Clinical Psychologist, Psycho-Oncology Service

County Durham & Darlington NHS Foundation Trust

The closing date is 24 November 2026

ome and help us build something ambitious, equitable and different.

This Practitioner Psychologist post is an opportunity to join a developing Psycho-oncology Service across County Durhamand Darlington at a key point in its growth and we want to do somethingimportant with that opportunity. Rather than building a psychology service and expecting patients to find their way to us, we want to think differently aboutthe barriers that too often determine who is able to easily accesspsychological support and introduce a service approach that can challengeinequality rather than entrench it.

And because we know flexibility matters forstaff as well as patients, there is no expectation that you need to be based inone particular place. The Trust covers alarge geographical area, with potential bases including Durham, Darlington and Bishop Auckland. We offer flexible working patterns and some home working, andwould be very happy to discuss whwhat might work for you. If you are looking for a post where you can make a tangible difference, develop professionallyandhelp build a psychology service with proximity, equity and accessibility at itsheart, we would love to hear from you

This role wil begin with a focus on lung cancer population needs. It will involve speaking with patients, MDTs, charities, external stakeholders to help develop ways to provide specialist psychological assessment and evidence-based interventions that are appropiate for the population in all their variety.

You will hold a caseload and offer level 3 and 4 assessment and intervention

You won't be alone, this is part of a service wide approachso you will work directly with the head of service. A key aspect of the rolewill be to share learnings across the wider lung cancer region to supportdissemination of best practice.

To really enjoy this job you will need to be creative and innovative, but also a real completer finisher with an eye fordetail and evaluation.

We provide hospital services from two acute sites - Darlington Memorial Hospital and University Hospital of North Durham. We have a centre for planned care in Bishop Auckland and provide care from community hospitals in Chester-le-Street, Shotley Bridge, Barnard Castle, Sedgefield and Weardale as well as over 80 other community based settings and providing care in patients' homes.

We particularly welcome applications from disabled and Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) candidates as BAME and disabled people are currently under-represented.

Full Job Description s can be found in the adverts supporting documents.

For the most up-to-date information on visa requirements and eligibility, please check online to determine whether you can apply.

You will play a pivotal role in contributing to developingpsycho-oncology support for people affected by lung cancer in County Durham and Darlington. You will be highly motivated to offer a service that addresses social inequalities and will develop effective working relationships across, population, organisations andboundaries to do this creatively.

You will work closely with the CDDFT lung multi-disciplinary team to ensure the needs of people affected by lung cancer are supported and todevelop ways that psychology can fit into exisiting approaches.

You will hold an active caseload, delivering specialistassessments and interventions for people affected by lung cancer, as well ascontributing to research, training, and service development to enhancepsycho-oncology delivery and care within the organisation.

A key aspect of the role will be to share learning from the service across the wider region, to inform and support regional psycho-oncologycare .

You wil be supported by the consultantpsychologist and head of service

• Experience of working in the NHS.
• Experience of working in a health psychology setting
• Experience working with patients in hospital or cancer care settings
• Experience of working with a multidisciplinary setting and liaising with external stakeholders
• Experience of working with a wide variety of client groups
• Experience of undertaking research or service evaluation or audit within the NHS and the verbal and written dissemination of findings
• Experience of the application of clinical psychology in different cultural contexts
• Experience of providing assessment/ therapy/…