Job overview
An exciting opportunity has arisen for an enthusiastic and ambitious Assistant Psychologist within the Mental Health Autism Team. The service has recently expanded to cover a defined cohort of autistic service users within community mental health services, who are at increased risk of readmissions to inpatient mental health services or frequently utilise unplanned care.
The post spans acute and community mental health services across Ealing, Hammersmith & Fulham and Hounslow. The post will be based across both Hammersmith and Fulham and Lakeside Mental Health Units, but will involve outreach provision and therefore travel across all three boroughs.
This role is intended to support autistic service users accessing inpatient or crisis mental health services. The service also supports people at increased risk of readmission, with the overall aim of improving the care and experience of admissions and supporting earlier, sustainable and safe discharges, and reducing the risk of readmissions. You will be an integral part of the Mental Health Autism Team in promoting safe, effective and therapeutic care for autistic adults in acute and community mental health services. This role gives the opportunity to develop service evaluation and audit skills, in addition to delivering individually-tailored interventions, including planning for and facilitating transitions
Main duties of the job
This post offers an exciting opportunity for an ambitious and enthusiastic Assistant Psychologist, looking to gain experience in both mental health and autism. The successful candidate will offer a thorough, compassionate and evidence-based service to adults with a suspected or confirmed diagnosis of autism within inpatient and crisis mental health services. The post will also involve an outreach component, offering community-based input to autistic adults at risk of readmission or who frequently utilise unplanned care.
As an integral member of the Mental Health Autism Team, the post holder will have knowledge and understanding of taking a strengths-based approach to working with autistic people, supporting the individual and teams to identify and meet unmet needs. The role offers opportunities for service development and clinical audits. Multidisciplinary joint working will be central to the development of integrated care, and fostering strong relationships with stakeholders will be key.
Samia Ezzamel (Autism Lead & Consultant Psychological Therapist):
Emma Turner (Principal Dramatherapist):
Working for our organisation
West London NHS Trust is one of the most diverse healthcare providers in the UK, delivering a range of mental health and physical healthcare and community services. The Trust runs Broadmoor Hospital, one of three high secure hospitals in the country, with an international reputation.
Our high secure services care for patients from South of England and we provide low and medium secure services across eight London boroughs. The Trust also provides mental and physical healthcare in three London boroughs (Ealing, Hounslow and Hammersmith & Fulham). We employ over 5,000 staff, of whom 59% are BME. Our turnover for 2024-25 is over £500m.
The Trust is rated as ‘Good’ overall by the Care Quality Commission. Forensic services are rated as ‘Outstanding’.
The Trust is an established partner and contributor in the development of the evolving North West London Integrated Care System and the Integrated Care Board. The Trust leads the NW London Children and Adolescent Mental Health provider collaborative
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
The Candidate Pack provides an overview of the key tasks and responsibilities of the role, and the person specification outlines the qualifications, skills, experience and knowledge required. Please view as attached
The person specification below is not the full person specification, but outlines the criteria against which your application form will be assessed.
Person specification
Qualifications & Training
Essential criteria
1. An approved qualification in psychology conferring eligibility for graduate basis for registration with the British Psychological Society, with either a Bachelor’s degree (Class 2.2 or higher)
2. Attained at least Level 2 Maths and English (equivalent to GCSE grade 9-4 (A*-C))
Desirable criteria
3. Attendance at specialist short courses relevant to the post (e.g. Positive Behaviour Support, Autism, Trauma Informed Care, Group Approaches)
4. Low intensity PGCert in CBT
5. DBT training/ PBS training
Experience
Essential criteria
6. At least 6 months’ experience working in a role providing behavioural interventions or lowintensity CBT or DBT in individual and/or group format supervised by a qualified psychological therapist in adult mental health, forensic, learning disability or primary care services.
7. Experience in a clinical capacity with adults with severe and enduring mental health problems or autistic people.
8. Experience of working in mental health services (crisis, inpatient or community) or within a specialist autism or learning disability setting.
9. Experience of working in a multi-cultural service
Desirable criteria
10. Work with voluntary organisations
11. Work with interpreters
12. Lived experience of autism or mental health difficulties and/or previous participation in personal therapy.
13. Conducting service-related research
Skills & Knowledge
Essential criteria
14. An understanding of the basic tenet of Positive Behaviour Support, CBT or another psychological model (DBT/ behavioural) and how this is applied to service users with severe and enduring mental health problems and/or autistic people.
15. To be able to interview a service user to identify presenting problems and elicit information about their recent circumstances, their life experiences incorporating all aspects of diversity.
16. To be able to elicit information about existing coping strategies and support the service user with developing an understanding of their current difficulties.
17. To understand the concept of stabilisation, psychological containment and validation and the rational for these in an acute/crisis setting.
18. To be able to identify the impact of environmental factors on the autistic person a
19. make recommendations to support the implementation of reasonable adjustments for autistic people within environment.
20. To communicate verbally using a tone and pace which convey empathy, care, compassion, kindness, and a genuine concern for well-being, and adapt communication to the person’s specific communication differences.
21. Able to make judgements based on psychological knowledge, clinical information and environmental events within a session and make decisions on this basis e.g. with regard to feedback to nursing or other staff.
22. Ability to communicate complex, sensitive and potentially contentious information to service users in a way that addresses psychological resistance and the propensity of the service users towards hostile reactions.
23. To know when to raise a safeguarding concern and when it is necessary to seek immediate clinical supervision.
24. To understand psychiatric diagnosis and the requirement to communicate about diagnoses, whilst also acknowledging the alternative in the form of a formulation.
25. Able to respond adaptably to rapidly changing service demands
26. An ability to document clinical information in the care record in an accurate, concise and nonjudgemental manner which supports a psychological understanding to be developed by qualified psychological therapists.
27. To be able to understand the tasks required on a shift and support planning and delivery of these by ensuring all tasks are completed by taking responsibility to personal duties and being ready to start promptly with tasks.
28. Use IT packages – word processing, e-mail and internet, SPSS, Excel and Access
29. Ability to use or learn NHS clinical systems
30. Able to function in potentially traumatic circumstances and in highly emotionally distressing circumstances on a frequent basis (e.g. in dealing with service users with serious mental illness, histories of homicide and serious violence, self-harm, sexual abuse).
31. Able to maintain light physical effort for short periods
32. Able to maintain intense concentration frequently with service users and maintain interest in them as a person.
33. Awareness of diversity of cultural norms and being able to respond to this appropriately
34. Work cross-culturally and/or in different languages
35. Accept accountability for own work, and of working towards defined results
Desirable criteria
36. To know about systems based interventions supporting clinical safety, e.g. Positive Behaviour Support, Safewards, No Force First,
37. To know how to adapt the delivery of interventions to autistic people.
38. To have an understanding of traumainformed care.
39. To have an understanding of sensory differences in autistic people and how to develop interventions in response to identified sensory differences.
40. To understand the 5Ps formulation model and develop a 5Ps formulation tailored to the individual.
Personal Qualities
Essential criteria
41. Ability to discuss personal reactions (thoughts, feelings, behaviours) in clinical supervision, reflective practice, formulation meetings to plan safer therapeutic care.
42. A desire to motivate, encourage, support others, and contribute to a collective care offer from the MDT that results in a positive experience for staff and service users. This might include developing confidence in expressing an opinion which is different from the dominant view.
43. A desire to learn and use non-pathological language and terms which imply chronic disability and negatively impact of self-esteem and undermine recovery.
44. To be able to tolerate witnessing extreme behaviour and listening to life histories which might contain disturbing facts (sexual trauma, physical abuse, neglect, violence, political and civil wars which deviate from the dominant accepted norm in the UK).
45. To have an optimistic and pragmatic attitude and a proactive approach to identifying and implementing solutions which aid in smooth patient care.
46. To be interested in a wide range of psychological concepts and show enthusiasm and interest in learning about a range of approaches (Systemic, behavioural, Trauma-informed, CBT, DBT, ACT, CAT, Schema).
Other
Essential criteria
47. Knowledge of the professional code of conduct of the BPS and the Health Care Professionals Council.
48. To be capable of being guided by precedent, clearly defined policies, procedures and codes of conduct.
49. To adhere to the security procedures within the setting.
50. Able to accept the professional advice and guidance of qualified psychological therapists.
Desirable criteria
51. A desire to explore a career in professional psychology and progress to a higher assistant band, clinical associate psychologist training or a doctorate training course in psychology.