Principal Psychological Professional

Job Overview
We're seeking an ambitious, values-driven Clinical or Counselling Psychologist—or Family Therapist—to join our Community CAMHS team as a Principal Psychological Professional. This could be a development role from 8a to 8b, or a direct appointment at 8b.

This is a chance to lead and shape how psychological thinking informs care planning, culture, and outcomes for children and young people. If you're ready to grow your leadership, supervision and service development skills in a supportive but grounded environment, we want to hear from you.

Essential

• Appropriate professional registration in line with Job Description / Person Specification
• Experience in CAMHS or a related CYP mental health setting
• Strong leadership, supervision, and team-building skills
• Commitment to anti-oppressive, trauma-informed, and quality-improvement practices
• Ambition to step into strategic roles within a changing NHS

If Applying As 8a, You'll Need To Show

• Significant post-qualification experience
• Developing leadership and supervision skills
• Readiness and motivation to step up to a leadership role

What We Offer

• A clear 8a–8b pathway (typically 12–24 months) with structured support
• Protected time for leadership and supervision
• Opportunities to influence service development, governance, and training
• Access to peer networks, CPD and professional forums
• Supervision from a Consultant Psychological Professional plus model-specific support (e.g. CBT, DDP, EMDR)

Main duties of the job

To Learn More About Our South Staffs CAMHS Teams

NHS MPFT – Cannock
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NHS MPFT – Psychology

Clinical Leadership & Strategic Influence
Provide senior psychological leadership within Community CAMHS, embedding psychological thinking across care delivery. Influence service strategy, model development, and quality improvement. Act as a psychological lead in MDT decision-making, risk formulation, and complex case planning.

Supervision, Consultation & Development
Deliver clinical supervision to qualified/pre-qualified psychological staff and offer consultation across the MDT. Promote psychologically informed practice through training, coaching and reflective spaces. Support recruitment, induction and career planning for junior colleagues.

Clinical Work & Case Formulation
Hold a focused caseload involving complex assessments, formulations and interventions. Contribute to multi-agency planning where psychological risk and systemic thinking are key. Ensure documentation and outcome measures meet governance standards.

Service Improvement & Governance
Lead or support audit, evaluation, and innovation. Develop trauma-informed, anti-oppressive care pathways. Uphold clinical governance, safeguarding, and professional standards.

Systemic & Partnership Working
Work with partners across education, social care and the voluntary sector. Represent psychology in local and Trust-wide forums, shaping professional strategy and improving access for CYP.

Working for our organisation

By joining Team MPFT, you will be helping your communities and in return for this, we will support you by;

• Supporting your career development and progression
• Excellent NHS Pension scheme
• Generous maternity, paternity and adoption leave
• Options for flexible working
• Up to 27 days annual leave (increasing with service up to 33 days) and the opportunity to purchase additional leave
• Extensive Health and Wellbeing support and resources
• If you work in our community teams, we pay for your time travelling between patients
• Lease car if you complete more than 500 business miles per annum, fully insured and maintained (including tyres), mileage paid at lease car rate
• Salary sacrifice car - fully insured and maintained (including tyres), your gross pay is reduced by the cost of the vehicle before tax, NI and pension deductions are calculated, mileage paid at business rates
• Salary sacrifice bikes up to £2k
• Free car parking at all trust sites
• Free flu vaccinations every year
• Citizens Advice support linked with a Hardship Fund for one off additional support up to £250 (if the criteria is met)

And more. We are proud to be a diverse and inclusive organisation and there is a choice of staff networks that help you meet like-minded people.

Please note this vacancy may close early if we receive a high volume of applications for the role.
Detailed Job Description And Main Responsibilities
Location
:

The post-holder will be expected to mainly work from the Cannock CAMHS site (West Chadsmoor Clinic, WS11 4NJ) for clinical interventions and MDM meetings. The site is equipped with a Family Therapy room with recording equipment and observation room. Outside of this, CAMHS staff need to be able to work in a range of settings, most usually clinic settings but also other community sites as well as attending meetings at different bases. As such, the ability to travel across South Staffordshire is required. The impact of working in pandemic conditions has facilitated use of digital/remote working practices and this is likely to continue where it is of benefit. Our staff have primarily returned to working from base and the supportive team environment this provides.

Qualifications And Training
Post-graduate doctoral level training in clinical or counselling psychology (or equivalent prior to 1996) as accredited by the BPS, including models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology.

Or,
Post-graduate qualification via a relevant core CAMHS mental health/social welfare professional training as recognised by AFT followed by post-qualification CAMHS experience and completion of a Masters level qualification in Family and Systemic Psychotherapy as accredited by AFT.

And,
Trained in clinical supervision and the supervision of psychological professionals in training such as Doctorate-level Trainee Psychologists or MSc-level Family Therapy Trainees.

Knowledge, Experience And Skills
Working as a registered Practitioner Psychologist or Family Therapist within specialist CAMHS with experience of the full range of clinical severity of mental health needs across a range of care settings.

Experience of providing clinical consultation services to other professional staff.

Teaching, training, and clinical supervision of pre-qualified and trainee psychologists or trainee Family Therapists including field supervision of research theses.

Experience of Research, Audit and Quality Improvement activities in psychological practice

The ability to adapt interventions to meet the mental health needs of neurodivergent children and young people is required. For Family Therapy applicants, there is the potential to develop a tertiary clinic with Family Therapy colleagues based in other teams.

For further information relating to this position please Job Description and Person Specification
The post is part-time (30 hours). All staff can request flexible working opportunities through their Team Leader; please note that the current working hours for CAMHS clinics are Monday-Friday, 9am- 5pm.
Please be aware that the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in completing application forms will be monitored to ensure fairness and transparency. If you have used AI you must state this in your application.

Person specification

Qualifications
Essential criteria

• Registration with appropriate regulatory body/organisation: HCPC or appropriate section of UKCP.
• Evidence of continuing relevant professional development sufficient to ensure continued professional registration. To include ongoing CPD in relation to CAMHS specialty clinical delivery.
• Trained in clinical supervision and the supervision of psychological professionals in training such as Doctorate-level Trainee Psychologists or MSc-level Family Therapy Trainees.
• Post-graduate doctoral level training in clinical or counselling psychology (or equivalent prior to 1996) as accredited by the BPS, including models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology. A For Practitioner Psychologists: full membership of a professional body (e.g. registration with the British Psychological Society as a Chartered Psychologist) A or Post-graduate qualification in relevant core CAMHS mental health/social welfare professional training recognised by AFT followed by post-qualification CAMHS experience and then completion of a Masters level qualification in Family and Systemic Psychotherapy as accredited by AFT.

Desirable criteria

• Post registration qualification/registration in one or more additional specialised areas of psychological practice (e.g. neuropsychology, trauma, attachment) as required for specific clinical post.
• Leadership development training and/or qualification
• For Practitioner Psychologists: full membership of a professional body (e.g. registration with the British Psychological Society as a Chartered Psychologist)

Experience
Essential criteria

• Working as a registered Practitioner Psychologist or Family Therapist both within the designated service area and also with the full range of clinical severity across the full range of care settings (in-patient and outpatient settings, community, primary care inpatient and residential settings).
• Experience of working in specialist CYP mental health provision which includes multi-disciplinary working.
• Exercising full clinical responsibility for clients' psychological care as a care co-ordinator
• Experience of providing clinical consultation services to other professional staff.
• Experience of working in the NHS and/or publicly funded health or care settings
• Experience of working collaboratively with CYP and their families/carers and professional network
• Liaison and joint working with statutory, voluntary and private sector agencies
• Teaching, training, and clinical supervision of pre-qualified and trainee psychologists or Family Therapists including field supervision of research theses.
• Quality and Assurance Governance issues.
• Research, Audit, Quality Improvement and/or Development activities

Desirable criteria

• Experience of working with CYP with attachment and trauma needs is highly desirable
• Experience of clinical leadership in a multi-disciplinary team.
• Project management of quality and service improvement initiatives.
• Working at a strategic level.

Skills, Knowledge And Abilities
Essential criteria

• Demonstrate skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment, intervention and management and their application in a CYP mental health setting.
• Evidence-based practice relevant to the role
• Application of psychological understanding, formulation and intervention across therapeutic modalities and within clinical, multi-disciplinary and service level working
• Identify, provide and promote appropriate interventions / means of support for carers and staff exposed to highly distressing situations and challenging behaviours.
• Communicate highly complex, highly sensitive and highly contentious information effectively, to a wide range of people
• Adapt evidence based interventions creatively for clients with communication difficulties / learning disabilities and have the ability to tailor interventions where CYP have not responded to normally recommended interventions
• Demonstrate skills in providing liaison, consultation and clinical supervision to other professionals and non-professional groups in health and non-health settings.
• Articulate sensitively and collaboratively the value added by the range of psychological services within the context of multidisciplinary mental health and learning disability healthcare provision, whilst also valuing the range of roles and skills represented in the MDT.
• Undertake complex multiagency working and liaise with multiple systems
• Risk assessment and risk management
• Utilise psychometric tests competently
• Utilise appropriate clinical governance mechanisms.
• Knowledge of legislation in relation to the client group and mental health and its implications for clinical practice.
• Audit and research methodology
• Social Inclusion agenda
• Application of psychological understanding, formulation and intervention across therapeutic modalities and within clinical, multi-disciplinary and service level working.
• Provide effective teaching, training and clinical supervision for the multidisciplinary team.
• Demonstrate proficiency in the use of Microsoft Word, Excel, Powerpoint, Outlook and similar applications. Online Clinical Consulting platforms (e.g. One Consultation)
• Use multimedia materials for presentations in professional, academic and public settings.

Desirable criteria

• Skilled in effective clinical leadership.
• Highly developed skills to meet the mental health and attachment needs of Looked After Children, either through direct work or through the support of professional and care networks.

Personal Attributes

Essential criteria

• Ability to develop productive therapeutic relationships with a range of clients.
• Able to work in accordance with the Trust Values and Behaviours.
• Able to engage with vulnerable children, young people and families and work effectively in highly distressing and challenging circumstances
• Able to maintain a high degree of professionalism within highly emotive and distressing problems, verbal abuse and the threat of physical assault.
• Able to provide containment, insight and direct input to complex and challenging cases where there is a high degree of parental distress and/or hostility in addition to the difficulties presented by the child or young person.
• Able to work flexibly and co-operatively as part of a team.
• Ability to contain and work with organisational stress and hold the stress of others.
• Able to use own initiative and make decisions independently.
• Committed to continual quality and service improvement.
• Self-aware and committed to professional and personal development. Able to accept and respond positively to feedback from supervision
• Willingness to undertake further leadership development both formal and informal.
• Enthusiasm for a broad range of psychological phenomena, theories and application and in developing psychologically-informed services for CYP with mental health needs
• Ability to travel independently in accordance with service need.

Desirable criteria

• Ability to demonstrate leadership and management skills.