Principal Clinical/Counselling Psychologist
NHS AfC: Band 8b
Main area Mental health. Grade NHS AfC: Band 8b. Contract: Permanent. Hours: 30 hours per week, part time, flexible working. Job ref 437-8009178.
Site: Manchester Royal Infirmary, Town Manchester. Salary: £66,582 – £77,368 per annum. Closing 11/06/2026 23:59.
Job overview
An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Principal Clinical/Counselling Psychologist to join the Central Manchester Mental Health Liaison Team (MHLT). The postholder will be responsible for providing and clinically leading a high-quality psychology service within the team for people experiencing mental and physical ill‑health.
You will join a well established, multi‑disciplinary service, providing care to patients presenting with a suspected or actual mental health difficulty in either the Emergency Department or on the acute hospital wards. We work closely alongside our acute colleagues to ensure that any patient receives a high quality level of care for their mental health, alongside any physical health difficulties.
Main duties of the job
Provide direct face‑to‑face clinical sessions in which they will carry out highly specialist psychological assessments, leading to the co‑development of formulations to guide sign‑posting and/or subsequent short‑term interventions and contribute to the team‑based care planning and change‑focused work. The post holder will be expected to provide one‑to‑one, family and group intervention work as appropriate.
Support the implementation of trauma‑informed ways of working by facilitating the development of MHLT colleague’s psychosocial intervention knowledge and skills. This may also be by the provision of co‑working opportunities, supervision, consultation and liaison sessions, as well as formulation sessions, in‑house training events, reflective practice sessions and de‑briefs, and staff‑focused well‑being initiatives.
Contribute to maintaining a culture of person‑centred care and personal recovery within the team by liaising with colleagues across organisations, attending MHLT MDT meetings, and other MDT and professionals meetings as required.
Close co‑working with MHLT senior colleagues will be key, and the postholder will be expected to contribute to service development initiatives and their evaluation by audit and research work as required to support and enable the service’s adaptation to future changes to delivery as required.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
- Pay Enhancements – 30% additional for Evenings (8pm onwards) and Saturdays and 60% additional for Sundays and Bank holidays.
- 27 days annual leave plus bank holidays rising to 29 after 5 years and 33 days after 10 years.
- Post‑graduate doctorate in clinical or counselling psychology (or its equivalent for those trained prior to 1996) and current registration as a Practitioner Psychologist with the Health and Care Professions Council.
- Willingness to undertake appropriate supervisory courses.
- Specialist training and accreditation (where available) in evidence‑based therapies as agreed with the service (e.g., CAT or CBT).
- Completion of relevant modules of Accredited Doctoral Clinical Psychology Course: Introduction to Supervision Courses (approx. 30 hours) or equivalent, or professional equivalent e.g. CAT supervisor training.
Experience
- Experience of specialist psychological assessment and treatment of complex and often co‑occurring mental health problems.
- Experience of specialist assessment and treatment of people experiencing mental and physical ill‑health.
- Experience of developing psychological formulations to inform care for service users and care teams i.e., systemic formulation of complex needs.
- Experience of providing clinical leadership to teams providing complex care (i.e., MDT‑based care).
- Experience of working with people with complex mental health problems, including problems associated with complex relational and emotional needs, distressing psychosis and severe depression, anxiety, co‑morbid substance misuse, suicidal thoughts and trauma.
- Experience of leading audit and service evaluation.
- Experience of providing clinical supervision to psychologists, psychological therapists or other core health professions and non‑therapists.
- Experience of working within an MHLT.
- Research experience within an area relevant to role.
- Demonstrable experience of the application of psychological therapy in diverse cultural and ethnic contexts.
- Experience of working across different age groups.
- Demonstrable experience of managing demand for psychological services via a stepped‑care framework.
Knowledge
- Knowledge and understanding of the national and regional legislation, guidance and policy directives in relation to the development and delivery of psychological therapies within acute services and specifically MHL services.
- Evidence of post‑qualification CPD as recommended and/or accredited by the BPS, or other professional body.
- Up‑to‑date knowledge of the needs of people with complex mental health problems and interaction with physical health problems.
- Familiarity with computing technology, including keyboard skills, and use of word‑processing, e‑mail, and internet software.
Skills & Abilities
- Excellent interpersonal skills.
- Ability to work with service users, carers and families to engage with their needs and provide appropriate psychological support and intervention.
- Skills in providing and communicating psychological consultation to other professionals and non‑professionals.
- Excellent communication skills, both oral and written, enabling the communication of complex, highly technical and/or clinically sensitive information with clients, their families, carers and other professional colleagues within the NHS and other agencies.
- Ability to plan and prioritise work, operate a waiting list, meet short deadlines and an unpredictable work pattern that requires regular revision of plans.
- Ability to sit in constrained position for client therapy, testing and for computer work.
- Ability to work at a high level of professional autonomy and responsibility, in a collaborative multi‑disciplinary environment and also as a lone worker in circumstances where there may be exposure to conflict.
- Ability to teach and train others, using a variety of complex multi‑media materials, suitable for presentations within public, professional and academic settings.
- Ability to demonstrate an area of special interest/skill in therapeutic intervention.
Other Requirements
- Ability to identify and employ mechanisms of clinical governance as appropriate, to support and maintain clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive material and challenging behaviour.
- Ability to work towards goals agreed at Individual Appraisal with the Service Manager.
- Ability to work to professional guidelines.
EEO Statement
We are aspiring to ensure our workforce is representative of the diverse communities that we serve, and we are strongly committed to removing barriers to employment for candidates from under‑represented groups, for example BAME, Disabled and LGBT+ communities.
Employer certification / accreditation badges
You must have appropriate UK professional registration.
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.
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