Job summary
- Main area
- Physiotherapist
- Grade
- Band 8a
- Contract
- Permanent
- Hours
- 18.5 hours per week (Part time - 18.5 hours per week)
- Job ref
- 222-SF-738
- Employer
- West London NHS Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- St Bernard's Hospital
- Town
- London
- Salary
- £63,665 - £70,887 per annum pro rata inclusive of HCAS
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 05/07/2026 23:59
- Interview date
- 16/07/2026
Employer heading
Band 8a Highly Specialist Adult Psychotherapist
Band 8a
West London NHS Trust provides a full range of mental health, community and physical healthcare services for children, adults and older people living in the London boroughs of Ealing, Hammersmith & Fulham and Hounslow.
We also provide some specialist services that are commissioned regionally, such as our medium secure services; and nationally, such as the Cassel Hospital for people with complex and severe personality disorder and our high secure services at Broadmoor Hospital.
Job overview
Highly Specialist Psychoanalytic/Psychodynamic Psychotherapist
An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Highly Specialist Psychoanalytic/Psychodynamic Psychotherapist to join West London Forensic Services. This is a part-time permanent post (18.75 hours per week), offering the chance to provide specialist expertise within a service committed to reflective practice and high-quality, patient-centred care.
The post holder will deliver a specialist psychoanalytically informed psychotherapy service to patients with severe and complex needs within forensic settings. This includes undertaking assessments and providing individual and group psychodynamic psychotherapy, including Mentalisation-Based Treatment (MBT).
You will play a key role in developing the therapeutic ward environment, including facilitating reflective practice groups to support staff in managing the emotional impact of working with complex patients.
The role also involves providing specialist consultation to multidisciplinary teams and delivering supervision to qualified staff, honorary therapists and trainees.
Working autonomously within professional and Trust guidelines, you will contribute to service development through collaboration, teaching, training, audit and research across WLFS and the wider Trust.
Main duties of the job
To provide a comprehensive and highly specialised psychodynamic psychotherapy service to mentally disordered offenders with severe and enduring mental health conditions (including mental illness and/or personality disorder) and complex forensic histories.
To undertake specialist assessments for individual and group psychodynamic psychotherapy, integrating complex information from multiple sources such as referrals, clinical history, liaison with services, CPA and risk documentation, RiO records, and patient-reported measures.
To communicate assessment outcomes to referrers through detailed reports, including psychodynamic formulation and recommendations regarding treatment suitability, modality (group or individual; short or long-term), patient–therapist matching, risk formulation, and future care planning.
To manage an independent clinical caseload of patients with complex and long-term therapeutic needs, delivering both individual and group interventions.
To take on Care Coordinator responsibilities where appropriate, particularly for patients seen by honorary therapists, trainees, or supervised staff.
To communicate effectively and sensitively with patients, carers, and colleagues, supporting engagement and collaborative multidisciplinary working.
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 and Training
Essential criteria
- A BPC accredited (or equivalent) qualification as a Psychoanalytic Psychotherapist or Psychoanalyst (or being close to obtaining this)
- Qualification in a core profession e.g. medical, psychology, social work, nursing, teaching or extensive clinical experience at post-qualification level.
- Relevant honours degree or a recognised equivalent.
Desirable criteria
- Recognised further training in other modality or type of psychotherapy e.g. group psychotherapy
Experience
Essential criteria
- A personal analytical psychotherapy or psychoanalysis of at least three times per week and of sufficient intensity and duration to be able to work according to psychoanalytic principles with the most difficult and demanding cases
- Experience in assessment and treatment, including individual psychoanalytic psychotherapy, in an outpatient setting
- Experience in carrying own caseload in psychoanalytic psychotherapy, working independently and autonomously as a specialist practitioner.
Desirable criteria
- Experience in offering consultation, staff support and reflective practice to multidisciplinary staff teams and other professionals.
- Experience of clinically supervising, teaching and training junior staff and trainees.
- Experience of representing psychotherapy within the context of multi-disciplinary care.
- Experience of the application of psychodynamic thinking in different cultural contexts.
Knowledge and Skills
Essential criteria
- Well-developed ability to effectively communicate highly sensitive and/or technical information to patients, as well as to professional colleagues within and outside the NHS both orally and in writing.
- Knowledge of psychotherapy research and relevant national treatment guidelines.
- Knowledge of relevant legislation and policy and its implication for clinical practice, professional management and service development.
- Evidence of on-going commitment to relevant CPD.
- Ability to respond flexibly to service developments and patient needs.
- Knowledge of and respect for other psychological treatment models employed in the NHS together with an understanding of the role of psychodynamic psychotherapy in a modern NHS Mental Health Service
- Adequate keyboard skills and an ability to use Word, email and internet. Some familiarity with other software such as Excel and PowerPoint
- Ability to respond flexibly to service developments and patient needs.
Desirable criteria
- Knowledge of different pathways of care and mental health provision available in statutory and non-statutory sectors.
- Knowledge of psychiatric diagnoses and treatments.
- Knowledge of audit and research design and methodology, including techniques of analysing quantitative and qualitative data.
- Well-developed knowledge of the theory and practice of specialised psychotherapeutic approaches to the care of specific difficult to treat groups including personality disorder
Employer certification / accreditation badges
Applicant requirements
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.
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Katherine Papaspirou
- Job title
- Forensic Psychotherapist and Departmental Lead
- Email address
- [email protected]
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