Job overview

It is an exciting time to join us and help shape our response to the national aspiration to transform inpatient and acute care. If you are interested in helping shape our response to this key area of mental health, supporting the delivery of our strategic plans and the development and delivery of our inpatient transformation programme this is the role for you.

You will be supported by the Divisional Director of Therapies, locality psychology services and the wider transformation team. This is a unique opportunity be able to shape delivery of services and contribute to ongoing quality improvement and research.

You will need to be an experienced psychologist with a track record of delivering and supporting transformation and improvement in the acute pathway (home treatment/inpatient). You will have in depth knowledge of what it takes to provide psychologically and trauma informed services and experience of working in acute settings.

You will be joining a division that has a clear vision and mandate to expand and improve psychological provision. We have been successful in securing increased investment into our therapy services and have excellent opportunities for career development and CPD. We provide opportunities for leadership training, training in Quality Improvement methodologies and model specific training. We also have a strong research focus and are currently hosting numerous research trials.

Main duties of the job

To provide specialist integrated clinical leadership and management to the acute adult and older adult  inpatient Service /acute pathway in relation to psychological therapies and psychologically informed interventions in BaNES, Swindon and Wiltshire (BSW).

To take the lead role in new developments in relation to Psychological Therapies to support the delivery of the ambitions of the Long Term Plan and the Community Mental Health Framework. 

To assist and facilitate e.g. train managers and clinicians to use the skills available within the staff team and other services to develop, evaluate and deliver a high quality and coordinated service to clients and their carers, in line with national and local commissioner expectations.

To participate in and provide specialist advice to relevant aspects of policy making, strategic planning, management and clinical governance in the locality.

To undertake the role of a specialist clinician, carrying a specialist caseload of highly complex cases,   providing advice and consultancy for patients and their carers, and specialist clinical supervision to professionals.

To undertake highly specialist research and service evaluation both within and outside the Trust, including contributing to the development of the evidence base in the field and evidencing the work of this new team effectively. To organise and supervise the R&D activities of others.

Working for our organisation

We are AWP (Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust) a diverse organisation with over 5,000 dedicated staff providing inpatient and community-based mental health care. 

We provide services from a range of locations to approximately 1.8 million people living in Bath and North East Somerset (B&NES), Bristol, North Somerset, South Gloucestershire, Swindon, across the county of Wiltshire and in parts of Dorset.

Our outstanding people promote mental health and wellbeing. The expertise and resources within AWP are dedicated to a person-centred approach for those who use our services and for all employees. We recognise that happy and fulfilled employees give better care.  

At AWP we actively encourage applicants from all backgrounds; we are particularly keen to encourage applications from people from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, those with disabilities and from the LGBTQ+ community. We want people to bring their unique blend of experiences, backgrounds, perspectives and knowledge to AWP, as diversity makes us stronger.