About this role
Job summary
We are excited to offer a rare opportunity to join our Early Supported Discharge as a Clinical Psychologist in stroke rehabilitation. This role provides specialist psychological and neuropsychological assessment, intervention, consultation, and leadership to support patients recovering from stroke and their families. The role is integrated within the multidisciplinary rehabilitation team and contributes to holistic, patient-centred care across the stroke pathway.
The postholder works with adults who have experienced stroke and may present with Cognitive impairment, Emotional and psychological adjustment difficulties, Behavioural changes, Anxiety and depression, Trauma-related responses and Communication and functional challenges following stroke.The psychologist supports rehabilitation by helping patients maximise engagement, independence, emotional wellbeing, and quality of life.The role also supports carers and staff, contributing psychological expertise to rehabilitation planning, discharge preparation, and service development.
Main duties of the job
Undertake comprehensive psychological and neuropsychological assessments of patients following stroke, including cognition, mood, behaviour, risk, and capacity
Formulate complex clinical presentations to inform individualised care and rehabilitation planning
Deliver evidence-based psychological interventions to support adjustment, emotional wellbeing, and engagement in rehabilitation
Provide interventions for common mental health difficulties, including anxiety, depression, trauma, and distress
Contribute to the management of cognitive impairment, advising on strategies to support memory, attention, executive functioning, and behaviour
Support rehabilitation planning, goal setting, safe discharge, and community reintegration
Work as an integral member of the multidisciplinary team, contributing to MDT discussions, care planning, and decision-making
Provide specialist psychological consultation and promote psychologically informed approaches to care
Offer psychoeducation and emotional support to families and carers, supporting adjustment and management of complex needs
Provide training, consultation, and reflective practice to MDT colleagues to support delivery of high-quality care
Participate in clinical audit, service evaluation, and quality improvement initiatives
Maintain accurate and timely clinical records in line with professional and organisational standards
Work in accordance with relevant professional, ethical, and governance frameworks
About us
#BeKnown at West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust. By us. By our patients. By our community
We are a busy, friendly, rural NHS Trust providing high-quality care and compassion to more than a quarter of a million people across west Suffolk. We care for, treat and support people in hospital, at home and in various community settings.
The West Suffolk Hospital in Bury St Edmunds provides acute and secondary care services (emergency department, maternity and neonatal services, day surgery unit, eye treatment centre, Macmillan unit and children's ward). It has 500+ beds and is a partner teaching hospital of the University of Cambridge.
Adult and paediatric community services, provided in collaboration with West Suffolk Alliance partners, include a range of nursing, therapy, specialist, and ongoing temporary care and rehabilitation, some at our Newmarket Community Hospital.
We do our utmost to achieve outstanding clinical outcomes for patients and our values of fairness, inclusivity, respect, safety and team work guide how we work and behave as a team.
With nearly 5,000 staff, from all over the world, we strive to make our organisation a great place to work. Whatever your role or ambition, we want to help you be the best you can be.
We promote a diverse and inclusive community where everyones voice counts and you can #BeKnown for whoever you are.
Join us. What will you #BeKnown for?
Job description Job responsibilities
Please see attached the full job description to see the full job details and responsibilities for this job role.
Person Specification
Education & Qualifications Essential
oDoctoral degree in Clinical Psychology or equivalent. oCurrently eligible for Chartered Clinical Psychology status.
Desirable
oPost qualification training in therapeutic skills.
Experience & Knowledge Essential
oExperience of/interest in working in multi-disciplinary team. oExperience in Neuro-psychology. oExperience with patients who have challenging behaviour. oExperience of supervising other psychology staff, i.e. assistants and trainees.
Desirable
oFormal training in behaviour management or CBT, e.g. diploma. oResearch experience relating to neuro-rehab. oService evaluation and audit. oTeaching and training of health care professionals.
Skills & Abilities Essential
oAbility to organise and prioritise patient caseload. oAbility to write concise reports/letters. oCapacity to communicate complex clinical information effectively and empathetically to patients and their families. oKnowledge of relevant legislation and implications for clinical practice (e.g. Mental Health Act). oEvidence of CPD programme.
Personal Qualities Essential
Leadership: oAble to contain and work with organisational stress and able to hold the stress of others. Values: oRespectful approach to service users, families, carers, colleagues and other professionals. Willing to negotiate and can handle confrontation effectively and professionally.
Other Essential
oAble to work to professional guidelines. oMust be capable of accountability for own work, of autonomous clinical practice, of being guided by precedent and of working towards defined results. oAbility to make own travelling arrangements to meet needs of service
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 (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).
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
Employer details Employer name West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust
Address Disability Resource Centre
Bunting Road
Bury St Edmunds
IP32 7BX
United Kingdom
Employer's website https://www.wsh.nhs.uk (Opens in a new tab)