Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust is growing and changing. We provide specialist mental health, learning disability and community services across Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall and Wolverhampton, and we’re hiring people who want to shape what comes next. Formed on 1 April 2020 through the merger of Black Country Partnership NHS Foundation Trust and Dudley and Walsall Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust, we’re now focused on the future with a new Trust Strategy and our Best for the Black Country programme. What we do · Adult and older adult mental health · Children and young people’s mental health · Specialist learning disability services · Community healthcare for children, young people and families in Dudley Why join now · We’ve got real momentum right now. New strategy, clear priorities and our Best for the Black Country work mean things are moving in the right way, fast. · Our values aren’t just posters. People are genuinely compassionate, take responsibility, treat you with respect and help you feel confident and empowered. · You’ll be looked after. Flexible working, family-friendly policies, supportive teams, proper wellbeing support and chances to learn with coaching and development. · There’s room to grow. Loads of services to explore and real space to try ideas and be heard. · It’s a good place to live. Friendly diverse communities, easy transport, good schools and colleges, shopping, food, lots to do, plenty of green space and a lower cost of living than many other city regions. What it’s like to work here You’ll join friendly, skilled teams who look out for each other. We plan together, share caseload pressures, and celebrate wins. New starters get a warm welcome and clear induction; early careers colleagues have preceptorship and buddying; experienced staff can lead, teach and innovate. You’ll have space to do good work, speak up, and see the difference you make. Who we are We’re 4,000 colleagues from many backgrounds, committed to improving health and wellbeing for our communities and for each other. If you’re excited about the role but don’t tick every box, please apply. We value potential and transferable experience. Job overview An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Principal Applied Psychologist (Band 8b) to join Walsall CAMHS in a permanent, part‑time (0.71 WTE) senior leadership role. The post holder will deliver highly specialist psychological care for children and young people with complex mental health needs and act as clinical and strategic lead for Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT), ensuring high‑quality, evidence‑based delivery within CAMHS. The role includes clinical leadership, supervision, service development and quality improvement, working closely with senior clinicians and managers to improve outcomes for children, young people and families. Advert Provide highly specialist psychological assessment, formulation and intervention for children and young people with complex, high‑risk and enduring mental health presentations. Act as the clinical and strategic lead for Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) within Walsall CAMHS, ensuring high‑quality, evidence‑based delivery aligned with best practice. Lead the development, implementation and evaluation of the DBT pathway, including oversight of referrals, care pathways, clinical governance and outcomes. Provide expert consultation, supervision and leadership to staff delivering DBT, promoting fidelity to the model and workforce capability. Hold professional and clinical supervisory responsibility for applied psychologists, assistant psychologists and trainees, contributing to psychologically informed MDT supervision. Work collaboratively within the MDT to ensure psychological input informs risk assessment, care planning, safeguarding and service delivery. Lead and contribute to multi‑disciplinary training, including DBT, trauma‑informed care and complex presentations. Play a key role in service development, quality improvement, audit and research, supporting NICE compliance, outcome monitoring and continuous improvement. Work with service managers and senior clinicians to support service redesign and strategic priorities, promoting a compassionate, inclusive and psychologically informed service aligned with governance and Trust values. Working for our organisation Working for our organisation means being part of a values‑driven NHS Trust that places staff wellbeing, compassion and professional development at the heart of everything we do. We are committed to creating a supportive, inclusive working environment where staff feel valued, listened to and able to thrive. We offer a strong focus on psychological safety, reflective practice and high‑quality supervision, alongside a range of wellbeing supports, including access to staff wellbeing services, peer support networks and flexible working options where possible. We actively encourage learning, innovation and career development, recognising that caring for our staff is essential to delivering the best outcomes for children, young people and families. Detailed job description and main responsibilities The post holder is a Principal Applied Psychologist (Band 8b) within Walsall Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS), delivering highly specialist psychological services to children, young people and their families presenting with complex, high risk and enduring mental health difficulties. The role combines advanced clinical practice with strategic and professional leadership, including acting as the clinical and strategic lead for the Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) provision in Walsall CAMHS. The post holder will ensure high quality, evidence based DBT delivery, support service development and workforce capability, and embed a strong psychological perspective across multi‑disciplinary care pathways. The post holder is professionally responsible for their own practice and provides clinical supervision, line management, training and consultancy to applied psychologists and other staff. They play a key role in service development, quality improvement, governance, audit and research, contributing to service redesign and culture change in line with Trust values. 1. Clinical Responsibilities Provide highly specialist psychological assessment, formulation and intervention for children and young people with complex mental health presentations, working closely with families and carers. Undertake and oversee risk assessment and risk management, providing expert psychological advice in relation to high risk presentations, safeguarding, and crisis planning. Develop, implement and review evidence based treatment plans, adapting psychological formulations and interventions in response to progress and complexity. Provide specialist consultation to the MDT to inform diagnosis, formulation, care planning and clinical decision making. Lead and contribute to multi disciplinary care planning, monitoring outcomes and supporting coordinated delivery of care. 2. Leadership of DBT Provision (Walsall CAMHS) Act as the clinical and strategic lead for Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) within Walsall CAMHS. Lead the development, implementation and ongoing evaluation of the DBT pathway, ensuring fidelity to the DBT model and alignment with national and local best practice. Provide expert clinical leadership, supervision and consultation to staff delivering DBT interventions. Support workforce development and training in DBT, including maintaining competencies and embedding psychologically informed practice. Oversee clinical governance, outcome monitoring and quality assurance for the DBT provision. 3. Supervision and Professional Leadership Provide clinical supervision to applied psychologists, assistant psychologists and trainee psychologists. Line manage assistant psychologists where required. Support psychologically informed supervision and reflective practice across the MDT. Maintain responsibility for own professional development and HCPC requirements, contributing to teaching and supervision on applied psychology training programmes as appropriate. 4. Multi Disciplinary Training and Development Promote and embed psychologically informed and trauma informed approaches across the MDT. Deliver and coordinate training and consultation to multi disciplinary colleagues, including DBT related training where appropriate. Assess training needs within care pathways and contribute to workforce development plans. 5. Service Development, Quality Improvement and Governance Contribute to and lead service development initiatives, quality improvement projects (QIPs), audit and NICE benchmarking. Work collaboratively with service managers, consultant psychologists and senior clinicians to identify service priorities and support service redesign and cultural change. Represent a psychological perspective in service level forums relating to governance, quality and service improvement. 6. Service Evaluation and Research Lead and contribute to service evaluation and outcome monitoring, including DBT specific outcomes. Initiate, develop and deliver research and evaluation projects, engaging service users and carers where appropriate. Supervise trainee and qualified staff undertaking service evaluation and audit projects. 7. Professional, Safeguarding and Organisational Responsibilities Uphold professional, ethical and legal standards in line with HCPC requirements and Trust policies. Take responsibility for safeguarding children and young people, confidentiality, data protection, infection control and health and safety. Work in accordance with Trust values, promoting compassion, respect, inclusion and collaboration. Applying and timelines We may close this advert early if we receive a high volume of applications, so please apply soon. We shortlist after the closing date and will contact shortlisted candidates usually within two weeks. If you haven’t heard by then, you haven’t been shortlisted. Please check your email for updates and contact Recruitment for feedback. As part of our commitment to fairness, transparency, and personal integrity, we ask all applicants to ensure that their job applications reflect their own experiences, skills, and motivations. While AI tools can support spelling, grammar, or formatting, we expect that the content of your application—especially personal statements and responses to role-specific questions—is written by you. This helps us get to know the real you and ensures that our recruitment process remains equitable and meaningful for everyone. Pay and contracts Most NHS roles are paid under NHS Agenda for Change. With us - your starting point is set against the advertised band and your relevant NHS service, with progression through annual increments. Medical and Very Senior Manager roles follow separate national pay frameworks, not Agenda for Change. Details are provided in each advert and during recruitment. Standards and checks · Clinical posts up to and including Band 4 are expected to hold the Care Certificate. If you don’t have it yet, we’ll support you to complete it in post. · Some roles require a Standard or Enhanced DBS check under part V of the Police Act 1997. Having a criminal record won’t automatically prevent employment. We consider the role and individual circumstances. · We are an equal opportunities employer, offer flexible working, and are a smoke free Trust. Inclusion, equality and adjustments · We are an equal opportunities employer and offer flexible working. · We are an anti-racist, disability-inclusive and LGBTQ-inclusive Trust. · We welcome applications from under-represented groups and people with lived experience relevant to our services, including Black and Asian colleagues, Disabled people (including non-visible disabilities such as neurodiversity and mental health) and LGBTQ people. Members of the Armed Forces community are encouraged to consider applying and can access our Guaranteed Interview Scheme when meeting all of the essential criteria for the role. · Disabled applicants can request consideration under our Guaranteed Interview Scheme where essential criteria are met. You can ask for reasonable adjustments at every stage of the process. Our culture and values Best for the Black Country is our improvement journey. We share a clear vision and values, lead with compassion and visibility, listen to every voice, keep improving what we do and take ownership for delivery. You’ll feel it in how teams support each other and in the impact your work has on local people. If you want to contribute, learn and progress, this is a great time to join us.