Principal Clinical Psychologist

Job overview

An exciting leadership opportunity in Clinical Health Psychology

We are seeking an experienced and inspiring Principal Clinical Psychologist to lead our Adult Clinical Health Psychology Service. This is a rare opportunity to shape the future of psychological care within physical health services while joining a thriving Clinical Health Psychology Department with a reputation for innovation, collaboration and high-quality patient care. You will combine strategic leadership with highly specialist clinical practice, influencing services across acute and community healthcare settings.

Main duties of the job

• Provide operational, professional, strategic and clinical leadership for the Adult Clinical Health Psychology Service.
• Lead and manage the delivery of high-quality, evidence-based psychological services for adults living with physical health conditions and complex psychological adjustment difficulties.
• Work collaboratively with the Head and Deputy Head of Clinical Health Psychology to support service development, workforce planning, quality improvement and performance management.
• Provide line management, professional leadership and clinical supervision to psychological professionals within the service.
• Maintain a highly specialist clinical caseload involving complex presentations and consultation to multidisciplinary teams.
• Promote psychologically and trauma-informed approaches across healthcare services and pathways.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Clinical Leadership

• Lead the Adult Clinical Health Psychology Service, ensuring safe, effective and equitable service delivery.
• Provide highly specialist psychological assessment, formulation and intervention for adults with complex physical health conditions, taking into account theoretical and therapeutic models.
• Undertake highly complex clinical decision-making involving significant levels of uncertainty and risk.
• To undertake risk assessment and risk management for relevant individual clients and to provide both general and specialist advice for psychologists and other professionals on psychological aspects of risk assessment and management.
• Act as an expert resource to multidisciplinary teams regarding psychological aspects of physical health conditions.
• Promote psychologically informed approaches across healthcare services.
• To provide clinical and service development consultation to other health and social care staff and foster reflective practice in teams.
• To monitor and evaluate progress during the course of both uni- and multi-disciplinary care.

Leadership and Service Development

• Lead service planning, development and transformation initiatives within Adult Clinical Health Psychology.
• Lead the development and implementation of policies, practices and procedures for ACHP and wider CHP service
• Develop and implement service objectives aligned with Trust priorities and national policy.
• Monitor service performance and activity, ensuring delivery against agreed standards and performance indicators.
• Contribute to business planning, workforce planning and service redesign initiatives.
• Support the development and integration of psychological care pathways across acute and community settings.

Management Responsibilities

• Hold line management responsibility for designated psychology staff.
• Undertake recruitment, achievement and development reviews, performance management and workforce planning activities.
• Support compassionate and inclusive staff wellbeing, engagement and retention.
• Ensure effective deployment of staff resources and management of waiting lists and workload allocation.
• Manage delegated resources where appropriate.

Professional Leadership

• Provide professional leadership and support to staff within the Clinical Health Psychology Service.
• Maintain high standards of psychological practice in accordance with HCPC, BPS and Trust governance requirements.
• Lead on professional standards, policies and procedures relating to psychological practice.
• Support the development of trainees and junior colleagues.
• Contribute to professional leadership, service meetings and departmental development activities.
• Act with integrity and professionalism, modelling Trust values and leadership behaviours.

Supervision, Teaching and Training

• Provide clinical and professional supervision to qualified and trainee psychological professionals.
• Deliver consultation, teaching and training to psychology and multidisciplinary colleagues.
• Support training placements and relationships with regional training programmes and universities.
• Maintain ongoing professional development and contribute to departmental learning initiatives.

Research, audit and quality improvement

• Promote a culture of evidence-based practice, service evaluation and continuous improvement.
• Lead, support and participate in audit, service evaluation and quality improvement activities.
• Lead, support and contribute to research activity where appropriate.
• Ensure clinical practice reflects current evidence and professional standards

Applicant requirements

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.