Principal Educational Psychologist

Location:

Stafford Salary: 74,199 - 82,890 per year Employment:
Full time Category:
Education Posted:
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Apply: (Use the "Apply for this Job" box below). Staffordshire County Council This is an exciting opportunity to lead educational psychology at the heart of Staffordshire’s ambition for children and young people with SEND. Staffordshire County Council is seeking an outstanding Principal Educational Psychologist to provide strategic, professional and operational leadership for a respected, countywide service with a strong reputation for excellence, inclusive practice and innovative psychological intervention.

About the role

This is a significant senior leadership role within Staffordshire’s SEND and inclusion system. Reporting to the Head of SEND, you will provide authoritative psychological leadership and expert technical advice to support the Council’s statutory responsibilities for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities. You will lead and develop Staffordshire Educational Psychology Service, ensuring that practice is evidence-informed, inclusive, timely, high quality and firmly focused on improving outcomes for children, young people and families.

You will shape the future direction of the service, leading workforce planning, professional standards, supervision, continuing professional development and quality assurance. As a senior psychological leader, you will represent educational psychology within wider SEND governance, reform and partnership arrangements, helping to strengthen inclusive practice across schools, settings, services and partner agencies.

Why Staffordshire?

Staffordshire is an ambitious county with a clear commitment to helping children and young people achieve, thrive and be included within their local communities. Our Educational Psychology Service is central to this ambition, working collaboratively with schools, families and partners to strengthen early intervention, improve statutory practice and develop inclusive approaches that make a meaningful difference. The Service has played a leading role in shaping and delivering high-value psychological interventions and approaches across the local area, including EPATT, School Non-Attendance, Enhanced APDR, SEDIS, and a wider portfolio of evidence-informed work designed to build capacity, confidence and inclusion across education settings.

Main Responsibilities Providing strategic, professional and operational leadership for a large Educational Psychology Service.

Ensuring the Council has a robust, high-quality educational psychology offer that supports statutory SEND functions and contributes to early, effective intervention.

Leading, motivating and developing senior colleagues and specialist teams across the partnership, promoting a culture of reflective, ethical and psychologically informed practice.

Championing the voice, needs and aspirations of children and young people with SEND, offering both support and constructive challenge across the system.

Using performance, quality assurance, workforce and budget information to inform service planning, improvement and decision-making.

Building strong partnerships with schools, settings, families, health, social care, commissioned providers and regional and national professional networks.

Contributing to SEND and Inclusion reform, inspection readiness, service redesign and wider council priorities relating to inclusion and improved outcomes

The Ideal Candidate The minimum criteria that will be used to shortlist for this role will be:

A recognised postgraduate qualification in professional educational psychology, HCPC registration and chartered psychologist status, or eligibility for chartered status with the British Psychological Society. You will bring substantial…