Band 7/8a Specialist Clinical Psychologist - Ardenleigh
Job summary 1 x 0.7 - Band 7/8a Practitioner Psychologist with preceptorship (permanent) - Ardenleigh Women's Secure Blended Service (full time An exciting job opportunity has arisen to recruit a band7/8a Practitioner Psychologist, with preceptorship, to join our innovative psychology team at Ardenleigh. The Women's Secure Blended Service (WSBS) at Ardenleigh has an incredible national reputation, having been a successful pilot site for the blended security model and a key influence in the National Women's Secure Pathway Transformation (WSPT) programme. The service is particularly proud of its gender sensitive, trauma informed model of care and commitment to co-production and improvement. We work alongside a number of professionals, providing safe, containing environments and interventions to help people understand themselves, their mental health and offending behaviour. The team has been at the forefront of service developments, such as establishing the Outreach Service to prevent avoidable admissions, developing partnership working across the pathway to improve quality of care, diversifying psychological therapies to meet the needs of the client group, and leading on the planning and delivery of a national conference in 2023. The service is currently developing a step-down accommodation to support transitions to the community, improving the pathway for women who access secure mental health services. Main duties of the job This exciting role offers the suitable candidate opportunities for leadership, service development and complex clinical work, with a rewarding client group. You will be joining a large and diverse psychological therapies team, consisting of clinical and forensic psychologists, arts therapists, specialist psychological practitioners and assistant psychologists. We currently have a 0.7wte team psychologist vacancy but if you are looking for a full-time role, please do get in touch and we can look to accommodate this within the division. The Practitioner Psychologist role will involve working alongside staff to ensure that service users have the most effective, efficient, relationally connected and contained experience. Within Ardenleigh we also have a strong service user involvement and co-production ethos, having developed group pathways, interventions and training. We will advocate for you to maintain all aspects of your professional role, including service development, research, therapeutic excellence, and leadership as appropriate. We are looking for registered Practitioner Psychologists who are interested in working in secure environments with highly sensitive content. Whilst secure experience will be highly desirable, we encourage a breadth of experience to help bring new thinking to our services as the culture evolves. About us Welcome to Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust. Our 4000 clinical and support staff help us to improve mental health wellbeing and meet the needs of the 70,000 people we serve each year. We provide a range of mental healthcare services across Birmingham and Solihull, as well as specialised services nationally. We also offer medical, nursing and psychology training and are proud of our international reputation for both research and innovation. Our population is culturally diverse, characterised in places by high levels of deprivation which create an increasing demand for our services and a necessity for us to make sure everyone can access the help they need. We are a team of compassionate, inclusive and committed people working together to provide excellent care to support our community. If you are looking for a place to belong, where you can make a real difference to people's lives, join our team where our warm welcome is waiting for you. Details Date posted 01 October 2026 Pay scheme Agenda for change Band Band 7 Salary £49,387 to £64,750 a year per annum, pro rata Contract Permanent Working pattern Full-time Reference number 436-8303924 Job locations Ardenleigh Birmingham B24 9SA United Kingdom Job description Job responsibilities For further information about the main responsibilities please view the attached job description and person specification. Psychology recruitment (youtube.com) Job description Job responsibilities For further information about the main responsibilities please view the attached job description and person specification. Psychology recruitment (youtube.com) Person Specification Qualifications Essential Satisfactory completion of a British Psychological Society accredited Doctoral Level postgraduate professional training course in clinical/forensic psychology completion of which includes the study of models of psychopathology, psychometric and neuropsychological assessment, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology. Eligibility for entry onto the Register of Chartered Psychologists Experience Essential Experience of specialist psychological assessment and individual and group based treatment of clients across the full range of care settings, including primary and secondary/ specialist care and inpatient/residential, outpatient and community team settings. Experience of working with a wide variety of client groups, including forensic contexts with clients of all ages across the lifespan and of wide-ranging presenting problems that reflect the full spectrum of clinical complexity and severity. Desirable At least 2 years post qualification experience, and formal training in supervision, enabling the post holder to independently supervise psychology trainees in accordance with relevant criteria adopted by local University Psychology Training Courses criteria. Knowledge Essential Well developed theoretical and practical knowledge of the field of clinical psychology, consistent with doctoral level professional training and further post qualification study, training and supervised experience during a minimum of 18 to 24 months as a Specialist Clinical/Forensic Psychologist. Highly developed interpersonal and communication skills (written and verbal) including the ability to empathically, sensitively and effectively communicate clinical and condition related information to clients, their families, carers and professional colleagues (within and outside the NHS) that is extremely complicated or technical; extremely sensitive and potentially distressing to the recipient; or that is extremely contentious or challenging. Skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment commensurate with doctoral level training, including specialist clinical interviewing, behavioural observation, complex psychometric testing and specialist neuropsychological testing. Skills in providing consultation and advice from a psychological perspective to members of other professional and non-professional groups Awareness and understanding of the differential needs of people from black and minority ethnic groups and of the service issues arising within a multicultural urban area. Desirable Knowledge of the theory and practice of specialised psychological therapies in specific 'difficult to treat' groups (e.g. personality disorder, challenging behaviour, dual diagnoses, people with additional disabilities etc). Knowledge of relevant legislation and DoH policy and implementation guidelines in relation to mental health in general and the client group with which this post is concerned. Personal Essential Ability to interact and to build and sustain relationships with people with mental health problems and associated disabilities Is a 'team player' and has demonstrated ability to work and deliver to team and organisational objectives Ability to interact effectively with staff from all disciplines. Other Essential Ability to accept and use supervision appropriately and effectively. Awareness and understanding of the purpose and mechanisms of clinical governance and an ability to employ such mechanisms to maintain and improve standards of clinical practice Person Specification Qualifications Essential Satisfactory completion of a British Psychological Society accredited Doctoral Level postgraduate professional training course in clinical/forensic psychology completion of which includes the study of models of psychopathology, psychometric and neuropsychological assessment, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology. Eligibility for entry onto the Register of Chartered Psychologists Experience Essential Experience of specialist psychological assessment and individual and group based treatment of clients across the full range of care settings, including primary and secondary/ specialist care and inpatient/residential, outpatient and community team settings. Experience of working with a wide variety of client groups, including forensic contexts with clients of all ages across the lifespan and of wide-ranging presenting problems that reflect the full spectrum of clinical complexity and severity. Desirable At least 2 years post qualification experience, and formal training in supervision, enabling the post holder to independently supervise psychology trainees in accordance with relevant criteria adopted by local University Psychology Training Courses criteria. Knowledge Essential Well developed theoretical and practical knowledge of the field of clinical psychology, consistent with doctoral level professional training and further post qualification study, training and supervised experience during a minimum of 18 to 24 months as a Specialist Clinical/Forensic Psychologist. Highly developed interpersonal and communication skills (written and verbal) including the ability to empathically, sensitively and effectively communicate clinical and condition related information to clients, their families, carers and professional colleagues (within and outside the NHS) that is extremely complicated or technical; extremely sensitive and potentially distressing to the recipient; or that is extremely contentious or challenging. Skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment commensurate with doctoral level training, including specialist clinical interviewing, behavioural observation, complex psychometric testing and specialist neuropsychological testing. Skills in providing consultation and advice from a psychological perspective to members of other professional and non-professional groups Awareness and understanding of the differential needs of people from black and minority ethnic groups and of the service issues arising within a multicultural urban area. Desirable Knowledge of the theory and practice of specialised psychological therapies in specific 'difficult to treat' groups (e.g. personality disorder, challenging behaviour, dual diagnoses, people with additional disabilities etc). Knowledge of relevant legislation and DoH policy and implementation guidelines in relation to mental health in general and the client group with which this post is concerned. Personal Essential Ability to interact and to build and sustain relationships with people with mental health problems and associated disabilities Is a 'team player' and has demonstrated ability to work and deliver to team and organisational objectives Ability to interact effectively with staff from all disciplines. Other Essential Ability to accept and use supervision appropriately and effectively. Awareness and understanding of the purpose and mechanisms of clinical governance and an ability to employ such mechanisms to maintain and improve standards of clinical practice 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 (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions. Certificate of Sponsorship Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab) . From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab) . UK Registration Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window). Additional information 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 (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions. Certificate of Sponsorship Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab) . From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab) . UK Registration Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
