Job summary
Please note this role is currently only being advertised to staff members who are currently working within the Kent and Medway ICS.

This Assistant Psychologist role sits within the Cancer Psychological Service for Kent and Medway, which is a new service funded for two years initially by Kent and Medway Cancer Alliance and Macmillan. The service has recently received a year's funding extension by the Cancer Alliance, but we hope to secure permanent NHS funding for the service.

This role provides a fantastic opportunity for an enthusiastic, motivated and experienced Assistant Psychologist to take part in the continued development of the service within a small, friendly and supportive team of Clinical Psychologists and a Counsellor (led by a Consultant Clinical Psychologist). The service provides psychological assessment and interventions to patients receiving treatment for a cancer diagnosis, and their relatives, throughout Kent and Medway; training and supervision for the cancer workforce; and consultation to cancer multi-disciplinary teams. We work closely with existing cancer Counselling and Psychosocial services across the region.

The post-holder will be based at Maidstone Hospital, but the service covers four Trusts across Kent and Medway. They will report directly to the Consultant Clinical Psychologist lead.

Main duties of the job
The role involves carrying out clinical triages with newly referred patients with a cancer diagnosis, delivering a monthly online clinical workshop to patients, and collecting and analysing qualitative and quantitative audit and research data to support the development of the service, including for our forthcoming Business Case. It will be useful for the postholder to have well developed skills in using Microsoft Excel. Clinical supervision will be provided by a Clinical Psychologist.

About us
Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust ranks among the top 10 NHS Trusts nationwide and was named the second-best Trust to work for in the South East in the 2023 and 2024 NHS Staff Survey.

We are a large acute hospital trust in south-east England, providing general hospital services and specialist care to around 600,000 residents in West Kent and East Sussex. With a dedicated and diverse team of over 8,000 staff we are proud to offer specialised cancer services to over two million people through the Kent Oncology Centre.

Fordcombe Hospital, near Tunbridge Wells, became part of the Trust in October 2024. Specialising in planned care, it offers two operating theatres, 28 inpatient and day-care beds, diagnostic services (X-ray, MRI, CT, and endoscopy), and consultation/treatment rooms.

Looking for flexible working? We are a flexible working-friendly organisation. Whether it's adjusting your hours or exploring other flexible arrangements, we want to work with you to find the best solution for you, our patients, and the Trust. Talk to us about how we can accommodate your working needs.

Click here to hear what our staff say.

Joining us includes a comprehensive benefits package:

• At least 27 days of annual leave plus public/bank holidays (pro-rata for part-time staff).
• Membership in the NHS Pension Scheme, with a employer contribution of 23.7% and life assurance benefits
• Blue Light card eligibility
• And more, additional benefits can be found in the benefits documents below

Job responsibilities
Weve provided all the details you need about this role in the job description and person specification. Please take a moment to review the criteria in the person specification and share specific examples in your application that demonstrate how you meet these requirements. Please also check your application for errors/omissions prior to submission.

Please note that appointment to this post will be subject to a satisfactory Disclosure and Barring Service Check at Enhanced Level. (Enhanced level now includes regulated checks against vulnerable adults and children). If a role involves regulated activity and requires a DBS check with a barred list check, you cannot apply if you are on the barred list.

All successful applicants will be required to complete our corporate trust induction once a start date has been agreed.

Qualifications
Essential

• BA or BSc (Hons) in Psychology or equivalent
• Entitlement to graduate membership of the British Psychological Society.

Experience/Knowledge
Essential

• Experience of working in a psychological or mental health setting with people with mental or physical health problems or disabilities
• Graduate level knowledge of psychological research methodology and statistical analyses.
• Good theoretical knowledge of psychological theories and concepts and their relevance to people with mental health problems and/or physical health problems/disabilities.
• Awareness of racial and diversity issues
• Understanding of relevant NICE Guidance.

Desirable

• Experience of working with people with cancer
• Experience of specialist psychological assessment and treatment with people with cancer
• Knowledge of psychological assessment and clinical psychometrics.

Skills
Essential

• Excellent interpersonal skills including an ability to interact with people with mental health and/or related problems
• Good research skills including knowledge of Excel and SPSS
• Well developed IT skills including ability to use Microsoft Office
• Ability to work independently, reliably and consistently with work agreed and managed at regular intervals
• Ability to use supervision effectively to develop clinical skills
• Ability to work effectively within a multi-disciplinary team.
• Ability to interact with people with mental health problems/disabilities/chronic physical health problems
• High standard of report writing
• Good communication skills (written and verbal) including an ability to communicate and work in settings in which the atmosphere may be highly emotive
• Ability to interact effectively with staff from all disciplines
• Ability to contribute to the teaching and training of others.
• Excellent organisational skills

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).