Closing date: 02 November 2026

Job summary
The post holder will be the designated Clinical/Counselling/Forensic Psychologist (0.6 WTE) for the Mental Health Treatment Requirements (MHTR) Team within NHFT. Band 7 development posts will be considered in applications.

The post will involve being the Clinical/Counselling/Forensic Psychologist for the MHTR within the county, one of 5 national pilot sites. The MHTRs sit alongside Drug Rehabilitation Requirement (DRR) and Alcohol Treatment Requirement (ATR) under the umbrella of 'Community Sentence Treatment Requirements' (CSTR) and provides a mechanism to ensure that certain offenders with mental health problems who are given a Community Order are able to access appropriate treatment.

The post holder will offer psychological assessment, therapy and hold a client caseload within the MHTR. The caseload will be of individuals that present with mental health complexities. The successful candidate will be able to demonstrate a keen interest in working with people with complex mental health needs and forensic histories as part of a multidisciplinary team, consulting on and promoting psychological informed approaches to understanding and working positively with this population.

Main duties of the job
Detailed in the job description attached to the advert

We are looking for a psychologist who possesses good, qualified specialist knowledge of complex mental health problems whilst having an awareness of risk to self and others. The post holder will work autonomously within professional guidelines (HCPC, BPS) and the overall framework of the Trusts policies and procedures. You will also be expected to support the senior management team in the clinical leadership of healthcare around anything that pertains to mental health, supervision, clinical responsibilities, audit, policy or service development and research. Lastly, the post holder is expected to liaise with other stakeholders within the court, criminal justice agencies, and individual cases through regular meetings.

On a day to day basis, provide specialist psychological assessments of clients referred to the team based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex data from a variety of sources, therapy, risk assessments, self-report measures, rating scales, multidisciplinary meetings with probation staff and service users, liaise with other professionals involved with the client. There will be a specific focus on complex presentations and trauma.

About us
NHFT is an NHS Community and Mental Health Foundation Trust, providing physical, mental health and specialty services in hospital settings and in the community. We provide over 200 services across the county - as well as some specialist services in bordering and nearby counties. We work together with our partners to ensure that everyone who comes through our doors receives compassionate, person-centred care, regardless of their background or circumstances.

NHFT promotes a culture of learning, to improve the care and safety of our patients and colleagues. We have achieved our 'outstanding' rating by encouraging opportunity, innovation, development and growth across our workforce.

At NHFT we believe that work should be rewarded in every sense which is why we are proud to an accredited living wage employer.

We aim to support financial wellbeing and create an environment where are people feel valued and able to thrive.

Details
Pay scheme: Agenda for change
Band: Band 8a
Salary: £57,528 to £64,750 a year pa pro rata
Contract: Fixed term
Duration: 12 months
Working pattern: Part-time
Reference number: 270-TH452-MH

Essential experience and knowledge

• Experience of providing psychological therapy to people with complex trauma/personality difficulties.
• Experience of working with people who present with high levels of risk.
• Knowledge of the theory and practice of specialised psychological therapies in personality disorder/complex trauma.

Desirable experience and knowledge

• Doctoral level knowledge of research methodology, research design and complex, multivariate data analysis as practiced within the clinical fields of psychology.

Essential skills

• To be able to supervise junior members of the service and give examples

Desirable skills

• Has undertaken a supervisor course or undertaking

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.

UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website.

Employer: Northamptonshire Healthcare Foundation Trust
Address: Campbell House, Campbell Square, Northampton, NN1 3EB, United Kingdom
Employer's website: https://www.nhft.nhs.uk/

For questions about the job, contact:
Rachael Blundred, Operational Team Leader
rachael.blundred@nhft.nhs.uk

Northamptonshire Healthcare Foundation Trust's privacy notice is available on request.