Clinical or Counselling Psychologist Older Adults Ward inDewsbury inDewsbury PUBLISHED 6 NOV 2024

Band 8a: £46,148 to £60,504 a year  PERMANENT  GOOD SALARY 

This job description is an outline of the main duties of the post.


37.5 Hours Per Week

This role is a great opportunity to support older people and provide continuity of psychological care throughout their mental health treatment.

The post will be based on Ward 19 in Dewsbury (older adults mental health and dementia ward) and working as part of the Kirklees Outreach Team (KOT, older adults crisis team), a friendly and welcoming team who are keen for psychology input.

Supervision provided by the ward-based Consultant Clinical Psychologist. We prioritise CPD and development opportunities. Full-time preferred, part-time would be possible.

Applications welcome from newly qualified or third year trainees for a preceptorship post at Band 7 to join the service and undertake a development plan with the aim of developing the required competencies for an 8a post.

The candidate would need to successfully complete the competency framework before they gain the band 8a, and this would not be achieved solely due to length of time in post.

For full job description, please see attached supporting documents.

We are aware that an increasing number of applicants are using AI technology to generate responses on NHS Job application forms. Over reliance on AI-generated content in application forms is strongly discouraged and we will conduct a thorough screening process before selecting candidates to progress to the next stage. If you are using AI to enhance your application, please disclose this in your NHS Jobs application form.

The post holder will work closely with KOT, a crisis service providing intensive support to people in the own homes to both avoid inpatient admission and to support discharge from hospital.

There will be opportunities for short- and longer-term input with service users, including supporting them through admissions, and continuing individual work on discharge from the ward, and from KOT to the CMHT.

The post holder will also work with staff in KOT, the CMHT and the ward to encourage strong links and psychological care planning across the crisis pathway, providing psychological expertise when working with people who might be in crisis, with the aim of supporting multi-disciplinary colleagues with risk assessment, formulation, and psychologically informed intervention.

We are looking for someone with a clear interest in working with older people to join our active and growing network of older peoples psychologists in South West Yorkshire.


All employees of the Trust are strongly encouraged to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 to protect patients.

About us

This job description is an outline of the main duties of the post. The post holder will be required to undertake other duties commensurate with the grade as directed.

The content of this post will be reviewed in consultation with the post holder when necessary and in line with the service developments.

The post holder will provide a high quality specialist clinical psychology service to clients as part of the multidisciplinary team within the service.

Provide highly specialist psychological assessment and intervention.

Provide advice and consultation on psychological care to non-psychologist colleagues, and other, non-professional carers, working autonomously within professional guidelines, and the overall framework of the team and trusts policies and procedures.

Supervise and support Psychology Assistants, Trainees and Band 7 HCPC Registered Clinical Psychologists.

To utilise research skills for audit, policy, service development and research within the areas served by the team & service.

To offer consultation and supervision when required by other agencies involved in the psychological, emotional and behavioural well-being of service users.

To provide supervision of Band 7 Clinical Psychologists, doctoral level clinical psychology trainees, assistant psychologists and trainees from other disciplines as appropriate.

To provide highly specialist psychological assessment and treatment for service users experiencing moderate, severe and complex mental health/psychological problems based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex data from a variety of sources including psychological and neuropsychological tests, self-report measures, rating scales, direct and indirect observation and semi-structured interviews with service users, their family and/or carers.

To formulate and implement plans for the formal psychological intervention and/or management of mental health/psychological and/or behavioural difficulties based upon an appropriate conceptual framework and exercising expert clinical judgement based on the highest standards of evidence based practice across a full range of care settings.

To establish rapport and build effective working relationships with service users and all those involved in their psychological, emotional and behavioural well-being.

To evaluate and make decisions about treatment options taking into account theoretical and therapeutic models and highly complex factors concerning historical and developmental processes.

To work jointly with other team members and professionals in delivering the most appropriate clinical service to service users and, where appropriate, their families/carers.

To follow appropriate local Safeguarding Adults and Children policies in all clinical work, including close liaison with all relevant agencies.

To provide specialist risk assessment of, and intervention to, service users who may present in local acute settings in line with agreed procedures.

To liaise and consult with the wider professional network in the care of service users, offering consultation and supervision where necessary.

To exercise autonomous professional responsibility for the assessment, treatment and discharge of clients whose problems are managed by psychological interventions and to autonomously manage a caseload of clients.

To contribute directly and indirectly to a psychologically based framework of understanding and care to the benefit of all service users, the settings in which they present, and agencies involved in the psychological, emotional and behavioural well-being.

To communicate in a skilled and sensitive manner, information concerning the assessment, formulation and treatment plans of clients under their care and to effectively evaluate progress.

To participate in the multi-disciplinary assessment and treatment of service users.


37.5 Hours Per Week

This role is a great opportunity to support older people and provide continuity of psychological care throughout their mental health treatment.

The post will be based on Ward 19 in Dewsbury (older adults mental health and dementia ward) and working as part of the Kirklees Outreach Team (KOT, older adults crisis team), a friendly and welcoming team who are keen for psychology input.

Supervision provided by the ward-based Consultant Clinical Psychologist. We prioritise CPD and development opportunities. Full-time preferred, part-time would be possible.

Applications welcome from newly qualified or third year trainees for a preceptorship post at Band 7 to join the service and undertake a development plan with the aim of developing the required competencies for an 8a post.

The candidate would need to successfully complete the competency framework before they gain the band 8a, and this would not be achieved solely due to length of time in post.

For full job description, please see attached supporting documents.

We are aware that an increasing number of applicants are using AI technology to generate responses on NHS Job application forms. Over reliance on AI-generated content in application forms is strongly discouraged and we will conduct a thorough screening process before selecting candidates to progress to the next stage. If you are using AI to enhance your application, please disclose this in your NHS Jobs application form.

The post holder will work closely with KOT, a crisis service providing intensive support to people in the own homes to both avoid inpatient admission and to support discharge from hospital.

There will be opportunities for short- and longer-term input with service users, including supporting them through admissions, and continuing individual work on discharge from the ward, and from KOT to the CMHT.

The post holder will also work with staff in KOT, the CMHT and the ward to encourage strong links and psychological care planning across the crisis pathway, providing psychological expertise when working with people who might be in crisis, with the aim of supporting multi-disciplinary colleagues with risk assessment, formulation, and psychologically informed intervention.

We are looking for someone with a clear interest in working with older people to join our active and growing network of older peoples psychologists in South West Yorkshire.


All employees of the Trust are strongly encouraged to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 to protect patients.

About us

This job description is an outline of the main duties of the post. The post holder will be required to undertake other duties commensurate with the grade as directed.

The content of this post will be reviewed in consultation with the post holder when necessary and in line with the service developments.

The post holder will provide a high quality specialist clinical psychology service to clients as part of the multidisciplinary team within the service.

Provide highly specialist psychological assessment and intervention.

Provide advice and consultation on psychological care to non-psychologist colleagues, and other, non-professional carers, working autonomously within professional guidelines, and the overall framework of the team and trusts policies and procedures.

Supervise and support Psychology Assistants, Trainees and Band 7 HCPC Registered Clinical Psychologists.

To utilise research skills for audit, policy, service development and research within the areas served by the team & service.

To offer consultation and supervision when required by other agencies involved in the psychological, emotional and behavioural well-being of service users.

To provide supervision of Band 7 Clinical Psychologists, doctoral level clinical psychology trainees, assistant psychologists and trainees from other disciplines as appropriate.

To provide highly specialist psychological assessment and treatment for service users experiencing moderate, severe and complex mental health/psychological problems based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex data from a variety of sources including psychological and neuropsychological tests, self-report measures, rating scales, direct and indirect observation and semi-structured interviews with service users, their family and/or carers.

To formulate and implement plans for the formal psychological intervention and/or management of mental health/psychological and/or behavioural difficulties based upon an appropriate conceptual framework and exercising expert clinical judgement based on the highest standards of evidence based practice across a full range of care settings.

To establish rapport and build effective working relationships with service users and all those involved in their psychological, emotional and behavioural well-being.

To evaluate and make decisions about treatment options taking into account theoretical and therapeutic models and highly complex factors concerning historical and developmental processes.

To work jointly with other team members and professionals in delivering the most appropriate clinical service to service users and, where appropriate, their families/carers.

To follow appropriate local Safeguarding Adults and Children policies in all clinical work, including close liaison with all relevant agencies.

To provide specialist risk assessment of, and intervention to, service users who may present in local acute settings in line with agreed procedures.

To liaise and consult with the wider professional network in the care of service users, offering consultation and supervision where necessary.

To exercise autonomous professional responsibility for the assessment, treatment and discharge of clients whose problems are managed by psychological interventions and to autonomously manage a caseload of clients.

To contribute directly and indirectly to a psychologically based framework of understanding and care to the benefit of all service users, the settings in which they present, and agencies involved in the psychological, emotional and behavioural well-being.

To communicate in a skilled and sensitive manner, information concerning the assessment, formulation and treatment plans of clients under their care and to effectively evaluate progress.

To participate in the multi-disciplinary assessment and treatment of service users.



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