AfC Band 5 (pro rata) plus a High Secure Environmental Allowance of £1,818.72 per annum (pro rata) and a High Secure Clinical Responsibility Allowance of £4,365.11 per annum (pro rata)

Full time, 36 hours

Contract Duration – Permanent

We are delighted to advertise an Assistant Psychologist post at The State Hospital.

The State Hospital provides mental health care and treatment in conditions of special security for Scotland and Northern Ireland. The Psychology Service provides forensic clinical psychology expertise to Clinical Teams within the hospital, as well as delivering individual and group-based psychological interventions and taking a key role in risk assessment.

Those under our care have complex and longstanding difficulties and pose a risk of harm to others. The Psychology team work to ensure that each person has a psychological formulation and receives psychologically-informed care. Interventions are offered to address mental health and recovery, offence-related risk factors and health behaviour change.

Assistant Psychologists are required to contribute to the development, evaluation and delivery of psychological programmes as well as having a role within clinical teams. The successful applicant will be joining at a time where there are exciting opportunities related to service development.

The post provides an excellent opportunity to enhance clinical experience and to become involved in areas of research. The department has links with the Universities of Edinburgh and Glasgow.

The postholder will be provided with supervision and experience relevant to aspiring forensic, clinical, and research psychologists. Continued professional development is encouraged in this post.

The position requires a psychology degree awarded at 2:1 or above and graduate basis for registration with BPS. Previous clinical, research or forensic experience is required. The successful applicant will demonstrate high levels of professionalism and self-motivation. Further details are outlined in the person specification

Closing Date – The closing date for applications is 28th April 2026. For an informal discussion please contact Dr Eilidh Neilson, Clinical Psychologist ([email protected]) or Dr Louise Tansey, Consultant Clinical Psychologist ([email protected]) or 01555 840293. Due to working part-time hours, it would be helpful if you could email to arrange a time for a call.

If you have any queries or require assistance regarding the application form or recruitment process, please contact the HR Team on [email protected] to discuss your requirements.

Please note we anticipate a high level of interest in this position therefore we may close the vacancy prior to the closing date once a sufficient amount of applications are received. Please ensure you complete and submit your online application at an early stage to avoid disappointment.

NHS Scotland is committed to encouraging equality and diversity among our workforce and eliminating unlawful discrimination. The aim is for our workforce to be truly representative and for each employee to feel respected and able to give their best. NHS Scotland welcomes applications from all sections of society. It should be noted that the State Hospital is a high secure hospital and the current organisational position based on a risk assessment is that we welcome applications from people under the age of 18 for non clinical roles however to be eligible for a clinical role applicants should be 18 years and older. Should you have any questions in relation to this please contact [email protected]

Right to Work – To work in the United Kingdom, there is a legal requirement for an individual to demonstrate that they have the relevant permission to work in the country. This permission is, without exception, granted by the UK Visa and Immigrations Service.

As part of the pre-employment checks for a preferred candidate, NHS Scotland Boards will check this entitlement to work in the UK. It can be evidenced through a number of routes including specific types of visa, and settled and pre-settled status. To find out more about these routes of permission, and if you can demonstrate such cover, please refer to the GOV.UK website here. 

For specific types of post, it might be possible to secure sponsorship via a UK Skilled Worker/Health & Care Worker Visa. However, this is only possible if the employer is a licenced Sponsor, and if the post does not fall below the current minimum salary threshold or ‘going rate’. Further information on these criteria can be found here.

Please note that the State Hospital is NOT licensed to issue certificates of sponsorship under current UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) regulations. Applicants must have the right to work in the UK without requiring sponsorship to work with us.

It is ESSENTIAL that you have checked that you have an appropriate right to work in the UK BEFORE applying.

Artificial Intelligence – Candidates should provide original and authentic responses to all questions within the application form. The use of artificial intelligence (AI), automated tools, or other third-party assistance to generate, draft, or significantly modify responses is strongly discouraged. By submitting your application, you confirm that all answers are your own work, reflect your personal knowledge, skills and experience, and have not been solely produced or altered by AI or similar technologies. Failure to comply with this requirement may result in your application being withdrawn from the application process.