Job summary
- Main area
- Psychology
- Grade
- Band 5
- Contract
- Fixed term: 12 months (with the possibility of extension subject to funding)
- Hours
- Full time - 37.5 hours per week
- Job ref
- 267-CS46708037
- Employer
- Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- New Radcliffe House
- Town
- Oxford
- Salary
- £31,049 - £37,796 per annum
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 16/10/2025 23:59
Employer heading
Assistant Psychologist - Clinical Research
Band 5
Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust has been rated as Good by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).
We are a responsive and innovative Foundation Trust that places our values of Caring, Safe and Excellent at the heart of everything we do. We take great pride in our staff and believe that investing in you is key to us achieving our vision of outstanding care delivered by outstanding people.
We work with a wide range of partner organisations to deliver care and support to people in their own homes and from a number of hospitals and community bases. We focus on delivering care as close to home as possible for people of all ages across Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Swindon, Wiltshire, Bath and North East Somerset.
We actively support anti-racism, equality, diversity, and inclusion so, if you’re excited about this job opportunity and you meet our Trust values, but feel unsure about applying, then please get in touch and we will be happy to have a conversation with you.
We are also committed to increasing diversity in the workforce, that is why we actively encourage applications from those groups of people who are currently under-represented, which include amongst others: people with disabilities; men from all socio-economic backgrounds; people from diverse ethnic backgrounds; and people from the LGBTQIA+ community.
Good luck and we hope to hear from you.
Job overview
We are seeking an Assistant Psychologist to join us in delivering a new national centralised clinic. The clinic will recruit patients at NHS mental health trusts across the UK to take part in two of our trials: Feeling Safer (ISRCTN93974770) and Sleeping Better (ISRCTN71800376).
Feeling Safer is testing a six-month supported online programme for patients experiencing persecutory delusions. Sleeping Better is testing a 12-week remote intervention for helping improve sleep with patients with psychosis and young people at ultra-high risk of psychosis. This role will support the liaison with clinical teams and NHS R&D offices across the UK, recruiting patients, and carrying out the trial assessments.
You'll be part of the Oxford Cognitive Approaches to Psychosis (O-CAP) clinical research group based in the Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford. We are a large clinical research team (40 people) working to understand why mental health problems happen and how they can be best treated psychologically. It is a thriving and supportive clinical research group that aims to carry out work to the highest standards for patients.
If you have experience of psychological research including participant recruitment and a Degree in Psychology (2:1 or above), we'd love to hear from you!
Main duties of the job
- Supporting a clinical psychologist to form excellent relationships with NHS mental health trusts in the UK to work effectively in helping patients with psychosis and young people at ultra-high risk of psychosis take part in Feeling Safer or Sleeping Better.
- Screening and recruitment of patients experiencing persecutory delusions (in the context of the treatment of psychosis) into the Feeling Safer trial. Screening and recruitment of patients at ultra-high risk of psychosis experiencing sleep difficulties into the Sleeping Better trial. This will involve: speaking to referrers regularly, including clinical team members and Research Delivery Network (RDN) staff; checking eligibility; and explaining the trial to potential participants. There will be monthly recruitment targets.
- Completing eligibility screening assessments and seeking informed consent from patients.
- Carrying out the assessments at multiple timepoints. You will need to arrange these interviews and administer clinical interviews and self-report questionnaires.
- It will be crucial to maintain very high follow-up rates , meaning you will need excellent engagement skills.
- The post is based in-person at the O-CAP team base in Oxford.
Please refer to the job description attached for a comprehensive list of duties.
Working for our organisation
Oxford Health is a great place to work and to be able to showcase the best of yourself when making an application please read the “candidate guide to making an application” and ensure your supporting statement is tailored to the role you are applying for and addresses any essential criteria.
As a Trust we provide physical, mental health and social care for people of all ages across Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Swindon, Wiltshire, Bath and Northeast Somerset. Our services are delivered at community bases, hospitals, clinics and people’s homes, delivering care as close to home as possible. Our vision is that no matter who you are or where you are, you will tell us that you receive: “Outstanding care delivered by an outstanding team”
Our values are: “Caring, safe and excellent”
At Oxford Health we offer a wide range of benefits designed to support your career and wellbeing. These include:
- Excellent opportunities for career progression
- Access to tailored individual and Trust wide learning and development
- 27 days annual leave, plus bank holidays, rising to 33 days with continuous service
- NHS Discount across a wide range of shops, restaurants and retailers
- Competitive pension scheme
- Lease car scheme
- Cycle to work scheme
- Employee Assistance Programme
- Mental Health First Aiders
- Staff accommodation (please note waiting lists may apply)
- Staff networking and support groups hosted by our Equality, Diversity & Inclusion team
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
The primary base will be in the Oxford Cognitive Approaches to Psychosis (O-CAP) team in the Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford. Although based at Oxford and liaising with collaborating NHS primarily remotely, you are likely to travel to project sites.
Interested applicants will find the type of work described in these two publications:
Freeman, D., Emsley, R., Rosebrock, L., Morrison, A., Chapman, K., Common, S., ... & Waite, F. (2025). Efficacy of a 6-month supported online programme (Feeling Safer) for the treatment of persecutory delusions: protocol for a randomised controlled trial. BMJ open, 15(6), e104580.
Waite, F., Černis, E., Kabir, T., Iredale, E., Johns, L., Maughan, D., ... & Freeman, D. (2023). A targeted psychological treatment for sleep problems in young people at ultra-high risk of psychosis in England (SleepWell): a parallel group, single-blind, randomised controlled feasibility trial. The Lancet Psychiatry, 10(9), 706-718.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- Degree in Psychology 2.1 or above
Experience
Essential criteria
- Experience of psychological research
- Experience of recruiting to a research study.
Desirable criteria
- Experience of working within NHS mental health clinical teams
- Experience working with patients with psychosis or young people at ultra-high-risk of psychosis
- Experience of providing an intervention for patients with mental health difficulties.
- Experience of using psychiatric or psychological assessments.
Knowledge & Skills
Essential criteria
- Ability to engage young people and patients having experiences such as paranoia, hearing voices, anxiety and depression, and who may be in acute distress.
- Interest and knowledge of psychosis
- Knowledge of clinical trials methodology and experimental psychology.
- An interest in psychological approaches to understanding and treating psychosis.
- Ability to write clearly and concisely, and produce reports quickly and accurately.
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
- Dr Felicity Waite
- Job title
- Consultant Clinical Psychologist
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Telephone number
- 01865 618192
- Additional information
At Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust we want to employ people not just with experience, but with the aptitude and motivation to succeed and whose values resonate with our own.
Therefore, if you don’t meet all the requirements of the role and are unsure about applying but are excited about the opportunity, please do get in touch. We will be happy to discuss the requirements in more detail ahead of making a written application.
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