Joining #TeamNELFT means you’ll become part of a welcoming and supportive working environment. We’re CQC rated Good, and we want you to join us on the journey towards an Outstanding rating. NELFT has sites across North East London, Essex, Kent and Medway. We provide community and mental healthcare services to adults and children within these areas.

The Trust has award winning equality and diversity initiatives and staff health and wellbeing activities. We invest heavily in your development, because when you are valued and supported, we provide the best care to our patients. We are a Level 3 Disability Confident Leader, have been featured in the Working Families Top 10 Employers benchmark for three consecutive years, and we have achieved a Carers UK Level 1 Accreditation. Along with our staff networks and training opportunities, we work hard to embed a just and compassionate culture here at NELFT.

Find out more about NELFT careers and what makes our Trust a great place to work, in this video

Job overview

NELFT is looking for a new Director of Psychological Professions following the appointment of the current post holder into a position on the Board of Directors, demonstrating our commitment to clinical leadership at the most senior level in the organisation. The successful candidate will be responsible for the professional standards of a cohort of 850 staff. Coproduction with staff, patients and carers will be at the centre of their work.

The successful candidate will lead and manage a talented, experienced and effective group of deputy directors of Psychological Professions who work across all 7 directorates in NELFT: in North East London, Essex and Kent. They will be able to bring the voice of Psychological Professions to a wide variety of stakeholders and will drive a vision created by the senior team of parity, equity, inclusion, trauma-informed practice, community and coproduction.

Main duties of the job

The main duties of the role include embedding an overall clinical strategic vision for Psychological Professions across NELFT; supporting the delivery of innovative and effective services and facilitate clinical and service improvements; further develop a recruitment and retention strategy; provide professional leadership to all Psychological Professional staff across NELFT; show a commitment and drive to address health inequalities in the delivery of psychological provision across our directorates.

Working for our organisation

Probationary Period

This post will be subject to a probationary period. Internal applicants are exempt from the probationary period (unless you are an internal applicant currently part way through a probationary period or currently a bank member of staff).

High Cost Area Supplement

This post also attracts payment for High Cost Area Supplement of 15% of the basic salary (with a minimum of £4,551 to a maximum of £5,735).

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The successful candidate will be an inspirational leader with high energy and a passion to deliver best patient care. They will integrate psychological provision whilst maintaining Psychological Professional identity and evidence base. They will encourage quality through creativity and innovation to ensure that psychological provision is a key ingredient of a multidisciplinary package of care. They will understand the importance of working across a system and of the need to walk hand in hand with people who use our services in order to ensure best possible care.

The successful candidate will provide professional supervision and guidance to professional leads. They will undertake some clinical practice and maintain HCPC registration. They will work closely with operational colleagues to promote governance and development of services, ensuring newest research innovations, national policy and efficient delivery. They will be competent at reviewing outcome data and acting to rectify issues highlighted through analyses of delivery. They will be visionary in their leadership style and ensure that Psychological Professions are kept up to date with Trust developments. They will be able to work in a multidisciplinary way to ensure best care is created for people who use our services and their carers. They will maintain the highest standards possible of professional practice throughout the cohort.

Please see the attached job description and person specification for more information about this role and working at North East London NHS Foundation Trust. We encourage you to refer closely to this when completing your application.

We welcome your application even if you do not meet all the criteria listed in the person specification. Any development needs to help you succeed in the role, can be discussed at the interview stage.

Use of AI

Applications for this role should be written by the applicant. If artificial intelligence (AI) programmes are used, then the application may be rejected due to this document being an important part of the assessment process. This does not prevent applicants seeking appropriate support with applications should they need to for the purposes of any declared disability.

Person specification

Qualifications

Essential criteria

D Clin Psy or equivalent

Desirable criteria

leadership qualification

experience

Essential criteria

Delivery of transformation

Desirable criteria

considerable change in pathways

skills

Essential criteria

strong leadership

Desirable criteria

ability to manage difficulties within teams

Benefits

We believe in bringing your authentic and best self to work, in order to deliver the best care to our patients. We are committed to supporting our employees holistically. Here is a snapshot of what is on offer at NELFT:

A long-standing and award-winning approach to equality and diversity with supportive networks for ethnic minority staff, staff with disabilities or long term/chronic conditions and LGBT staff. A commitment to supporting colleagues to achieve a work life balance, through flexible working opportunities and our effortsto support our working parents and carers. This has resulted in us being recognised as a ‘Top 10 Family Friendly Employer’ from the Working Families Charity. Proactive health and wellbeing support, including access to our employee assistance programme, staff psychological support, individual wellbeing conversations and a network of health and wellbeing ambassadors. Detailed information about our wellbeing and benefits offer can be found in this link.

As a flexible working friendly organisation, we want to be sure that you can work in a way that is best for us and for our patients, and for you. Speak to us about how we might be able to accommodate a flexible working arrangement whether that’s a job share, part time hours or another flexible pattern.