Main area General Adult Psychiatry Grade NHS Medical & Dental: Consultant Contract Permanent Hours Part time - 8 sessions per week (8 PAs with 6 DCC and 2 SPAs) Job ref 267-OXFCONSARMS-1
Employer Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site John Sharich House, Slade Hospital Site Town Headington, Oxford Salary £109,725 - £145,478 per annum | pro rata Salary period Yearly Closing 03/03/2026 23:59
NHS Medical & Dental: Consultant
Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust has been rated as Good by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).
We are a responsive and innovative Foundation Trust that places our values of Caring, Safe and Excellent at the heart of everything we do. We take great pride in our staff and believe that investing in you is key to us achieving our vision of outstanding care delivered by outstanding people.
We work with a wide range of partner organisations to deliver care and support to people in their own homes and from a number of hospitals and community bases. We focus on delivering care as close to home as possible.
Job overview
We are recruiting a part-time Consultant Psychiatrist to join the Oxfordshire Prevention & Early Detection (OPEN) Service for At Risk Mental States (ARMS). This is a brilliant opportunity to shape and lead a newly established, community-based specialist service for young people aged 14–35 years at clinical high risk for psychosis (CHR-P), in line with NICE guidance and NHS England Access and Waiting Time standards.
Based at the Slade Hospital site in Oxford, the post offers 8 PAs (6 DCC, 2 SPA) with no inpatient responsibility and a focused consultant caseload centred on complexity, risk, and transitions to first-episode psychosis. The role combines high-quality clinical practice with service development within a Trust recognised nationally for research and innovation in early intervention.
Oxford Health hosts a NIHR Biomedical Research Centre and has strong links with the University of Oxford, offering unique opportunities for academic collaboration, digital innovation and experimental therapeutics. This is a rare chance to contribute to preventive psychiatry within a progressive and research‑active mental health Trust.
Main duties of the job
* Provide senior clinical leadership within the OPEN ARMS service, leading the weekly multidisciplinary team meeting and overseeing assessment, formulation and treatment planning for young people and adults identified as being at clinical high risk for psychosis.
* Undertaking specialist psychiatric assessments, contributing to diagnosis and formulation, prescribing where indicated, and ensuring appropriate physical health monitoring.
* Responsibility for clinical risk assessment and management, including leading on transitions to the Early Intervention in Psychosis service where required.
* Provide expert advice and consultation to multidisciplinary colleagues, support psychologically informed interventions delivered by the wider team, and hold a focused caseload of the most complex cases.
* Close partnership working with CAMHS, Adult Mental Health Teams, Crisis Resolution and Home Treatment Teams, inpatient services and primary care to ensure safe, timely and coordinated care.
* Supervise LED and resident doctors where allocated, participate in the Oxfordshire adult on‑call rota, and contribute to clinical governance, quality improvement and continuing professional development activities within the Trust.
Working for our organisation
Oxford Health is a great place to work and to be able to showcase the best of yourself when making an application please read the “candidate guide to making an application” and ensure your supporting statement is tailored to the role you are applying for and addresses any essential criteria.
As a Trust we provide physical, mental health and social care for people of all ages across Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Swindon, Wiltshire, Bath and Northeast Somerset. Our services are delivered at community bases, hospitals, clinics and people’s homes, delivering care as close to home as possible. Our vision is that no matter who you are or where you are, you will tell us that you receive: “Outstanding care delivered by an outstanding team”
Our values are: “Caring, safe and excellent”
We offer a wide range of benefits designed to support your career and wellbeing. These include:
* Excellent opportunities for career progression
* Access to tailored individual and Trust wide learning and development
* 33 days annual leave, plus bank holidays, rising to 35 days with continuous service
* NHS Discount across a wide range of shops, restaurants and retailers
* Competitive pension scheme
* Lease car scheme
* Cycle to work scheme
* Employee Assistance Programme
* Mental Health First Aiders
* Staff accommodation (please note waiting lists apply)
* Staff networking and support groups hosted by our Equality, Diversity & Inclusion team
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
This substantive 0.8 WTE post has been established to consolidate and develop the OPEN ARMS service following a successful pilot year. This role will not act as care coordinator and has no inpatient responsibility. The role involves leading CAARMS-informed reviews, providing expert diagnostic clarification and formulation in complex and evolving presentations, and supporting decision-making under conditions of clinical uncertainty.
The team expects to receive on average 2–3 new referrals per week, generating an annual caseload of 70–91 CHR-P patients. Referrals are triaged at a weekly multidisciplinary meeting, where they are reviewed and allocated for assessment. Assessments are delivered using the Comprehensive Assessment of At Risk Mental States (CAARMS) alongside psychiatric, cognitive, and physical health screening.
You’ll contribute to service development, including digital detection pathways and integration with electronic health record–based risk tools, while ensuring compliance with national standards and audit requirements. Working closely with the Service Lead and Clinical Director, you will support the continued development of Oxfordshire’s preventive psychiatry pathway and strengthen integration with Early Intervention services and wider system partners.
Person specification
Qualifications
* MB BS or equivalent medical qualification
* Qualification or higher degree in medical education, clinical research or management.
Clinical Skills, Knowledge & Experience
* Excellent knowledge in management of physical health comorbidities in mental health and preventive approaches
* Excellent clinical skills using bio‑psycho‑social perspective and wide medical knowledge
* Excellent oral and written communication skills in English
* Subspecialist experience in early intervention, ARMS/CHR‑P, or psychosis prevention within NHS or comparable service
Academic Skills & Lifelong Learning
* Able to deliver undergraduate or postgraduate teaching and training
* Ability to work in and lead team
* Demonstrate commitment to shared leadership & collaborative working to deliver improvement
* Participated in continuous professional development
* Participated in research or service evaluation
* Able to use and appraise clinical evidence
* Evidence of involvement in clinical audit and quality improvement programmes
* Able to plan and deliver undergraduate and postgraduate teaching and training relevant to this post
* Reflect on purpose of CPD undertaken
* Experienced in clinical research and / or service evaluation
* Evidence of achievement in education, research, audit and service improvement: awards, prizes, presentations and publications
* Has led clinical audits leading to service change or improved outcomes to patients
Appointment to this post is subject to the trust receiving satisfactory references covering 3 years of employment or study. Please ask your referees to respond promptly to reference requests.
Employees are expected to undertake mandatory and statutory training related to their role.
We positively encourage applications from all areas of the community, regardless of gender, race, faith, disability, age or sexual orientation and we encourage applications from users of mental health services. This is part of our commitment to equality and reflecting the diversity of our population.
Oxford Health is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults, we expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.
Employer certification / accreditation badges
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.
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