Practitioner Psychologist

An opportunity has arisen for an HCPC registered Practitioner Psychologist (Clinical/Forensic/Counselling) to join the Adult Mental Health Forensic Psychology Service (AFPS) to work across the Community Forensic Team (CFT) and Beech Low Secure Unit (LSU) in Hertfordshire. The CFT covers the whole of Hertfordshire and provides services for HPFT service users who have offended and are at high risk of further offending, both those stepping down into the community from secure services or prison and those referred from community or other inpatient wards. The CFT works closely with community teams across Hertfordshire as well as secure services and other agencies involved in service users' lives. The team is currently in the process of expanding, due to an increase in funding from the East of England Provider Collaborative, in order to provide enhanced services to the highest risk service users, to facilitate their step down from secure services and support them in the community. This is an exciting opportunity to be involved in developing and expanding the service. Beech LSU is a 15 bed male only unit, providing care for service users stepping down from medium secure care or admitted from prison. The Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) work closely to assess and manage risks posed by service users and move them towards discharge into the community. The MDT works closely with HPFT community services and with other agencies involved with the service user., This post is an opportunity to work with a complex and interesting group of service users, both directly and through consultation to other professionals, in a person centred and positive way to help them to manage their offending behaviour and make changes in their lives. It is a chance to work with individuals while they are detained, through the process of discharge and then on into their own communities and social networks, in a way that can have an impact well beyond the individual service user., The CFT is a core member of the Hertfordshire MAPPA and you may be required to represent the CFT and HPFT at these meetings and participate in the liaison between teams within HPFT and the other agencies involved., You will be working across Hertfordshire and will sometimes need to assess service users in out of area placements or prisons. You will be a car driver (unless you have a disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010 which prevents you from driving). Applications for flexible working are welcomed.

You will be a qualified Clinical, Forensic or Counselling Psychologist with experience in working with offenders. You will be skilled in assessing and formulating risk and in sensitively communicating the resulting formulations and management plans. You will also be experienced in providing interventions to forensic service users on an individual and/or group basis.,

• HCPC registered, Further training in the use of assessment tools pertinent to offending behaviour e.g. SRP, RSVP & HCR-20, Experience of specialist psychological assessment and treatment of clients across the full range of care settings, including outpatient, community, primary care and inpatient settings.
• Previous experience of working with clients with offending histories, including the use of complex risk assessments
• Experience of working with a wide variety of client groups, across the whole life course 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., Knowledge of the theory and practice of specialized psychological therapies in specific difficult to treat groups (e.g. personality disorder, dual diagnosis, people with additional disabilities, forensic clients etc).
Desirable criteria
• Skills in providing consultation to other professional and non-professional groups., You must have appropriate UK professional registration.
  
  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