Clinical Psychologist

Job overview

We are looking for an enthusiastic and creative Clinical Psychologist with a passion for working with people with a learning disability to join our West and South Community Learning Disability Team. This is a large multi-disciplinary team committed to improving the health, well-being and lives of adults with a learning disability, and actively involving and advocating for people in their journey through services.

This role would suit a newly qualifying Clinical Psychologist who seeks to develop skills in collaborative multi-disciplinary working, working with complex systems, delivering adapted therapeutic interventions for adults with complex psychological problems, and contributing psychological and trauma-informed thinking into clinical pathways. An interest in developing skills and experience in trauma-informed positive behaviour support, psychological consultation and collaborative formulation would be beneficial.

Main duties of the job

As a Clinical Psychologist in the team, the postholder will lead on the development, delivery and evaluation of psychological and trauma informed assessment, formulation and intervention, including multi-factored assessment, direct therapy, consultation, and training. The postholder will work collaboratively with CLDT colleagues delivering a range of clinical pathways, including positive behaviour support, dementia, offending, risk and vulnerability.

The post holder will primarily be based in the West and South CLDT, but will be required to provide specific work into others parts of the Learning Disability Service depending on clinical demands, which would include undertaking psychological/ neuropsychological assessment of learning disability and working with colleagues in the Intensive Support Team, which works more intensely to reduce the risk of placement breakdown or hospital admission.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

A key aspect of the role will be supporting others to understand an individual’s presentation by drawing on knowledge of theoretical and therapeutic models and highly complex factors, and robust clinical assessment of historical and developmental processes. The post-holder will undertake a range of clinical, psychological, neuropsychological and psychometric assessments to develop multifactorial clinical formulations that inform the delivery of evidence based and effective interventions. The postholder will attend weekly clinical team meetings and make autonomous clinical decisions about the assessment, treatment and discharge of service users whose problems are managed by psychologically based care plans.

The postholder will be supported to develop supervisory skills and undertake supervision of assistant psychologists within the team.

We recruit people based on their values and qualifications (where required) and believe that their lived experience is an advantage, this means that together we are as diverse as the communities we care for. Simply put, when we employ caring people who act with integrity and have the right skills, we can give those with mental health challenges, learning disabilities and neurodiversity high-quality care and support to live fulfilling lives, and make our staff feel purposeful, happy and valued.

All our information is available in accessible formats. Please contact the Recruitment team [email protected]  Attached to this advert is our candidates guide to values-based recruitment and supporting guidance on how to make a successful application.

If you require a reasonable adjustment, please contact the Recruitment Team or see the attached candidate guide to reasonable adjustments.

We are committed to supporting the development and learning of our Clinical Psychologists and this role will afford a range of opportunities for enhancing professional knowledge and skills, working collaboratively with a supportive and psychologically informed team, and with the supervision and support of experienced Clinical Psychologists in this area of practice. We are aiming to create a positive and proactive learning environment for learning disability psychologists with the recruitment of assistant psychologists and the regular provision of trainee placements, thereby encouraging the development of supervisory skills.

The post also offers exciting opportunities for supporting service development and quality initiatives as the psychology team is undergoing some changes under the direction of the new Consultant Clinical Psychologist, who has significant experience leading psychological services for people with a learning disability and a passion for innovative and creative ways of working. This will be an exciting opportunity to help shape the design and delivery of psychology services for adults with a learning disability in Leeds.

As this is a community post, the post holder must hold a UK driving licence and have access to a vehicle for work purposes. Please reference this in your application

To find out more about the key responsibilities and the specific skills and experience you’ll need, look at the Job Description & Person Specification attachments under the Supporting Documents heading.

So that you’re even more equipped to make an informed decision to apply to us, you’ll need to take time to read the Candidate Guide to Values Based Recruitment. This document provides you with information to help you apply.