Job summary
An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Clinical/Counselling Psychologist/CBT Therapist (level 2) /DBT Therapist in the Enhanced Primary Care Mental Health Service within HPFT. You will be at the forefront in developing the therapeutic provision offered within primary care, to meet the needs of the local population,

You will be required to work across two team bases. You will predominately be based in Watford however you are also expected to cover Borehamwood and must be able to regularly travel between the two locations. You will work in these locations primarily, although you will also work as part of a wider team across west Hertfordshire and may on occasion need to travel across this locality to support the needs of the Service. You may also be required to work one evening every week to support an out-of-hours clinic, currently on Monday night.

Main duties of the job
You will provide psychological assessment, formulation and treatment to clients with moderately complex mental health disorders within the service. This will include developing and facilitating group based interventions.

You will join a growing and supportive team of psychological therapists and other clinicians. You will be provided with regular supervision and CPD opportunities and supported in your professional development.

About us
Hertfordshire Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust are one of just five mental health trusts to achieve an overall rating of 'Outstanding' from the Care Quality Commission.

Our family of over 4,500 members of staff provide health and social care for people with mental ill health, physical ill health and learning disabilities across Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Essex and Norfolk, delivering these services within the community and several inpatient settings. Everything is underpinned by choice, independence and equality, with our Trust values embedded throughout:

Welcoming. Kind. Positive. Respectful. Professional.

Details
Date posted: 25 August 2026
Pay scheme: Agenda for change
Band: Band 7
Salary: £51,657 to £58,785 a year pro rata
Contract: Fixed term
Duration: 12 months
Working pattern: Part-time
Reference number: 367-ACMS-101564
Job locations: Prospect house, Peace Drive, Watford, WD17 3XE

Job responsibilities
You will provide psychological assessment and treatment including a range of group and individual psychological interventions
You will provide specialist support, guidance and consultation on clients psychological care to other multi-disciplinary professionals
You will work closely with both psychological therapies staff and other non-psychological therapy colleagues
You will work autonomously within professional guidelines and the overall framework of the teams policies and procedures
You will utilise research skills for audit, teaching, policy and service development and research within the area served by the team/service

Please see the attached job description and person specification for more information on the job and responsibilities.

Car driver essential as a majority of the posts are community based, the post holder will need a full valid driving licence and access to a car to use regularly for business purposes including business insurance (unless you have a disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010).

Person Specification
Areas of Experience and Knowledge
Essential

• Experience of specialist psychological assessment and treatment of clients across a full range of care settings, including outpatient, community, adult mental health and in patient settings
• Experience of working with a wide variety of client groups, across the whole life span's presenting problems that reflect the full range of clinical severity including maintaining a high degree of professionalism in the face of highly emotive and distressing problems, verbal abuse and the threat of physical abuse
• Experience of multi-disciplinary team working and inter-agency collaboration
• Knowledge and awareness of specific clinical practices and issues relating to clients with mental health problems

Desirable

• Experience of service quality monitoring e.g. clinical audit, evaluative research, etc and/or service improvement and project management
• Experience of working in a community mental health setting

Skills
Essential

• Ability to deliver complex methods of psychological assessment, intervention and management frequently requiring sustained and intense concentration
• Ability to work with people whose behaviour is personally challenging

Qualifications
Essential

• Postgraduate qualification in clinical or counselling psychologist and registered with the HCPC as a practitioner psychologist OR Postgraduate qualification in one of the core mental health professions e.g. psychiatric nursing, medicine, social work and occupational therapy or to have substantial other relevant experience and with demonstrable competence to work in the mental health field.
• Diploma and / or M.Sc. in CBT (Level 2) leading to demonstrable eligibility for accreditation with the BABCP OR Completion of DBT Intensive Training and PG Certificate in DBT
• Continuing registration with body overseeing practice of core mental health profession, e.g. NMC or HCPC.

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.

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).

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

Employer details
Employer name: Hertfordshire Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust
Address: Prospect house, Peace Drive, Watford, WD17 3XE
Employer's website: https://www.hpft.nhs.uk/careers/

Employer contact details
For questions about the job, contact: Team Leader Stephanie Barber stephanie.barber3@nhs.net 01923953123