Clinical/Counselling Psychologist

Job details

• Job reference: 250730
• Salary: Band 8A (£65,125 - £70,303)
• Job closing date: 22/06/2026
• Job Type: Other Therapeutic
• Location: Borders General Hospital
• Employment type: Permanent
• Hours Per Week: 0.4
• Job posted date: 08/06/2026
• Employer (NHS Board): NHS Borders
• Department: Psychology

** PLEASE NOTE THIS IS AN INTERNAL VACANCY ONLY OPEN TO CURRENT NHS SCOTLAND STAFF **

OUR VALUES IN ACTION

●Care and Compassion ●Quality and Teamwork ●Dignity and Respect ●Openness, honesty and responsibility

Band 8A 0.4wte Clinical or Counselling Psychologist Permanent Contract

NHS Borders Staff Only

Secondary Care Psychology Service working with Adults with mental health problems

NHS Borders is delighted to announce that we have a permanent post for 2 days a week to work in our secondary care psychology with adults at Band 8a. The hours are suitable for candidates to work in a hybrid manner, but there is a requirement to spend clinical hours working in the Borders seeing patients in person in addition to opportunities to work remotely from home. We are happy to discuss this arrangement in more detail with interested candidates prior to making an application.

NHS Borders Psychological Services aims to provide high quality local psychology services and recognises that in order to achieve this we require well supported and trained staff. We value maintaining connectivity amongst our staff, even when we may not see each other often in person. Over the past few years we have transformed our local adult psychology services, including the development of a psychology led primary care therapy service which has close links with secondary care psychology.

We are in easy reach of Edinburgh – with the majority of our staff based in the capital, often car-sharing. The recent addition of the Tweedbank rail service from Edinburgh has made travel to Tweedbank (45 minutes from Edinburgh and a 20 minute walk to the Borders General Hospital) an attractive commute.

NHS Borders serves the rural population of 115 000 living in the Scottish Borders. It is a lovely area to live in, with excellent schools, abundant local amenities and easy access to Edinburgh and transport links. There are superb leisure facilities and good quality affordable housing which provide ideal opportunities for a high quality of life in this scenic part of the country.

This is an exciting time to be joining our Secondary Care Psychology Service and we are looking for enthusiastic professionals who can make a contribution to the service. In return we offer a supportive team, with good opportunities for growth and career development.

For further information, please contact Dr Tim Sporle, Consultant Clinical Psychologist on 01896 827270 / 07747 757 268, email timothy.sporle@nhs.scot

As from 1st April 2026 the Agenda for Change full-time working week will be reducing from 37 to 36 hours per week. Part time hours will be reduced pro-rata. However, there will be a corresponding increase in the hourly rate so that pay will not be affected.

Due to legislative changes from 1 April 2025, this post may require a different level of criminal records check done than is currently the case. If the post is assessed as a "regulated role", your appointment will be subject to joining the Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme. If there is any change to what is currently required, this will be confirmed by either the Hiring Manager or the Recruitment Team. For more details on these changes please visit: Disclosure Scotland Changes.

To work in the United Kingdom, there is a legal requirement for an individual to demonstrate that they have the relevant permission to work in the country. This permission is, without exception, granted by the UK Visa and Immigrations Service.

As part of the pre-employment checks for a preferred candidate, NHS Scotland Boards will check your entitlement to work in the UK. It can be evidenced through a number of routes including specific types of visa as well as EU settled and pre-settled status. To find out more about these routes of permission, please refer to the GOV.UK website here.

For specific types of post, if you do not have the necessary eligibility to work in the UK, it might be possible (though not guaranteed) to secure sponsorship via a UK Skilled Worker/Health & Care Worker Visa. However, this is only possible if the employer is a licenced Sponsor, and if the post does not fall below the current minimum salary threshold or ‘going rate’. Further information on these criteria can be found here.

It is ESSENTIAL that you have checked that you either already have an appropriate right to work in the UK or that the post would be eligible to be sponsored BEFORE submitting your application form

***PLEASE NOTE: We cannot accept late applications so please ensure your application is submitted early***

*Please note: For part time posts the salary shown will be pro rata*

NHS Scotland is committed to encouraging equality and diversity among our workforce and eliminating unlawful discrimination. The aim is for our workforce to be truly representative and for each employee to feel respected and able to give their best. To this end, NHS Scotland welcomes applications from all sections of society.

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