Job summary
Part time fixed term maternity cover opportunity in PALMS!

We are seeking to appoint a Positive Behaviour Analyst who is a motivated and forward thinking clinician committed to supporting children and young people (CYP) and their families across Hertfordshire and the full PALMS' team. You will have experience of assessments and a range of evidence based interventions to support the needs of CYP accessing this mental health service.

PALMS works across Hertfordshire providing a specialist multi-disciplinary approach. PALMS is one of the Children and Young People's Mental Health Services (CYPMHS) which offers individually tailored support for CYP, aged 0-18 who have an intellectual disability and/or are autistic, helping families to manage behaviours of concern, toileting, feeding and sleeping concerns which have not benefitted from community interventions and/or to support mental health needs which cannot be met with reasonable adjustment by other CYPMH services. Interventions include intervention workshops, intervention groups, individual therapy, parent as therapist sessions, and a family clinic. PALMS aims to keep CYP with their families thereby improving outcomes for all family members. PALMS predominantly applies narrative, systemic, positive behaviour, and bio-psycho social models adhering to the STOMP / STAMP and Transforming Care Agendas.

Proposed interview date: 16th November 2026

Main duties of the job
The ideal candidate will be:

• Dedicated to supporting CYP with an intellectual disability and/or are autistic and their families.
• Passionate about and have a desire to contribute to change in a vibrant NHS team
• Collaborative in their approach to work with families, networks, and other services
• Able to work both in a team environment and autonomously
• Able to maintain a high degree of professionalism when working in settings where there is a highly emotive atmosphere.
• Flexible in their approach and have resilience under pressure
• Working towards or already have professional registration for their speciality

About us
The PALMS team is well regarded, friendly, cohesive and proactive with excellent outcomes. We value feedback and empower all team members to contribute to the continuous development of the service and their own professional development and welcome innovation and change.

A big thank you for considering joining us at Hertfordshire Community NHS Trust.

You'll find it a great place to work with many benefits offered to you as a member of our staff.

We put our patients, their families and carers at the centre of our vision - Outstanding Services and Healthier Communities.

Our staff are proud to be Caring, Pioneering, and Inclusive in their work to help achieve the Trust vision.

We welcome diversity in our workforce and are interested in applicants from all backgrounds and ages.

We don't want you to miss out so we'd like you to know that if we have a high level of interest in this role, the vacancy may close prior to the advertised closing date, so please make your application as soon as possible. Apply through our website.

You've made a great decision to apply to join to HCT - we're looking forward to taking the next steps of the journey with you.

You can apply to Access to Work to get money for communication support at a job interview - please use this link for more information: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/apply-for-communication-support-at-a-job-interview-if-you-have-a-disability-or-health-condition-access-to-work. You need to apply before the interview takes place.

Details
Date posted: 30 October 2026
Pay scheme: Agenda for change
Band: Band 6
Salary: £39,959 to £48,117 a year pro rata per annum
Contract: Fixed term
Duration: 9 months
Working pattern: Part-time
Reference number: 812-26-AD-PALMS-PBAMat-B6
Job locations: Sandridge Gate, St Albans, AL4 9XR, United Kingdom

Job responsibilities
This is a part time, fixed term position of 0.5WTE for 9 months.

We are committed to supporting flexible working options for staff and welcome discussions on flexible working patterns to support our staff to maintain a healthy work life balance.

We can offer you: Regular clinical and professional supervision. Regular appraisal, personal development planning and opportunities for continuing professional development. This includes specific support with regards to fulfilling the PALMS role. Opportunities to work closely and meet regularly with a multi-disciplinary team and learn from other evidence based frameworks and approaches. Opportunities to provide clinical supervision and line management to other members of the PALMS team as appropriate.

A full valid driving licence and access to a car insured to use for business purposes is essential (unless you have a disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010).

Applicants to be aware that PALMS work within the ULEZ zone and any charges due to non-compliant vehicles cannot be reimbursed by the Trust.

Interviews will be run either in person at one of our bases or using Microsoft Teams, full details and instructions will be provided to successful candidates.

HCT will prioritise recruitment of workers living in England under the new immigration rules for care workers effective from 9 April 2025. Employers must first prove that they have attempted to recruit a worker from within England who needs new sponsorship. This ensures that those who came to the UK to pursue a career in adult social care can do so.

The use of AI is monitored and if you have used it then you are required to declare this, as well as what type of AI tools you have used and for what purpose. We reserve the right to further test your individual knowledge and skills in relation to the requirements for the post through robust and thorough interview and assessment.

Person Specification
Essential - Other Criteria

• Willingness to travel across Hertfordshire
• The right to live and work in the UK.
• For this role staff are required to hold a full, valid, UK driving licence and have access to a car to use with business insurance (unless the member of staff has a disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010).

Essential - Qualifications

• Undergraduate degree in a relevant discipline.
• Relevant postgraduate qualification or working towards qualification in ABA/PBS, or equivalent.
• Certified as a UKBA(cert), UKiBA, or working towards certification with the UK Society for Behaviour Analysis (UKSBA)

Essential - Experience

• Give examples of supporting individuals who are Autistic and/or those with learning disabilities
• Give examples of applying ABA and PBS approaches
• Show where you have experience of assessing and supporting behaviours of concern, toileting, sleeping, and feeding using behaviour analysis and Positive Behaviour Support
• Give examples where you have supported children who are pre-verbal and/or experience significant communication difficulties.
• Evidence multidisciplinary working

Desirable - Experience

• Experience within Child Learning Disability and/or CAMHS services
• Experience of supervision and line management
• Experience of delivering intervention groups and/or training
• Experience of audit, service evaluation or research.

Essential - Knowledge & Skills

• Give examples where excellent written and verbal skills have been used
• Showcase and knowledge of behavioural assessment and intervention
• Demonstrate your understanding of neurodiversity and learning disability
• Have you dealt with safeguarding and risk assessment? Demonstrate your understanding of these
• Give examples of your strong organisational and IT skills

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.

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.

Employer details
Employer name: Hertfordshire Community NHS Trust
Address: Sandridge Gate, St Albans, AL4 9XR, United Kingdom
Employer's website: https://www.hct.nhs.uk

For questions about the job, contact:
Positive Behaviour Analyst and Clinical Lead, Kayleigh Rodbard, hct.palms@nhs.net, 01727582122

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