Trainee Psychological Therapist Basildon and Brentwood

This is a new, exciting training role within the SMI Psychological Therapies Service (SMI PTS) in Basildon and Brentwood. The successful candidate will undertake a 2 year postgraduate diploma in cognitive behavioural therapy for psychosis and bipolar. The post-holder will work clinically within the SMI PTS providing psychological interventions whilst undertaking the PGDip CBT for psychosis and bipolar affective disorder training programme. The intensive training programme will equip the post-holder to provide CBT treatment to clients with a range of complex problems for which CBT is demonstrated to be clinically effective, while developing a specialism in treating psychosis and bipolar. The post-holder will mostly work in the service (a hybrid of remote and face to face) for 4 days a week whilst attending the training at University College of London (UCL) for 1 day a week., We are committed to being equitable and supporting the wellbeing of all employees.

• We are a Mindful Employer
• Our status as a Disability Confident Leader dedicated to ensuring that all candidates are treated fairly throughout the recruitment process. All disabled candidates that meet the minimum essential criteria will be invited to interview.
• Our Ethnicity Matters Scheme where all applicants for senior roles (£40,000+) from a minority ethnic group that meet the essential criteria will be invited for interview.
• Our Gender Matters Scheme where all women applicants for senior roles (£60,000+) that meet the essential criteria will be invited to interview.
• Our sign up to the Armed Forces Covenant.
• Our status as a Menopause Friendly Committed employer.
• Our sign up to the Employer with Heart Charter.
• Our commitment to meet the standards outlined in the NHS Equality Delivery System (EDS). Workforce Race Equality Standard (WRES) and Workforce Disability Equality Standard (WDES).
• Access to health and wellbeing services for colleagues including Mental Health Advocates and an Employee Assistance Programme.
• An embedded "speaking up" culture facilitated by Freedom to Speak Up Guardians.
• Treating transgender individuals with dignity and recognising the potential complications that may arise when taking references. We encourage applicants to contact HR at hr@vhg.co.uk to discuss or amend how we manage reference requests.
Should you wish to discuss any adjustment or assistance you need in the application or interview process please contact recruitment@vhg.co.uk and we will facilitate. Please note, all applicants must be legally entitled to accept and perform work in the UK and all positions are subject to a DBS check.

Essential:
• A minimum of a 2:2 in a UK undergraduate degree (or equivalent overseas qualification).
• A core mental health practitioner qualification or evidence of meeting the Knowledge Skills and Attitude (KSA) requirements of the BABCP.
• Demonstrable experience of working in the mental health sector with the ability of managing own caseload.
• Ability to evaluate and apply theory to practice as learned on the training programme.
• Ability to communicate to a high professional standard, including writing clear clinical notes, reports, and letters to referrers.
• Demonstrable understanding of a range of mental health difficulties and they may present in SMI PTS.
• Ability to develop good therapeutic relationships with clients and demonstrate an understanding for the need to apply evidence based psychological interventions.
• Able to attend 70 to 80 days training at UCL over the 2 years of the programme, delivery of which will by a hybrid of remote and face-to-face teaching.
• An awareness of and commitment to supporting and facilitating diversity and inclusion.
• Willingness to travel, which may include overnight stays on occasion, as and when required.
Desirable:
• Experience of working within community-based mental health services.
• Experience of working with patients living with mental health difficulties typical to SMI PTS, including severe depression, severe anxiety disorders, personality disorder, bipolar affective disorder, and psychosis.
• Worked in a service that required working to agreed targets, including demonstrating clinical outcomes., Disability Confident
About Disability Confident A Disability Confident employer will generally offer an interview to any applicant that declares they have a disability and meets the minimum criteria for the job as defined by the employer. It is important to note that in certain recruitment situations such as high-volume, seasonal and high-peak times, the employer may wish to limit the overall numbers of interviews offered to both disabled people and non-disabled people. For more details please go to Disability Confident.

Vita Health Group celebrates life. Improving lives physically and mentally drives everything we do. Now part of Spire Healthcare Group plc we have been providing physical and mental health services for over 30 years. We work in partnership with the NHS, are engaged by insurers and some of the UK's largest corporate companies to support their workforce and provide a full range of physiotherapy services to private customers. To achieve our mission of Making People Better, we recognise the importance of investing in our staff. We are an award-winning employer recently recognised nationally as "Best Company to Work for" at the Health and Wellbeing Awards 2024. This is also recognised by current employees - our most recent Employee Survey results showed the top 5 reasons to work here as being:
• Supportive team and management
• Positive work environment
• Wellbeing and mental health support
• Trust and respect
• Autonomy and flexibility
  
  We are keen to progress your skills and enable career development and provide regular Continued Professional Development opportunities including secondments, management training, a mentoring scheme, apprenticeships and regular events and webinars across a range of clinical disciplines. In addition to a competitive salary, we also offer the opportunity of a flexible work life balance and a comprehensive benefits package which you can view here: https://www.vitahealthgroup.co.uk/join-us/careers