Employer Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site Guild Lodge, Guild Park Town Preston Salary £27,485 - £30,162 per annum Salary period Yearly Closing 17/11/2025 08:00
Assistant Psychologist
Band 4
Our Vision is to provide the best mental health, learning disability, autism and community based services for the populations we serve.
As an integrated mental health, learning disability and community Trust, Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust provides a range of services including:
* Primary and secondary mental health care for children and adults including specialist inpatient child and adolescent mental health provision, perinatal mental health, forensic services including low and medium secure care.
* Specialist community support for children and adults with learning disabilities and autism, including intensive support.
* Community physical health and well-being services for children and adults.
The Trust was first established in 2002 and employs approximately 7,000 staff who provide care from more than 400 sites. The organisation offers opportunities for medics, mental health and general nurses, allied health professionals, psychology, administration and clerical staff, apprentices and volunteers.
Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust supports flexible working, we believe that a positive work/life balance benefits NHS employees through improved health and wellbeing. We would consider working patterns such as; term time, part time, compressed hours, home/remote working, and flexi-time.
Please note that further communication from Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust (LSCft) will normally be to the email address given on the application form. You should also ensure that email addresses and telephone numbers are provided for your referees, to enable LSCft to contact them.
Job overview
We are looking for an enthusiastic and motivated candidate who can be flexible and responsive to client and service needs in a secure setting. Guild Lodge is the home of LSCFTs adult secure services, a specialist regional unit for individuals with a range of complex and enduring mental health and risk related needs detained under the Mental Health Act. Our multidisciplinary teams provide high standards of assessment and formulation, care and treatment interventions ensuring rehabilitation and recovery, across a range of secure settings including medium, low secure, and step-down rehabilitation, for men and women.
This fulltime post will be split between the men’s secure service line (0.5wte) and the women’s secure service line (0.5wte). The role will be varied and will offer the successful applicant the opportunity to develop a range of skills within a supportive service with excellent clinical supervision and a wide range of CPD opportunities. There may also be scope for opportunities to gain skills and experience in our nationally recognised Forensic Brain Injury service.
Please note that this vacancy may close earlier than the stated deadline if a high volume of applications is received. Early submission is therefore encouraged.
Main duties of the job
The post holder will assist with psychological assessment and psychological interventions under the supervision of a qualified member of the psychology team. Other tasks may include assisting in clinically related administration, conduct of audits and collection of statistics related to departmental research projects, outcome evaluation work, teaching, and project work. Collaborative therapeutic work with multi-disciplinary colleagues is encouraged, and assistants are considered valuable members of our multi-disciplinary psychological services team.
Working for our organisation
Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust provides a range of services including secondary mental health care across this area. Specialist provision comprises inpatient child and adolescent mental health services, perinatal mental health and forensic services including low and medium secure care.
The Trust also provides a range of physical health and well-being services in the community alongside a range of partners in the Lancashire, Cumbria and Sefton area.
Lancashire & South Cumbria Foundation Trust encourages flexible working, we believe that a positive work/life balance benefits NHS employees through improved health and wellbeing. We would consider working patterns such as; term time, part time, compressed hours, flexi-time and career breaks. We encourage applicants to state clearly on their application forms this request and discuss these options at interview.
For more information please visit our website via Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS FT.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
For more details on this vacancy please review the attached job description and person specification.
Person specification
Education & Qualification
* An upper second class honours degree or higher in psychology.
* Eligibility for graduate membership of BPS.
Experience
* Experience of working with clients with complex and enduring needs.
* Experience of working in institutional and/or multi-agency and disciplinary service settings.
Knowledge & Skills
* Understanding of clinical, personal, and professional challenges of working in institutional settings and with risk-related needs.
* A good knowledge of lifespan psychology applied to health care.
* Ability to communicate complex and sensitive information effectively in both oral and written formats, and in environments which are highly emotive and stressful.
* Commitment and ability to work with clients where there may be significant clinical, service, and system barriers to engagement.
* Computer literacy including skills in statistical packages, databases, and spreadsheets and in undertaking literature searches.
Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Please be aware, the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) when submitting an application is monitored and if you have used AI to generate an application, you are required to declare this on your application form. Failure to do so, may result in your application being withdrawn.
We want to highlight the importance of integrity and authenticity in your application form, and ask you to use AI tools responsibly to ensure your application form is a true reflection of your skills, knowledge and experiences.
We are looking for you to demonstrate personal experiences of how you meet the essential criteria and as an NHS Employer,we value authenticity and honesty.
Please consider that AI-generated content may lack specificity and fail to address key criteria outlined in the job description providing impersonal and inaccurate information.
Please ensure that you read the person specification attached below as your application will be measured against this document.
Applications from job share partners are welcome and other forms of flexible working will be considered for all posts.
For all posts which require a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check please be aware of the Disclosure and Barring Service Code of Practice, a copy of which is available by logging on to the DBS website. If the post is subject to DBS disclosure, a charge will be made to the successful candidate(s).
You are advised to consider applying for LSCft vacancies as soon as possible as in some instances vacancies are closed as soon as a sufficient number of applications have been received. If you are not invited to interview within three weeks of the closing date then please assume that on this occasion you have been unsuccessful, as it is not possible to contact all unsuccessful candidates.
LSCft is committed to celebrating difference as an asset and we know that recruiting talent from diverse backgrounds helps to create a more flexible, creative and effective workforce. We actively challenge discrimination and welcome applications from people regardless of age, disability (particularly those with experience of accessing or caring for someone who has accessed mental health or learning disability services), ethnicity, gender, religion or belief or sexual orientation. Our goal is for the Trust to be truly representative of the communities we serve so we are particularly keen to receive applications from people in under-represented groups. If there is anything you’d like to discuss in relation to your application then please ask.
Employer certification / accreditation badges
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.
Application numbers
This vacancy may close early if it receives a high number of applications. You are therefore advised to consider applying for this vacancy as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.
Name Dr. Claire Purtill Job title Principal Clinical Psychologist Telephone number 01772 406636
Additional information
If you would like further information or to discuss this role please contact Dr Claire Purtill, Principal Clinical Psychologist or Dr Christian O’Dea, Principal Clinical Psychologist on 01772 406636.
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