West Berkshire Council - Educational Psychologist

You will be joining West Berkshire EPS at an exciting time, helping to shape the future direction of our service and revolutionising how we drive inclusion and support for all.

We are looking for innovative EPs who are passionate about applying psychology across a range of contexts to ensure positive outcomes for children and young people. You will need to be creative and child-centred in your approach.

You will be responsible for providing a range of psychological services which promote positive educational outcomes and emotional well-being. You will need to work collaboratively with schools, families and professionals to contribute to the development of inclusive and supportive learning environments.

As we increase service capacity, we are looking to develop our traded services with schools and other partners with opportunities to develop our ELSA programme, support children experiencing EBSA, work with Early Years provisions, as well as deliver training across the local authority, including Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) for staff. 

You will be part of a growing, friendly and supportive team that benefits from excellent administrative support. We support EPs to develop their areas of interest and value professional autonomy, offering both individual and peer supervision with a range of opportunities for Continuing Professional Development (CPD).

The role
To excel in this role, you should possess the following qualifications, skills and attributes:

• Qualifications to practice as an EP registered with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC).
• Extensive knowledge and understanding of child development, psychological theory and evidence-based interventions.
• Excellent knowledge of the legislative frameworks that inform and guide your work as an Educational Psychologist.
• Strong assessment and analytical skills, with the ability to apply psychological theories and research to inform your practice.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to build effective relationships with a diverse range of stakeholders.
• Excellent report writing skills.
• A commitment to promoting equality, diversity, and inclusion in education.

Our offer to you 
A competitive salary alongside a range of benefits including:

• We offer flexible working wherever possible between the hours of 07.00-19.00
• We offer hybrid working, wherever possible working 40% in the office.
• Access to a wide range of training and development opportunities.
• Payment of professional fees.
• Local Government Pension Scheme.
• Death in service benefit.
• Family friendly policies.
• A range of local discounts.
• Wellbeing Programme including Employee Assistance Programme and employee benefits.
• A relocation package is available for individuals who move from outside a 30 mile radius of the office location (subject to eligibility)
• You will also be entitled to a generous annual leave entitlement starting at 29 days per annum (plus public holidays) Rising by an additional 5 days after 5 years service.

The closing date is given as a guide, and we reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, please submit your application as early as possible to avoid disappointment.

This post is a Sensitive Post for the purpose of the Local Government Housing Act 1989 and the post-holder is therefore restricted from engaging in any prescribed political activities. In summary, this means that you are prohibited from holding political office and from involvement in any political activity within or outside the workplace. Full details of the restrictions can be found in the Council’s Policy and Guidance on Politically Restricted Posts.

For an informal discussion about this role, please contact Vanessa Grizzle, Interim Principal Educational Psychologist on vanessa.grizzle1@westberks.gov.uk. or Neal Ridley, Senior Educational Psychologist on neal.ridley1@westberks.gov.uk. 

We look forward to welcoming you to our dedicated and passionate team at West Berkshire Council.

Equal Opportunities
The Council supports Equal Opportunity of employment and positively encourages applications from people who fall within any of the nine protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010. 

How to apply
Please complete a short application form by following the link to apply.

This role has been identified as public facing in accordance with Part 7 of the Immigration Act 2016; the requirement to fulfil all spoken aspects of the role with confidence in English applies. 

All successful candidates will be subject to Disclosure and Barring Service checks along with other relevant employment checks.

This privacy notice applies to job applicants applying for vacancies with West Berkshire Council https://info.westberks.gov.uk/pnapplications.

Applications welcome from candidates currently in their 3rd year of Doctoral training.

About us
West Berkshire Council is a forward thinking and ambitious council. We have a positive attitude to our work and focus on excellent teamwork to deliver award winning services for our residents and businesses. 

We employ over 1,500 members of staff corporately, plus additional members of staff working across our local schools and education settings. We offer a wide array of opportunities for training and development and varied career progression opportunities. 

Everything we do is focused on our priority for improvement and delivering our values of fairness, integrity and being customer focused. 

If you have any queries, please email the Talent team on recruitment@westberks.gov.uk.