Associate Network Director of Psychological Therapies | Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust


Company:	Pennine Care NHS FT
Salary:	£94,356 - £108,814 PA, pro rata
Hours:	Full-time
Location:	Oldham, OL6 7DS
Job type:	Permanent
Posting date:	7 Oct 2026
Closing date:	6 Nov 2026

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Summary

This is an exciting opportunity to join our leadership team both within Psychological Therapies and our Mental Health Network. The post holder will become part of the collective leadership team for the network, with an additional specific remit around the leadership of psychological therapies/professions within the network. The post holder will join our Mental Health Network leadership team to provide strategic leadership to our acute and community pathways.

They will work closely with the Chief Psychological Professions Officer, the Mental Health Network senior leadership team, the Locality Operational Managers and Commissioners. They will be part of a collaborative and compassion focused leadership team, taking a trauma responsive approach to delivering services. The role has a strategic focus which will require liaison with the wider system, contribution to quality improvement and transformation agendas and leading on the implementation of national guidance and policy in relation to the delivery and governance of psychological therapies.

It is also expected that the post-holder will retain a small caseload and provide a specialist clinical role within a psychological service.

They will deputise for the Chief Psychological Professions Officer as and when it is appropriate. The post holder will join our Gold on call rota.

The post holder will join the senior leadership team in the Mental Health Network. They will be part of a collaborative and compassion focused leadership team, focusing on:

Setting Strategic Direction – developing service strategies and plans for improvement that promote consistency in standards and outcomes across our footprint.

Delivery and Performance – ensuring accountability and governance are in place within the network and support delivery of the Trust Big Ambitions, strategic objectives, and statutory requirements.

Leadership and Support – creating the right culture and environment for high performance.

The post holder will provide clear leadership and will be a role model for the delivery of the trust values and culture. They will provide clinical and professional leadership for all psychological therapies staff within the Network and across the Trust where indicated. They will additionally provide clinical and professional advice on psychological practice and provide assurance on the delivery of psychological approaches both within the Network and across the Trust.It is also expected that the post-holder will retain a small caseload and provide a specialist clinical role within a psychological service. They will deputise for the Chief Psychological Professions Officer as and when it is appropriate. The post holder will join our Gold on call rota.

We are proud to provide high quality mental health and learning disability services, both inpatient and in the community across five boroughs of Greater Manchester - Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport and Tameside and Glossop.

Our vision is for a happier and more hopeful life for everyone in our communities and our staff work hard to deliver the very best care for the people who use our services. We’re really proud of our #PennineCarePeople and do everything we can to make sure we’re a great place to work.

All individuals regardless of race, age, disability, ethnicity, nationality, sex, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, religion or belief, marriage and civil partnership are encouraged to apply for this post. We would also encourage applications from individuals with a lived experience of mental illness, either individually or as a carer.

If you come and work for us we will offer a range of benefits and opportunities, including:

• Generous annual leave entitlement for Agenda for Change and Medical and Dental staff.

• Flexible working opportunities to support your work/life balance

• Access to Continued Professional Development

• Involvement in improvement and research activities

• Health and Wellbeing activities and access to an excellent staff wellbeing service

• Access to staff discounts across retail, leisure and travel

Financial accountability and budget holder responsibilities for the

Network where appropriate and for delivering financial stability and value improvement plans contributing to the Trust overall financial performance.

Undertake an active role in the Trust’s transformation programmes, ensuring services can demonstrate continuous improvement in both quality for patients and cost efficiency.

Responsible for good people management practices across the Network

including supervision and IPDR compliance, CEST, CPD and maximising

potential through talent management and succession planning.

Develop, maintain, and manage effective relationships with a range of

stakeholders internally and externally, across all disciplines and including

service users, carers and the media. The post holder will need to be visible to front line staff as well as to the Board.

To work independently to ensure delivery of quality services within the

Network working within policies, protocols and professional standards

particularly with regard to psychological therapies.

Provide expert professional advice on matters related to the conduct

competence and capability of registered psychological professionals within the Network. All employees are required to be a member of a professional body where indicated and are required to hold relevant registration and must comply with the standards and guidelines of their professional practice, education and conduct and must act at all times within the boundary of the code of conduct.

Deputise for the Chief Psychological Professions officer as required and provide strategic clinical leadership and accountability for an element of the CPPO trust wide portfolio (to be agreed with the CPPO)

Support the Network to develop and embed service user and carer

involvement across the Network ensuring people with lived experience

are involved in all aspects of decision making and service redesign.

Ensure robust processes are in place across the Network for ensuring

the quality and safety of psychological services, working with relevant

corporate services to support the systems in place to manage adverse

incidents, complaints, inquests, claims and safety alerts. Utilise these systems to support the review of clinical standards and provide assurance.

Contribute to the development of service strategies and business cases for all services within the Network, and lead on those for psychological

therapies .Ensure the engagement of the psychological therapies workforce in developing network business plans and service improvements

Facilitate co-ordination of supervision and training placements and support recruitment, professional self-regulation and continuing professional development.

To attend the psychotherapeutics committee meetings and ensure the

implementation of the work plan as it relates to the designated network and their clinical pathway

To be responsible for the development of psychological approaches and

interventions and roles to support care delivery across the Network

This is a clinical/professional role, and the post holder is expected to deliver direct patient care in order to maintain professional competence, authority and credibility.

To provide a specialist clinical service directly to clients and through the

provision of expert advice, consultancy, and supervision to professional

colleagues, both within and external to the trust

To represent psychological therapies services at strategic meetings both within health and multi-agency partnerships, contributing to the formulation of long terms, strategic plans which impact across services both within and outside the NHS. This entails influencing agencies and service delivery beyond the area of psychological therapies where there may be a range of opinions and the highest level of decision–making skill and negotiation needed.

Develop outcomes-based approaches and measurement to support high quality evidence-based care and good outcomes for service users

To work closely with the Chief Psychological Professions Officer and the Associate Network Directors of Psychological Therapies to ensure the development and governance aims of psychological therapies services are met within and across the Trust.

To provide highly developed specialist psychological assessments of clients referred to psychological therapies services based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex data from a variety of sources including psychological and neurological tests (including fine manipulation of the test material) self-report measures, rating scales, direct and indirect observations and semi-structured interviews with clients, family members and others involved in the client’s care.

To formulate plans for the formal psychological treatment and/or management of a client’s mental health problems based upon an appropriate conceptual framework of the client’s problems, and employing methods based upon evidence of efficacy, across the full range of care settings.

To be responsible for implementing a range of highly specialised psychological interventions for individuals, families, carers and groups, within and across teams employed individually and in synthesis, adjusting and refining psychological formulations drawing upon different explanatory models and maintaining a number of provisional hypotheses, in order to develop specialised programmes of care

To make highly skilled evaluations and decisions about treatment options taking into account both theoretical and therapeutic models and highly complex factors concerning historical and developmental processes that have shaped the individual, family or group.

To exercise full responsibility and autonomy for the treatment and discharge of clients whose problems are managed as a psychologically based standard care plan, ensuring appropriate assessment, formulation and interventions, communicating with the referral agent and others involved with the care on a regular basis.

To work collaboratively with service users, patients, carers, family members as appropriate who are referred to the service to ensure that clients receive the best information possible about psychological services, enabling them to make informed decisions about their treatment and care

To undertake risk assessment and risk management for the relevant individual clients and to provide both general and specialist advice for psychologists and other professionals on psychological aspects of risk assessment and management.

To provide specialist advice, supervision, training and consultancy to other professions and healthcare staff regarding psychological needs, and treatment and management approaches for clients within, or referred to, psychological therapies services.

Lead the implementation of policy as related to psychological services across the designated Network and the care pathway. To develop policies where required for psychological therapies services across the Trust and work collaboratively across pathways and to ensure an effective, consistent policy framework is in place

To be responsible for responding and reviewing relevant national guidance as these affect the provision of psychological therapies services and recommending services changes / developments in response to the guidance

To be accountable and responsible to the Chief Operating Officer for psychological therapies and the senior Network team for budgets that remain at a network level including for training and equipment budgets within the network pathways in line with Standing Financial Instructions.

To identify service priorities and advise on the level of psychological therapies service provision within the designated network and care pathway and ensure that there is equity of access to services

To ensure that systems are in place for the recruitment to, retention within, and professional development of, all psychological therapies services within the designated pathway and contribute to the workforce plans. Ensure all psychological therapies services staff within the designated Network has an annual appraisal and personal development plan

Take part in any disciplinary /capability /performance hearings, chair panels as required

Ensure that the issues of equality and diversity are positively progressing resulting in an environment free from discrimination and equal to all

To ensure arrangements for the provision of training placements for commissioned training across the Trust. To support the development of placements for not directly commissioned training courses.

To ensure that there is representation and links with education commissioners, academic institutions and other Trusts to develop and support the needs of the psychology and psychological therapy professions.

To explore the development of new roles within psychological therapies to further expand the contribution of psychological therapies.

Ensure that psychological work is informed by research, effectiveness and quality and lead the development of Audit and / or R&D programme across the network linking with educational institutions as required

Proactively work to develop capability and capacity in psychological professionals to undertake research and innovation work including involvement in the Research and Innovation group.

Participate and lead in local, regional and national research, audit and evaluation programmes as appropriate and as indicated by the Trust Strategy

This job description is not exhaustive but is intended to give an overall picture of the role. Other duties within the general scope of the post may be required from time to time.

This advert closes on Friday 30 Oct 2026

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