, or as advised by the court
• To provide rapid access to appropriate and effective assessment and interventions
• Delivery services which meet the needs of individuals
• To provide evidence bases psychological interventions
• To be clinically led MHTR interventions, The main focus of the role will be to provide assessment and subsequent intervention for up to 12 sessions. Primarily the model adopted will be cognitive behaviour therapy based to address primary care mental health needs such as anxiety and depression.
You will be led by a psychologist who operationally and clinically leads the service. You will work alongside two higher assistant psychologists as well as partner organisations such as probation, the courts and other healthcare providers to ensure the aims and objectives of the service are met. There will be weekly supervision for the post holder and there are other supervision forums and support in place for learning and development. The role covers the courts in Durham and Teesside. There is a considerable amount of travel required in the post.

We offer a wide range of professional development opportunities and training and encourage individuals to further develop their own clinical skills and experience. We also have a large research agenda within the Forensic Service and encourage individuals to pursue this.