Job description
Job overviewOpCourage, the community veteran's mental health service in the Southwest, is seeking a Band 7 Psychologist or Psychological Therapist to join our dedicated team.
This role is based in Salisbury, offering an exciting opportunity to provide psychological assessments, evidence-based therapies, and tailored interventions to veterans experiencing mental health issues, including PTSD, anxiety, and depression.
The successful candidate will collaborate with multi-disciplinary teams, fostering a supportive environment for veterans and their families. Responsibilities include conducting comprehensive psychological assessments and collaborative formulations, developing personalized treatment plans, and delivering individual or group therapy sessions. In addition, effective communication and strong interpersonal skills are essential for engaging with veterans and stakeholders, ensuring a community-centred approach to care.
Candidates should possess a relevant postgraduate qualification in psychology or psychological therapy, demonstrating experience in complex clinical settings, particularly with trauma-informed care for veterans or similar populations. A commitment to professional development and adherence to ethical guidelines in practice is required.
This role offers opportunities for ongoing training, supervision, and the chance to make a meaningful impact in the lives of those who have served the UK's armed forces.
Main duties of the jobThe post holder will provide face-to-face, evidence-based psychological therapy at an AWP/NHS site or other community setting in Salisbury, and surrounding areas. Psychological therapy will also be offered to veterans in our wider geographical area via an online platform; both modes support consistent access to care and treatment.
Job Summary (to be read alongside the key local information):
• Assess and treat a specialist caseload of clients (military veterans with complex mental health needs) and maintain associated records on the electronic case record system.
• Provide high-intensity, evidence-based psychological interventions as part of the NHSE Op Courage Integrated Veterans Mental Health and Wellbeing Service, South West; these will include at least Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and/or EMDR for complex presentations (i.e., Step 3 and above).
• Provide consultation, liaison, and, where appropriate, clinical supervision to other professionals, including less experienced therapists, Assistant Psychologists, and Trainee Clinical Psychologists.
• Undertake clinical audit and service evaluation activities to support the development of services relevant to client needs.
• Develop best-practice knowledge in working with veterans and promote expertise in this area, including supporting research projects where appropriate, with the guidance of the psychology lead.
Please see the attached job description for a full list of duties and responsibilities.Working for our organisationWe are the lead provider of healthcare for people with serious mental illness, learning disabilities and autism across Bath and North East Somerset (BaNES), Swindon and Wiltshire, and Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire.
We aim to provide High Quality, Compassionate Care everywhere, every day. This means our services will be safe, clinically effective and provide a positive all-round experience for our patients, families and carers. And we believe passionately in treating everyone with kindness, respect and empathy.
Key to this is providing a supportive and safe environment for our 4,000 staff where we all feel welcome and able to do the best we can for those we support. Our staff and teams work incredibly hard delivering services across more than 90 locations, covering 2,200 miles, to more than 1.8 million people.
At AWP we actively encourage applicants from all backgrounds; we are particularly keen to encourage applications from people from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, those with disabilities and from the LGBTQ+ community. We want people to bring their unique blend of experiences, backgrounds, perspectives and knowledge to AWP, as diversity makes us stronger.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities Be part of the MDT to discuss the suitability of therapy and therapy pathways with practitioners, and arrange joint appointments when appropriate.
Provide comprehensive psychosocial assessments as required, taking into account issues of safety and suitability for psychological therapy, to formulate, implement, and evaluate treatment or support programmes for clients.
Provide a psychological therapy service for individuals and groups as appropriate (e.g., mindfulness workshops).
Educate and involve family members and others in treatment and support, as appropriate.
Adhere to an agreed activity contract/job plan relating to the number of client contacts offered and clinical sessions carried out per week, in order to minimise waiting times and ensure treatment delivery remains accessible and convenient.
Ensure timely and accurate recording of all data required by the Trust, and maintain accurate records on the electronic patient record system.
Ensure that client confidentiality is protected at all times.
Monitor clinical workload using agreed systems.
Complete all requirements relating to data collection within the service.
Provide a specialist consultancy service to multidisciplinary teams and other agencies providing care for the client group (military veterans).
Participate in clinical and caseload supervision arrangements provided by the service.
Attend and, where appropriate, chair multidisciplinary/professional meetings relating to referrals or clients in treatment.
Carry out clinical audits of service performance, including service user surveys and evaluations, and help collate and disseminate the results for feedback.
Please see the attached job description for a full list of duties and responsibilities. Person specificationQualifications Essential criteria - Doctoral qualification in clinical or counselling psychology, or BABCP-accredited therapist.
Desirable criteria - Post-qualification training in CBT, NET, or EMDR.
Experience Essential criteria - Experience working with adult mental health presentations.
Desirable criteria - Experience working with military trauma.
Experience Essential criteria - Experience working within the NHS or the Ministry of Defence (MOD).
Desirable criteria - Clinical research experience.
Experience Essential criteria - Evidence of providing evidence-based assessments and therapeutic interventions to individuals with complex needs, including PTSD.
Desirable criteria - Experience in teaching and training.
Experience Essential criteria - Ability to engage in clinical supervision and personal development positively and effectively.
We are proud to be fostering a diverse workforce that reflects our communities. A key commitment to this is improving staff representation from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities, those from the LGBTQ+ communities, people with 'lived-experience' of mental health conditions and people living with disabilities,- we are a 'Disability Confident Employer' offering a guaranteed interview to Disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria. This includes people with a variety of disabilities and neurodivergent conditions (for example autism, ADHD, sensory, physical and learning disabilities).
We encourage applications from people who wish to work on a flexible basis, recognising that flexibility may mean a range of different working patterns and hours, we do our utmost to work with our staff to meet their needs and the needs of our service users.
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