Royal Edinburgh Hospital
NHS Lothian continues to grow and develop its workforce; alongside wider ongoing whole system working and service evolution. Our organisation is dynamic, inclusive, values based and multi-disciplinary; with an ethos that promotes safe, effective, patient-centred care; and a culture that values, empowers, supports and develops our staff.
An exciting opportunity has arisen to join NHS Lothians Royal Edinburgh Hospital and Associated Services Senior Leadership Team in a key innovative role as the substantive Director of Psychology. This post has the option of blended remote and onsite working to suit the preferred candidates needs.
Within Lothian, Psychological Therapies are provided and delivered by the Health and Social Care Partnership. The service has 16 core specialties and some sub-specialties. The core services include Adult Mental Health, CAMHS, Older Peoples Mental Health, Learning Disabilities, Clinical Health, Addictions, Forensic, Maternity and Neonatal, Perinatal, Physical Rehabilitation, Trauma, Veterans, Staff Support and Wellbeing and Digital Therapies.
The post holder will lead and operationally manage a workforce of 241 staff including clinical and counselling Psychologists, Clinical Associates, Accredited Therapists, EPPs, Assistant Psychologists, Peer Support Workers, Clinical Trainees and business enabling staff.
We are looking for a candidate who has significant experience of working in senior leadership roles and is able to evidence excellence in leading others in delivering safe and effective clinical care within Applied Psychology services. The successful candidate will be dynamic and share core values of innovation, creativity, compassion, caring and kindness in all aspects of leadership and patient care and embody these in their day to day work.
This post will take forward and lead the ongoing and collaborative organisational redesign of Applied Psychology Services to manage demand and re-shape the delivery of Psychological Therapies across Lothian; with the aim to have accessible, flexible and adaptive services from digital delivery through Primary Care to Specialist Mental Health and Acute Psychology Services; with a focus on excellence, innovation and high-quality care. Services will be developed in keeping with the wider objectives of NHS Lothian and the 4 Health and Social Care Partnerships and will embed service user outcomes and feedback in continuous service improvement.
To be successful, the applicant will need to have a Doctorate level (or equivalent) qualification in Clinical or Applied Psychology and be registered with the HCPC. Evidence of leading and developing large services and teams, competency in complex Demand, Capacity, Activity, Queue (DCAQ) and trajectory modelling, and experience of service redesign and organisational change is desirable. In addition, the successful applicant will need to demonstrate considerable experience as a Senior Consultant Psychologist with Head of Specialty managerial and leadership responsibilities as a significant and core part of current or past roles.
We look forward to the successful applicant developing further our culture of trust, respect, openness, collaboration, encouragement and integrity; and inspiring cohesion, motivation and high performance across all levels of Psychology staff, and improving the impact of Psychology in our organisation, with partner agencies, in our communities and across our population. We will support the successful applicant to create an environment to improve recruitment and retention, through the development of varied career pathways, including management, teaching, research, improvement and innovation.
There are excellent opportunities for a wide range of both research, academic and clinical experience (1:1 work, family work, group work, specialist workstreams and consultation), in early intervention through to Secondary Care; taking part in local and national teaching / training; and being part of dynamic service developments at a challenging time nationally.
Tailored and supportive line management alongside one to one, peer group and multi-disciplinary supervision structures are in place to support professional reflection and growth.
NHS Lothian provides a comprehensive range of primary, community based and acute hospital services for the populations of Edinburgh, Midlothian, East Lothian and West Lothian. We also provide selected services for patients in the Borders and in Fife and are a national centre of expertise for various specialities provided to people across Scotland. NHS Lothian has an annual budget of £1.6 billion and employs approx. 26,000 staff.
Edinburgh and the Lothians are on the eastern side of Scotlands central belt in the heart of the country. Four main areas make up Edinburgh and the Lothians Edinburgh, East Lothian, Mid Lothian and West Lothian.
Edinburgh and the Lothians are a place of exceptional beauty and contrast, from Edinburghs historic skyline to the scenic countryside and coastline that surround it. Edinburgh is famous for its castle, military tattoo, fringe and international festival.
Edinburgh and the Lothians are home to top-ranking state and private schools and world class universities and colleges. Edinburgh offers a rich diversity of parks and gardens to spend time relaxing with friends and family. Whether you want to buy or rent Lothian also offers a diversity of accommodation ranging from city centre based flats, waterfront living, Victorian or Georgian villas to more rural farm houses or coastal homes.
Local and wider transport networks are excellent. Glasgow is less than 50 minutes away by train. The Scottish Highlands are accessible in a few hours offering opportunities for skiing and walking. National and international transport links make it easy to keep in touch with friends and family via Edinburgh Airport which offers a variety of international flight opportunities.
Prospective applicants are encouraged to make contact with Jillian Torrens, Service Director for REAS at @
We look forward to hearing from you.
Please note: we anticipate a high level of interest in this position and may close the vacancy early once a sufficient amount of applications are received. Therefore, please make sure you complete and submit your application at an early stage.
We will fully support disabled candidates, and candidates with long-term conditions or who are neurodivergent by making reasonable adjustments to our recruitment policy and practices.
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. Further information on what NHS Scotland Boards are required to do to check this as well as what your responsibilities include can be found in the further information for this vacancy.
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
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.
- Urban Practice