Job overview An exciting opportunity has arisen for a passionate and motivated Assistant Psychologist to provide psychological input into Inpatient Services to older people with mental health/cognitive difficulties. The Acute Directorate is an all age service of sixteen wards for adults and older adults. Acute psychological practice is committed to providing outcome-focused, evidence-based interventions to clients, their families, and support network. You will be affiliated to a wider body of practitioners who are passionate about working in the specialism of older people. You will have opportunities for developing your clinical interests and skills with this population through supervision and clinical networks. The post would suit someone who has a genuine interest in working therapeutically with this varied and rewarding client group in an acute setting. The post-holder will work closely with the multi-disciplinary inpatient teams across 2 - 3 wards and will be part of a team of psychological practitioners. The work would include being part of patient/ward reviews, safety huddles, and ward routines. Day to day the post holder will actively support and work with patients through both group and individual work in order to understand issues, aid discharge, and link patients into resources in the community. Supporting relatives and carers would be part of the role. There will also be opportunities to support with the development of therapeutic ward environments and trauma-informed care. Main duties of the job To participate in the provision of Psychological Practice to adults with severe and enduring mental health difficulties and those with Dementia, with a particular emphasis on later life issues, within the Older Adult Acute Inpatient wards served by Kent & Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership Trust. This post is split between 2 localities in Kent, Dartford and Maidstone. The post holder must hold a full, valid, UK driving licence and have access to a car/vehicle to use for business purposes (unless you have a disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010). Working for our organisation Come and work with us in the Garden of England where we combine exceptional professional development opportunities with a tremendous quality of life. We are Kent and Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership Trust (KMPT), providing mental health, learning disability and specialist services, serving 1.8 million people in Kent and Medway, as well as specialist services for adults in Sussex and Surrey. We are rated Good overall by the CQC. Each year we care for over 2,000 people in our hospitals and 54,000 people in the community. We are proud to employ over 3,800 people from 66 nationalities, and to serve an increasingly diverse range of communities across rural and urban areas. You will be joining friendly, passionate colleagues, rich in their diversity, who are committed to providing excellent care to our service users and their loved ones. The nature of our work attracts kindness and compassion as standard and everyone from our cleaners and porters to the chief executive and chairman are recognised as playing a vital role in providing an exemplary service. Our strategy Our mission is what we set out to do every day We deliver brilliant care through brilliant people Our vision is where we want to be in the future To provide outstanding care and to work in partnership to deliver this in the right place, for every service user, every time. Check out our recruitment videos Recruitment - YouTube Detailed job description and main responsibilities Please see the attached job description for the vacancy details, responsibilities and person specification. Person specification Qualifications Essential criteria Accredited BPS Psychology Undergraduate Degree Desirable criteria Further post graduate qualifications Additional training relevant for the job Experience Essential criteria Experience of working with those with mental health issues and/or dementia Desirable criteria Experience of working with Older People Interest in working with Older People/and or people with dementia Essential criteria Mention of an interest of working with Older people and/or people with dementia Desirable criteria Service user involvement KMPT Staff Benefits: NHS pension scheme Your employer pays 23.7% towards your pension and life assurance benefits. Please see [ Click Apply]. [ Click Apply]/Pensions.aspx for more details. Annual leave for Agenda for Change On appointment to NHS 27 days for full time or pro rata if part time After 5 years NHS service 29 days full time or pro rata if part time After 10 years NHS service 33 days full time or pro rata if part time Plus bank holidays, that's up to 41 days - more than 8 weeks paid time off! Medical staffs have national Terms and Conditions. Buying and selling of annual leave is also available as part of our flexible approach to staff benefits. Recommend a friend campaign If you already work for us you could refer a friend from outside of the Trust to any of the roles below and you can receive £1000 if they are successfully recruited; Nursing staff - RMN RGN RNLD - Band 5 and 6, Medical Doctors, Clinical Psychologist and Allied Health Professionals, Flexible working Covers job share, term time working, flexible shifts etc. Just ask and we will try to help. Statutory and occupational maternity, paternity or adoption leave Dependant on length of NHS service Other paid/unpaid leave This can be for Jury Service, Reserved Armed Forces, etc. This is paid outside of annual leave. Non paid leave for career breaks Staff Support KMPT offers a face to face counselling service for any issues not just work related problems. NHS discounts and shopping vouchers Staff can sign up for Red Guava, PS discounts and Health Service Discounts to receive a variety of discounts in travel, fashion, technology, mobile phone contracts, food and drink, days out etc. Learning and Development opportunities In addition to the mandatory subjects there are a number of leadership, management and staff topic areas, including coaching and mentoring. Induction KMPT is committed to supporting all new staff and this includes a comprehensive Induction programme. The programme's duration depends on role and can be from 2 days to 4 weeks (not always consecutive days). The Induction programme will provide an excellent opportunity for new staff to meet and engage with KMPT's subject specialists and include the required training. The programme may involve some travel to the various training venues across Kent and Medway, the main ones being Canterbury, Maidstone and Dartford.