Job summary
This is a 10 month maternity leave cover post for a Principal Clinical Psychologist in the Cleft Lip and Palate service.

We are looking for an enthusiastic, innovative clinical psychologist interested in an opportunity to gain experience, knowledge and skills in working with young people and adults in the South West Cleft Service. You will be part of an experienced multidisciplinary specialist team and will have excellent opportunities to develop your knowledge and skills in working with young people and adults and the multidisciplinary team around them.

The post will involve travel to support the psychologists and clinics across the South West and provide leadership to the local psychology teams. You will be supported by an experienced Band 8C clinical psychologist in the post.

Professionally, the post-holder will be part of a larger group of clinical psychologists within Psychological Health Services working within a variety of paediatric and adult specialties in this large acute Trust. We are a valued, well-established and supportive service with a strong commitment to clinical supervision, continuing professional development, innovative service development and research, with well-established links to clinical psychology training courses in the South West.

Main duties of the job
Core Purpose

• To enhance the quality of psychological support for cleft families across the south west
• To work in close collaboration with other providers of cleft services
• To lead on the development, delivery and evaluation of the service with the support of the consultant lead
• To support the other staff support posts and deliver line management as required.
• To work in partnership with all key stakeholders.

About us
Bristol NHS Foundation Trust brings together more than 28,000 staff to deliver over 160 clinical services across thirteen hospital locations, operating from three main sites at Southmead, Bristol city centre and Weston.

With an annual turnover of £2.3 billion, we are now one of the largest NHS trusts in the United Kingdom. Our hospitals are spread across Bristol and Weston, join us and you can enjoy the very best of both worlds; city living within a stone's throw of the countryside or beside the seaside, both with easy access to all that the South West has to offer.

Bristol NHS Foundation Trust values all people as individuals. As an equal opportunities employer actively working towards a diverse workforce we aim to recruit and retain a workforce which represents the rich diversity of the local population at all levels and are committed to designing our services around the needs of individual patients and those around them. Anonymous information will be used from your application in order to ensure we're meeting our pledge.

Details
Date posted: 14 September 2026
Pay scheme: Agenda for change
Band: Band 8b
Salary: £66,582 to £77,368 a year pa pro rata
Contract: Permanent
Working pattern: Part-time
Reference number: 387-W&C2445-GB
Job locations: Bristol Dental Hospital, Lower Maudlin St, Bristol, BS1 2LY, United Kingdom

Job responsibilities
For a more detailed job description, main responsibilities, and person specification, please refer to the job description document attached to this vacancy.

Person Specification
Qualifications and Training
Essential

• Doctorate in clinical psychology or equivalent
• Current registration as a practitioner psychologist with the Health Care Professions Council
• Training in the supervision of trainee clinical psychologists / other staff

Desirable

• Management/leadership training

Knowledge and Experience
Essential

• Post qualification experience of working as a specialist practitioner clinical psychologist providing psychological consultation, case management supervision and training to a range of multi-professional and multi-agency teams
• Post qualification experience of working as a specialist practitioner clinical psychologist undertaking consultation and service development work within multi-disciplinary physical health speciality or specialities
• Post qualification experience working in paediatric psychological health services and delivering psychological interventions as a core part of your post
• Post qualification experience co-creating/co-designing services with the end user
• Extensive formal teaching / presentation experience to health and other professionals
• Demonstrable understanding of the roles of a principal clinical psychologist within a network / programme lead role in relation to the professional staff team(s) and the organisation.
• Demonstrable knowledge of legislation and guidance pertaining to safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults, consent, confidentiality and standards of psychological care within relevant NICE and other guidance
• Doctoral level knowledge of research design and methodology

Desirable

• Experience working with teams and delivering team-based support
• Knowledge of psychological theory and interventions developed specifically for supporting staff across the network

Skills and Abilities
Essential

• Ability to generate systemic and individual psychological formulations and interventions based on applying psychological theories and models to the complex information generated by the client
• Advanced communication skills with the ability to provide and receive highly complex and sensitive information to and from patients and their families in a developmentally and culturally appropriate manner in highly emotive situations. This will include the ability to provide complex psychological information to staff in an accessible manner.
• Ability to access, record and manage information and data pertaining to the work undertaken in medical and psychology notes, data bases and electronic records as required.
• Ability to prioritise and manage available time for clinical, managerial and professional activities effectively and safely
• Able to provide leadership cover for the wider cluster team as required (e.g. be the cover when other 8b leads are on leave)
• Work with some flexibility across the week when required
• Able to travel to Exeter, Plymouth & Truro as and when required as well as working on site in Bristol

Aptitudes
Essential

• Advanced communication skills with the ability to provide and receive highly complex and sensitive information in a culturally appropriate manner in highly emotive situations. This will include the ability to provide complex psychological information to staff in an accessible manner.

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.

Certificate of Sponsorship
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Employer details
Employer name: Bristol NHS Foundation Trust
Address: Bristol Dental Hospital, Lower Maudlin St, Bristol, BS1 2LY, United Kingdom
Employer's website: https://www.uhbw.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)

Employer contact details
For questions about the job, contact: Consultant Clinical Psychology Lead, Dr Vanessa Palmer, vanessa.palmer@uhbw.nhs.uk, 01173428168

Bristol NHS Foundation Trust is an equal opportunities employer actively working towards a diverse workforce.