Senior Therapist (Clinical Psychologist/ Child Psychotherapist)

Go back Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust

Senior Therapist (Clinical Psychologist/ Child Psychotherapist)

The closing date is 26 February 2026

Are you a Psychologist/CBT therapist/Psychotherapist/Systemic Psychotherapist who is passionate about working with children, young people, families and communities who have been affected by trauma and grief?

The Grenfell Health and Wellbeing Service is a specialist NHS service set up in response to the fire at Grenfell Tower in June 2017. We offer an integrated service for children, families and adults, and aim to work sensitively, flexibly and responsively in order to meet the needs of the diverse local community.

Main duties of the job

We are looking for a clinician who is able to work effectively with children, young people, adults and families from a range of backgrounds, who is skilled in adapting evidence-based therapies for the needs of clients, and who works in a creative, community-centered, culturally sensitive way. You will provide a valuable liaison role between the team, other agencies and members of the affected community, building and maintenance relationships with local Community groups and organisations along with statutory services also working with the North Kensington community. This will include developing co produced projects around mental health and wellbeing in partnership with multi disciplinary colleagues, residents and 3rd sector organisations.

You will carry a clinical caseload and be responsible for the provision of specialist, culturally adapted psychological assessment and interventions working within an appropriate therapeutic model for people presenting with PTSD, traumatic bereavement or other presentations. You may also be expected to offer training and consultation to other members of the team and non professional carers or voluntary agency staff. You will work under clinical and management supervision and will be provided with appropriate support.

We would particularly welcome applications from people who have lived or worked in the local North Kensington community, and who reflect the diverse local population that we serve.

About us

We are passionate about delivering first class patient centred, safe and effective care, whether it is in a hospital setting, in a community clinic or in the patients own home. Patients are at the heart of everything we do. Providing top quality care depends on our ability to employ the best people. We're always looking to recruit outstanding people who will go the extra mile to support our patients, colleagues, teams and the Trust. With every new employee we hope to find our future leaders and well support our staff by providing opportunities to develop your career.

With a diverse culture and equally diverse range of opportunities across mental health, community services, addictions, eating disorders, learning disabilities and more whatever stage of your career you're at, there's always a place for you at CNWL.

Job responsibilities

Clinical:

To provide high quality, responsive and accessible specialist and culturally adapted psychological assessments and therapeutic interventions to children and young people (aged 0-25 years) and adults affected by the Grenfell Tower fire.

To formulate and implement plans for the formal psychological treatment and/or management of a clients mental health difficulties, based upon an appropriate conceptual framework and employing methods based upon evidence of efficacy, across the full range of care settings.

To be responsible for implementing a range of psychological interventions for individuals, carers, families and groups, within and across teams employed individually and in synthesis, adjusting and refining psychological formulations drawing upon different explanatory models and maintaining a number of provisional hypotheses.

To evaluate and make decisions about treatment options taking into account both theoretical and therapeutic models and highly complex factors concerning historical and developmental processes that have shaped the individual, family or group.

To exercise autonomous professional responsibility for the assessment, treatment and discharge of clients whose problems are managed by psychologically based standard care plans.

To provide specialist consultation, as appropriate, to local organisations and referring GPs about psychological aspects of care for people with PTSD, complex trauma or traumatic bereavement.

To contribute directly and indirectly to a psychologically based framework of understanding and care to the benefit of all clients of the service, across all settings and agencies serving the client group.

To undertake risk assessment and risk management for individual clients and to provide advice to other professions on psychological aspects of risk assessment and risk management.

To communicate in a skilled and sensitive manner, information concerning the assessment, formulation and treatment plans of clients under their care and to monitor progress during the course of both uni- and multi-disciplinary care.

Person Specification Education

• oA Counselling or Psychotherapy Diploma approved by the BACP or equivalent
• oDoctoral level or equivalent training in clinical or counselling psychology, as accredited by the BPS
• oRegistered with the HCPC, BABCP, UKCP or equivalent professional bodies
• oPost-qualification training in one or more recognized therapies for PTSD (EMDR, NET, trauma-focused CBT)
• oKnowledge and experience of working with complex or traumatic bereavement and adjustment disorders

Experience

• oExperience of working with individuals and families across the life span who have experienced trauma
• oExperience of psychological assessment and treatment of clients across a range of conditions and settings
• oExperience of exercising full clinical responsibility for clients; emotional care and treatment including maintaining confidentiality and client records
• oExperience of working in a multi-cultural context including with interpreters
• oExperience of delivery of psycho-education and skills training in individual, group and community-based formats
• oExperience of collaborative work with service users and community organisations
• oExperience of working with young people at the transitions stage of 16-25 years
• oExperience of working with children under the age of 5 and their parents

Skills

• oSpecialist knowledge of a range of specialist therapeutic techniques underpinned by theory, acquired through further substantial training or experience and specialist supervision
• oA high level of skill in assessment for PTSD and traumatic bereavement, including risk assessment, and application of evidence-based interventions and management
• oAbility to work independently and manage a caseload, with freedom to act and take decisions about client care, under supervision
• oWell-developed skills in the ability to communicate effectively, orally and in writing, complex and clinically sensitive information to clients and professional colleagues both within and outside the NHS
• oCompetency in providing psychological therapy in a an evidenced-based approach
• oKnowledge of more than one model of intervention and the evidence base for choosing different interventions

Other

• oGenuine interest and commitment towards working the community affected by the Grenfell Tower fire
• oAbility to teach and train others, using a variety of complex multi-media materials suitable for presentations within public, professional and academic settings.
• oAbility to identify and employ mechanisms of clinical governance as appropriate, to support and maintain clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive material and challenging behaviour
• oAbility to deliver therapy in another language
• oKnowledge of the area and residents of Kensington and Chelsea

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.

Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust

£64,156 to £71,148 a yearper annum inc HCAS (pro rata if P/T)