Featured job, October 2016

‘At Acorn we have a really close-knit community, and I can’t emphasise enough how exciting and rewarding it is to work here,’ said Arabella Hardy, Head of School at Acorn Park School in response to the question, ‘How would you convince someone to want the role of clinical psychologist at your school?’ ‘The children are amazing and it’s an opportunity to work in and further develop a very close multidisciplinary team who support all aspects of a child’s life.’

To give some context, Acorn Park is a specialist independent school and care home focused on delivering education and caring for 6- to 19-year-olds with autism and related difficulties. Acorn Park offers day, 38-week and 52-week placements for children in the homes and an adult services provision.

‘All of our children and young people have varying levels of support from the multidisciplinary team. One of the key features of our approach’, says Arabella, ‘is the “Team Around the Child”. This closely involves education, care, parents and outside agencies to support, care and offer the best services to our children and young people so they can be active participants in their own lives and be aspirational in their achievements.’

The school is a thriving community situated on a 32-acre site in Norfolk. Diss and Attleborough are the nearest towns, with good amenities and rail links. ‘We offer excellent individual and family onsite accommodation as well as parent houses to facilitate meetings between children and families who can’t meet at home.’

The school is looking for a clinical psychologist ‘who has experience working with SEN groups in a school or educational setting. Experience in addition to qualifications is our key requirement. He or she must be an innovator who can create services which meet individual children’s needs. He or she will want to work with other professions, parents and with local services. We consider training and CPD as critical and if someone is interested in undertaking research we may be able to support that.’

Arabella makes a final point. ‘We’re a growing service. There are 60 children at the school with a capacity for around 90. Every one of these children has the right to the best support and education possible and this is what we strive to achieve.’

Read more about the school’s ethos, culture and way of working. Find out more about the job on our Psychologist Appointments website.