Bank Psychological Therapist
The closing date is 22 June 2026
The Specialist Palliative Care Service based at the Priscilla Bacon Lodge is seeking a Psychological Therapist to join the team. The post holder will deliver evidence-based specialist counselling assessment and intervention for patients who have complex specialist palliative care needs from the point of diagnosis, throughout the illness, at end of life and into bereavement. This will also include providing specialist counselling support to the relatives of the patients as our service also extends to the wider family.
Main duties of the job
The post holder will manage their own supervised caseload primarily within an out-patient setting and maintain patient/client records accordingly. However, the post holder will also be able to apply their skills to meet the needs of in-patients, where the time frame may be shorter or in emergencies where there are high levels of distress.
A significant part of this role is the professional advice, consultation, clinical supervision and support for the wider Specialist Palliative Care Team. The focus of this is around the emotional impact of illness for the patient, their family and the staff caring for them with the aim of managing risk, noticing patterns of communication and harnessing alternative ways of coping.
Job responsibilities
* Deliver psychological assessment and intervention; demonstrating advanced clinical competence and knowledge, supported by appropriate professional registration (UKCP, BACP, BPS). This will involve face to face, telephone and video contact with patients and family members to discuss and work through complex, sensitive and personal information at any point in the patient pathway from diagnosis, transition to palliative care, end of life care and bereavement.
* Utilise a range of therapeutic tools/techniques to make decisions about treatment options which consider complex factors concerning historical, relational and developmental processes that have shaped the adult, family members and their difficulties, thus creating methods for client centred analysis of change.
* Identify appropriate follow-up; this is to ensure continuity of care, facilitate early recognition of recurring or new problems and enable referral on to another agency/service if required.
* Work with clients and their families, where there may be a need for high levels of reassurance and empathy when there is acute distress; this involves using psychotherapeutic skills in a more responsive way outside of the routine and established contract of therapy.
* Be accountable for own professional actions; the post-holder will be expected to manage their own caseload effectively, making the most of the time available.
* Work in collaboration with the wider Specialist Palliative Care Team on a regular basis to provide advice, support, debrief, consultation and supervision. This input may also extend to generalist colleagues across the place. The focus of this aspect of the role is to acknowledge the emotional impact of illness and to harness effective resources for the patient, their family and the staff caring for them.
Person Specification
Qualifications
* Relevant first degree in a psychological therapy.
* Registration with an accredited psychological organisation such as the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) or the United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP).
* Post graduate or post registration masters degree or willingness to work towards.
* Masters Degree in Psychotherapy.
Experience
* Evidence of using psychological interventions across the lifespan to a wide variety of client groups.
* Evidence of working with patients and family groups in a multidisciplinary way.
* Evidence of working in a health or social care setting and being able to adapt therapeutic treatment to the needs of specialist palliative care patients.
* Organises own or team workload.
* Palliative care/Oncology experience.
* Experience of training.
Skills, Abilities and Knowledge
* Able to demonstrate excellent person‑centred assessment skills.
* Ability to deliver complex psychological assessment and intervention to a minimum of Level 3 as outlined in NICE Supportive and Palliative Care Guidelines.
* Ability to work with patients/clients who express suicidal ideation, and to manage and communicate risk effectively with other health and social care professionals.
* Knowledge of the concept of ‘Total Pain’ and how to use this to inform complex symptom management.
* Counselling knowledge and expertise that can only be acquired through a combination of in‑depth experience and post registration study for example: EMDR, Compassion Focused Therapy, Systemic Family Therapy, Child Psychotherapeutic intervention, Internal Family Systems, Psycho‑spiritual models of counselling practice.
* Ability to adapt therapeutic skills in order to be responsive to the changing needs of the patient and family.
* Ability to make initial assessment of clients presenting with multiple and complex issues and to work with this in the context of illness and dying, selecting appropriate therapeutic treatments, whilst also making decisions regarding referrals to or working in collaboration with Mental Health Services as required.
* Ability to bear witness to and therapeutically hold the intense suffering of patients and families as the patient moves towards the end of life and adapt therapeutic skills and objectives accordingly.
* Ability to work both independently and within a team.
* Ability to work under pressure and time‑manage accordingly.
Communication
* Excellent listening and ajuntion skills.
* Provides and receives highly complex, sensitive or contentious information.
* Working in a highly emotive atmosphere where there is a need for reassurance and ability to provide trusting empathic, relational context to gain agreement for therapeutic work.
* Recognising that illness and dying is the context for the therapeutic intervention and being able to assimilate this into practice in relation to goals.
* Ability to work with patients and families where there are high levels of distress, previous history of trauma and where there is likely to be the need for conflict resolution and mediation.
* Ability to communicate highly sensitive information to wider multidisciplinary teams including primary care, social care and safeguarding.
Personal and People Development
* Experience of providing clinical supervision to a range of counsellors, supports and monitors trainees/associate counsellors, students undertaking placements and provides specialist training to other disciplines.
* Experience of training.
* Ability to provide clinical incident de‑briefing.
* Providing specialist advice to other disciplines and services.
* Contribute to the development of counselling services, implementing policies and proposing changes to practice, ways of working (including patient flow, wait times, etc.) which will impact the service but also wider Specialist Palliative Care and community teams.
* Reviews caseload statistics, participates in complex audit activities, evaluation and outcome modelling. Carries out research projects in own areas of practice.
* Careful use of the counselling facilities including the range of therapeutic resources, art equipment, IT and specialist therapeutic resources.
Personal Attributes / Behaviours
* Able to identify with the Trusts commitment to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people/vulnerable adults.
Other
* The post holder will need to be passed fit to perform full duties of the post through occupational health with any reasonable aids and adaptations if necessary. Some roles require additional level of checks as part of the employment process i.e. roles which come into contact with children, vulnerable adults or their families.
* Must hold full and valid driving licence and have access to a vehicle (if applicable).
* Able to communicate effectively in written and verbal English language.
* Confident keyboard skills and ability to use computerised and paper-based data to access clinical information and update medical records following therapy sessions.
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.
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