Registered Psychologist - Edge of Care

This is an incredible opportunity to really make a difference to the lives of vulnerable children and young people and their families in Barnsley.

We are developing our services for vulnerable children in Barnsley and are seeking a skilled and compassionate Psychologist to work across our Edge of Care and Exploitation Services; supporting vulnerable children and young people who are on the “edge of care”; are experiencing Exploitation; and those who are at risk of or are currently involved in the Criminal Justice system.

This will be an exciting opportunity to help shape a new service and you will play a central role in embedding the new Trauma Informed and Compassion Focused practice model by supporting delivery of a range of therapeutic and evidence-based 1-1 and group interventions.

You will work closely with Children’s Social Care and other multi-agency colleagues, providing consultation, mapping, assessments, developing therapeutic plans and delivering interventions to children and or their parents.

You will be flexible and highly skilled at developing strengths-based relationships, at addressing the impact of trauma and of empowering children, young people and parents with the knowledge to understand the underlying causes of their difficulties and the skills that enable them to make differences to their own lives and achieve their full potential.

You will also have a key role in developing the practice of our workforce via the delivery of training and reflective practice workshops.

About you
You will be a HCPC registered Psychologist and will have previous relevant experience of working with vulnerable children and their families who are at risk of exploitation, care-experienced, or are on the edge of coming into care. You will be skilled in undertaking risk assessments, and developing intervention plans and

have a sound understanding of trauma-informed practice with an interest in utilising Compassion Focused Therapy, Systemic Practice, EMDR and other relevant evidence-based interventions.

This is a challenging role that requires resilience, flexibility and a can-do approach! We are seeking creative and innovative individuals who will help us shape our services and foster a climate where we are able to deliver therapeutic, trauma responsive interventions that improve outcomes for vulnerable children and their families.

What We Offer

• A supportive and inclusive work environment.
• Opportunities for continuing professional development, including training and supervision.
• Flexible working arrangements to promote work-life balance.
• Access to employee ‘Be Valued’ Rewards Scheme.

We work together to make a real difference to people’s lives. We bring people together, connect them to services and help them to be the best they can be. There’s so much happening in our thriving borough. Your talent and skills will help us to make Barnsley the place of possibilities.

Our vision in Children's Services is clear - Barnsley a place of possibilities:

We are one service with one goal, working together to build a brighter Barnsley for every child

• Putting Children and Families First

• Working together in partnership to deliver joined up care

• Delivered by a strong and valued workforce

Our vision and genuine commitment to supporting our teams and social workers to deliver the very best outcomes for our children and young people, makes it the perfect time for forward thinking, motivated and dedicated practitioners to join us in Barnsley. In Barnsley we believe in working collaboratively with our families. We are a signs of safety local authority, so you will have access to a full suite of development and training opportunities.

For an informal discussion please do not hesitate to contact: Gavin Barker - Service Manager for Edge of Care at gavinbarker@barnsley.gov.uk

Interview date: 09 September 2025