Assistant Psychologist

**Assistant Psychologist [based Halifax/Horsforth/Harrogate]**

**The Oakdale Group**

Oakdale was established more than twenty years ago and is highly regarded as a professional therapy provider for adults as well as children and their families.

As a not for profit Community Interest Company and a provider of NHS and other publically commissioned services, our focus is always on the goal of doing the best job we can for our services users, and delivering value for money for our clients and commissioners.

The Role

Oakdale has recently enjoyed a period of growth and taken on new commissions. Our multi-disciplinary team is now engaged in a number of collaborations with NHS and CAMHS partners, as well as providing services to children and young people on behalf of Local Authorities, and Schools, and private commissions on behalf of self-referring families.

As a result, we are now seeking two Assistant Psychologists to provide Oakdale’s psychology team with support in delivering a professional and specialised service to our commissioners and service users. This role will be particularly engaged in the support of Oakdale's neurodevelopmental assessment services; provided on behalf of the NHS and to self referred families and children.

**Duties**:

- To assist in psychological assessments, including; psychometric, cognitive and neuro-developmental assessments, direct and indirect observations and semi-structured interviews in line with Oakdale’s policies and operating procedures and as directed by Oakdale’s clinical psychologists.
- To assist in the preparation of clinical reports under supervision from Oakdale’s clinical psychologists.
- To assist in the formulation and delivery of care plans involving psychological treatment and management of a client’s problems
- To attend and contribute to appropriate multi-disciplinary meetings and reviews
- To assist in the coordination and running of therapeutic groups
- Liaise or work directly with all the specialists and professionals concerned on specific cases and programmes, assisting them as required
- Maintain accurate case records on Oakdale’s case management system, including clinical observations, clinical notes, tests and other associated data according to Oakdale’s operating procedures
- To participate in regular clinical supervision with a clinical psychologist
- To assist in the design, implementation and dissemination of service development audits as required
- To attend meetings in which service developments are planned
- To be responsible for own workload under the direct support and supervision of an Oakdale clinical psychologist and line manager

Person Specification

Essential:

- An approved qualification in psychology conferring eligibility for graduate basis for registration with the British Psychological Society
- With either a Bachelor’s degree (Class 2.1 or higher) or a Bachelor’s degree (any class) together with a higher degree
- Experience of paid or voluntary work with children or adults in a health, care or educational setting
- Have a working understanding of child and adolescent development
- Strong literacy and report writing skills, with excellent accuracy and attention to detail
- Strong interpersonal skills
- The ability to use a computer competently, with a broad base of IT skills
- The ability to communicate effectively.
- The ability to work on your own initiative and prioritise workload
- The ability to work under pressure

Desirable:

- Experience of working with individuals with autism, ADHD, intellectual disabilities, complex needs, developmental trauma and/or challenging behaviours
- Prior experience of administering cognitive assessments
- Experience of working as part of a multidisciplinary team
- Experience of audit or research
- Knowledge of establishing, implementing and evaluating intervention programmes

Salary

The salary for this post will be in the range £23,000 - £25,500 per annum according to skills and experience.

Location & Hours

We have three main bases - in Halifax, Horsforth and Harrogate, so some occasional travel is expected and some remote working is possible. This role will mainly be based in Halifax after intial training.

37.5 hours per week and standard office hours, with some flexible and home working possible by agreement.

Interviews

In return for the hard work and dedication from our teams, we offer the following benefits:

- 21 days annual leave plus bank holidays (rising after length of service)
- Enhanced Occupational Sick Pay (OSP)
- Enhanced pension
- Cycle to work & enhanced car schemes
- Simplyhealth Programme including Employee Assistant Programme, GP and priority physiotherapy access
- Fully funded flu vaccines
- Employee discount scheme
- Technology salary sacrifice scheme for home appliances, tablets, mobiles, TV’s, fitness trackers and more
- Ongoing CPD (internal & external) - we work with experts to bring high-quality CPD to our teams, to help further their s