Assistant Educational Psychologist

About the job

Key information

• 30 Days Annual Leave
• A 2-year fixed term/secondment contract with a possibility of 1 year extension
• If applying as a secondment, please discuss this with your current Line Manager before applying and obtain their approval.

What will I be doing?

The Inclusion Somerset Educational Psychology Service are seeking Assistant Educational Psychologists who are planning future careers as Educational Psychologists. The posts will have a generic job description with opportunities to develop specialist knowledge in a particular area of SEND

There is a current focus on developing a local community model of working within our schools and settings alongside a commitment to developing a strong and varied traded offer.

All Educational Psychologists have specialist time available to them and we have strong University linked with tutors from the Doctorate in Educational Psychology courses at the Universities of Exeter, Bristol and Cardiff working within the Somerset team.

It is an exciting time to be joining Somerset Educational Psychology service, as we are embedding new systems and processes.

We’re working to improve the lives of children here in Somerset – and you’ll be a key part of that. Under the guidance of a qualified Educational Psychologist your day-to-day work will involve:

• Undertaking observations and assessments, delivering interventions, and gathering views of children, young people and their families
• Working jointly with Educational Psychologists and other advisory teams, supporting a range of work related to SEND.
• Supporting with contribution towards Education, Health and Care Plans and Annual Reviews.
• Delivering small group and individual interventions in settings.
• Developing project work to carry out small scale research
• Maintaining a high standard of professional expertise through professional training, reading, and the pursuit of specialist topics of interest.
• Supporting the delivery of traded services
• Supporting the development of large commissions and co-lead on the evaluation of these.

What kind of experience or qualifications do I need?

A comprehensive programme of induction and training will be provided, offering excellent preparation for applying to professional post graduate educational psychology training programmes.

We welcome applications from individuals with a Psychology degree (2.1 or above) or equivalent which makes you eligible for Graduate Basis for Chartered Membership of the British Psychological Society and at least 2-years’ experience and interest in working with children, young people aged 0-25 and their families in educational or community settings.

We welcome applications from a diverse range of backgrounds and experiences to enrich our team. You can always contact the hiring manager for a chat if there’s anything you want to talk about before you apply.

We’re proud to be here for the people of Somerset. And that means everyone in Somerset. An important part of this is ensuring that we are as diverse and inclusive as the people and communities we serve.

We welcome applications from a diverse range of backgrounds and experiences to enrich our team. You can always contact the hiring manager for a chat if there’s anything you want to talk about before you apply.

What is in it for me?

We are proud to offer an environment that is supportive and rewarding, working as part of a team who are passionate about the work they do to improve the lives of people in Somerset.

We offer great training and development opportunities, with supportive management. As well as this, we have some fantastic employee benefits available:

• We promote a healthy work-life balance and offer flexible working arrangements wherever possible, including working from home.
• Generous annual leave allowance, with the opportunity to purchase additional leave
• Staff discounts in gyms.
• Employee Assistance for the times you may need some support and a variety of employee wellbeing services.
• Auto enrolment onto our generous Pension Scheme and optional pension enhancement through our Additional Voluntary Contribution scheme.
• A Flexible Benefits Scheme via salary sacrifice to obtain a cycle for work and health screenings.
• My Staff Shop offering discounts in shops, online shopping, restaurants, cinema tickets, insurance benefits and more

DBS check

This post requires a criminal background check via the Disclosure procedure.

Supporting documents and information

For an informal chat about the role, you can contact Jenny Pearce Riddy (Senior Educational Psychologist) jenny.pearceriddy@somerset.gov.uk

The salary for the role is Soulbury Assistant EP Scale 2-3, ranging from £36,109 to £37,444 per annum.

This role is currently a 2-year fixed term contract, ending 31st August 2027, with the possibility of a 1-year extension. The reason for the fixed term nature of the post is related to our policy around creating opportunities for individuals to develop skills and gain the required experience for acceptance on the name of doctorate course to increase capacity in the profession. Should you be unsuccessful in your third year with us, your contract will not be extended at the end of the fixed term, and your employment will cease.

When completing your application/CV please provide your full employment history and ensure that any gaps in employment are explained. Please start with your current or most recent employment.

• Deadline for submission of application form: 27 April 2025
• Interviews will take place in person: 7 May 2025
• Start date: September 1, 2025

If you have everything you need, just hit the apply button. We can’t wait to hear from you!

Apply on the Somerset Council website

Apply now