Raising and managing your online profiles

We have all heard about individuals being given the sack for things they have said on social networking sites and employers checking peoples public profiles before offering them jobs.  Suffice it to say, that chartering is similar.  You have to expect that organisations that you approach will want to check your credentials and the quickest way of doing this are your online profiles.  This way organisations can see the real you and not the CV.  With this in mind, if you are going to charter either independently or not, you are going to need to control your public profile. Here are some suggetions from my experience.

The first thing you can do of course is to ensure there are no inappropriate pictures or comments anywhere and I am sure you can ask friends and family not to tag you in things that are inappropriate.  The next thing would be to raise your public profile.

Raising your profile is the key to your image.  If you can be seen in the right places this will help develop the image of you that you want organisations to see.  For example, do you have a Twitter account?  Use this to your advantage.  Follow people and organisations relevant to the area that you are interested in and re tweet items from there that are of particular interest to you. This way, if anyone opens your profile and looks through your tweets they can see that you are passionate about certain subject areas.  This is the same for Facebook.  Like and follow pages that are relevant to your interests.  If you attend a workshop or seminar for your continued professional development then when you purchase a ticket or receive confirmation click the option (there usually is one) to post to Facebook or Twitter.  Let people know that you are active with your continued professional development and your chosen field.

Sites  such as Linkedin and Crimspace are also really good sources of PR.  Here you can join interest groups and get involved with discussions about topics which will highlight you in the site and in search engines.  I have found that particularly with Linkedin, people I have approached have often checked my profile to see what I am about. 

Of course there are other ways to raise your profile such as writing a blog on something that interests you (no comment) or good old fashioned networking at all those continued professional development events that you go to.

Now, this shouldn't sound like it takes the fun out of social networking.  Personally I feel that it is acceptable to be seen as human and not a one track minded chartering machine so I follow my personal interests as well.  If these are positive activities then why not show them.  Things like sport and music are great pastimes 'why hide them' is my philosophy.  It will be up to you to manage how you use them publicly so insulting an opposition player on Twitter or slating a musical act you don't like may not be the way forward necessarily but engaging with your pastimes in creative and positive ways allows you to enjoy social networking and show potential organisations the person behind the CV.

If you have any further suggestions please feel free to comment below

Until next time........

Selling your experitse to external organisations

The best advice I was given in starting my Chartership was from a fellow trainee who had almost completed training, 'sell yourself" she said. Add how true this statement is. Whether you are working as a trainee in the prison service or training independently, the only way to gain the breadth of experience required is to approach organisations with an idea and tell them what you can do for them and why are the best person for the job.

I had never considered Psychology as something that would require sales technique and yet here I am offering my services to organisations for the sake of training and experience. One thing I have never been good at is selling myself. This has always been my short fall when writing job applications or in job interviews, I always just miss the mark so the realisation that I was going to have to do this with every organisation I approached was daunting to say the least.

Knowing that this is something that all trainees will need to do at some point as made me reflect on the processes and techniques that I have used to secure opportunities with organisations which so far has been quite successful although I'm sure there are more efficient ways of doing things then what I have done.

First, I designed a proposal document; something formal that I could send out to organisations. This document was split into sections:
•Title
•Rationale
•Aim
•What I can offer
•Plan/Proposal

The only sections I titled and made very clear were the Aim and the Rationale. These are the most important for an organisation as the first questions they will as are what's the point? And how will this help us? In my experience it has been very difficult to sell an idea without a clear rationale.

The hardest part I find, is stating why they want me to do it and not anyone else. What skills and expertise do I have that I can offer them above anyone else? Well firstly, as a trainee forensic psychologist any work that contributes towards my Chartership is FREE and I come with a Chartered Forensic Psychologist supervisor who is able to vouch for and monitor my work. This has the benefit of two for the price of one for the organisation. If you add this to your rationale and your skills and expertise with confidence you should at least be in with a chance.

Secondly, you need to show an organisation that you understand the systems they work within, the constraints on their time and how you can work with those and be an extra resource. How the project can be sustained after you have left and within their organisational structure is really important at this point. This is another way they are benefiting from using you above anyone else.

Thirdly, use the proposal to pre-empt any questions they may have and answer then as fully as you can without making promises you can't keep. This shows that you have considered as many of the barriers and challenges as possible and also implied that you have experience and knowledge of the area that you are selling, that they can use.

Fourthly never say that you are going to advise them if this is an area they specialise in. Really emphasise the role of supporting, helping and collaborating with them. You can only advise if they are branching into a new area where they have little experience and you have more experience.

And finally a lesson that has been learnt by me; you can only volunteer your time for your Chartership after that people should pay for your time as you are well qualified and experienced and need to place value on your capabilities , skills and knowledge. Bear this in mind and also bear in mind that as a trainee you should only charge half of what a chartered forensic psychologist should charge.

Until next time....

Understanding Mentally Disordered Offenders

I am conducting a piece of research exploring attitudes to mentally disordered offenders with the aim of beginning to look at how we can effect those attitudes by awareness raising and education.  

By investigating how the publics' attitudes to MD offenders can be changed, it is hoped that understanding of the issues facing these types of offenders will increase and lead to a reduction in fear and stereotyping.  It is important that this happens so that there can be an increase in the allocation of resources to helping MD offenders.  These resources could help to reduce re-offending rates, lead to improved public protection and a reduction in the cost of MD offenders being supported by the criminal justice.
If you have 10 minutes please take the survey by following the link below

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/MDOffenders

Many thanks for your support

Ciara Wild BSc (Hons), MSc, MBPsS FPiT

Reflections upon Stage 2 Training as an Independent Practitioner

Reflections upon Stage 2 Training as an Independent Practitioner

Sally Lopresti, BSc (Hons), MSc, MBPsS, Independent Forensic Psychologist in Training

For the majority of Forensic Psychologists in Training (FPiTs), Stage 1 of the Qualification in Forensic Psychology is satisfied through completing an accredited masters degree programme in forensic psychology. A list of these courses can be found through the BPS website.

Stage 2 involves the submission of work for assessment. Two exemplars must be submitted for each of the four core roles. Alongside this work, daily practice diaries must be kept, including a log of supervision sessions. A competency log must be maintained and quarterly supervision plans written in collaboration with your supervisor. When you come to present core roles for assessment, a reflective account of the work must also be submitted.

As one of the first generation of trainees to commence the current route to chartership I was very unclear as to what my exemplars should ‘look like’ and what the benchmarks are for passing or failing submissions for assessment. This was compounded by my entry into independent practice in 2008, which meant that I had a much smaller cohort of FPiT colleagues to share experiences with.

In this article I hope to, through describing my own exemplars, offer readers examples / ideas of work that have been deemed appropriate for submission as exemplars of the four core roles. In a subsequent article I will outline the feedback received in each case from assessors.

Core Role 1: Conducting Psychological Applications and Interventions

Exemplar 1A - Conducting a range of structured risk assessments with prisoners to inform the Parole Board of level of risk of re-offending and outstanding treatment needs.

I submitted three case studies for assessment:

i)                    Case 1 was a Category C prisoner who had been convicted of offences relating to possession of child pornography. He also had some history of generalised violence. I was asked by his legal representative to undertake a psychological risk assessment in preparation for his client’s upcoming parole hearing. In order to assess levels and nature of risk and need I applied the Risk Matrix 2000 (RM2000), the Risk for Sexual Violence Protocol (RSVP) and the International Personality Disorder Examination (IPDE) Screening Questionnaire.

ii)                   Case 2 was also a Category C prisoner who had been convicted of the rape of an adult female. I was asked by HMPS to conduct a Structured Assessment of Risk and Need (SARN) following the prisoner’s completion of sex offender treatment and in preparation for his upcoming parole hearing. The individual appeared to experience some barriers to progressing in treatment, which I explored and subsequently made a recommendation for an assessment of executive functioning.

iii)                 The third case related to the provision of a psychological risk assessment to contribute to an offender’s upcoming parole hearing. The individual was a Category C prisoner serving a mandatory life sentence for the murder of an adult male. The offence involved callous and excessive violence. In assessing risk and need I applied the HCR-20 (Historical, Clinical, Risk Management) tool as well as the International Personality Disorder Examination (IPDE) Screening Questionnaire. In formulating the case I recognised symptoms consistent with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, which appear to have impacted upon previous treatment outcome, and so recommended assessment in this area.

Exemplar 1B - Undertaking treatment need analyses and/or individual treatment work with offenders with a view to further reducing their risk of re-offending.

Again, three case studies were submitted:

i)                    The first of these cases related to a Category A prisoner who had recently relocated to the prison estate having spent over a decade in secure psychiatric units. His convictions related to acts of violence with a strong sexual element. He also had an extensive history of committing non-contact sexual offences. I received a referral from Sentence Planning Board members to undertake a Structured Assessment of Risk and Need (SARN) in order to identify outstanding needs and make recommendations for future treatment avenues. This resulted in a referral to the Dangerous and Severe Personality Disorder (DSPD) service.

ii)                   The second case related to a Category A prisoner located in a Close Supervision Centre (CSC). He had requested engagement with a psychologist in order to explore his offending behaviour.  Having first had to demonstrate the feasibility of this work to more senior managers, I undertook six sessions of cognitive behavioural treatment exploring the function of the individual’s acts of violence and violent ideation, with a view to identifying pathways for future treatment and risk management.

iii)                 The third case study related to a Category C prisoner who had been precluded from attending HMPS’s Healthy Relationships Programme due to certain aspects of his offending. The independent psychology practice that I am associated with was contacted by the lifer manager at the individual’s prison and asked to undertake a risk and need assessment followed by a course of treatment to address risk of spousal assault, if deemed appropriate. Based upon the needs identified I subsequently delivered six sessions of cognitive behavioural treatment which were rooted in psychological theory linked to attachment style and patterns of violence akin to the client’s.

 Core Role 2: Research

Exemplar 2A - Assessing the predictive qualities of the Offender Assessment System (OASys) in relation to Psychopathy Checklist - Revised (PCL-R) score among adult male prisoners in HM Prison Service's High Security Estate.

PCL-R scores were gathered as part of the data collection stage of a needs analysis being conducted within HM Prison Service’s High Security Estate between January and May 2008. For each of the offenders for whom PCL-R score-sheets were available, full OASys assessments were also collected. Logistic regression was performed to assess the reliability of selected OASys risk items in predicting PCL-R outcome.  The discussion section of my research report outlined strengths, limitations and applications of the study and its findings, as well as directing future research.

Exemplar 2B - An explorative study of hopelessness and the effect of ethnic background upon level of suicide risk amongst adult male prisoners.

My aim in conducting this study was to identify whether previously reported differences between ethnic groups in relation to suicidality were upheld once a significant psychological factor – hopelessness – was controlled for.  The study drew upon data from a larger scale doctorate study with which I was involved. Data was collected over a three month period from prisoners within the first days of their arrival within a Category B prison.  This allowed researchers to measure psychological variables, including hopelessness and suicide risk, whilst prisoners were experiencing a period of particularly high risk of self-harm or suicidal behaviour. An analysis of covariance was conducted to compare the significance of two factors known to affect risk of suicide (ethnic group and level of hopelessness). As with Exemplar 2A, the strengths, limitations and applications of the study were outlined in the Discussion section of my research report, alongside directs for future research.

Core Role 3: Communicating Psychological Knowledge and Advice to Other Professionals

Exemplar 3A: Developing the contributions of psychologists to risk assessment and management at HMP X.

In December 2005 I started a new role as the Lead Risk Assessment Psychologist. This coincided with the initiation of processes by which a number of teams, including Psychology, Probation, Sentence Planning, CARATs and Offending Behaviour Programmes would all merge to become the Case Management Function. The new approach meant changes to the way in which psychologists contributed to sentence planning and risk assessment. I was tasked with conceptualising and implementing these changes. The most significant of these included:

·         Designing, implementing and managing the new OASys+ psychological risk assessment service.

·         Developing strategies for psychological input to RAM Boards.

·         Improving the quality of OASys assessments, through training and supervision of assessors and their supervisors.

Practice diary and supervision log entries demonstrated ways in which I developed new skills and knowledge in order to overcome, over time, difficult dynamics within the newly formed team so that I could deliver the psychological input that was required of me.

Exemplar 3B: Providing a psychological contribution to the selection of uniformed staff for HMP X’s Discrete Units.

In January 2008 I was temporarily promoted to Manager F and took the position of Research and Short Interventions Team Leader. The team’s primary purpose was to offer a psychological input to the establishment’s discrete units, including segregation, healthcare and the CSC (Close Supervision Centre). This exemplar focused upon two pieces of work that I carried out in relation to discrete unit staff selection. The first involved working alongside the segregation unit’s principal officer in order to develop a staff selection interview. I went on to interview candidates for officer and senior officer positions and subsequently provided candidates with written feedback on their performance in interview. The second project was carried out in collaboration with the CSC’s principal officer. In this case, we reviewed the existing staff selection process and updated it in order that it mapped onto the new Competency and Qualities Framework (CQF), which had been recently launched by HM Prison Service. This included developing a new interview schedule, in line with the competencies outlined in the CQF.

Core Role 4: Training Other Professionals in Psychological Skills and Knowledge

Exemplar 4A: Provision of training for new Focus facilitators.

This exemplar detailed my contribution to the professional development of Focus facilitators. Focus is a substance use rehabilitation programme that is aimed at providing intensive cognitive behavioural group treatment to prisoners with severe histories of drug and/or alcohol use. I was a Focus facilitator between January and August 2004. I was subsequently the programme’s treatment manager until October 2005. The exemplar outlined the way in which in 2007-2008 I was able to subsequently apply my knowledge and understanding of the Focus programme to support the treatment manager and wider treatment team at a time when professional development needs were high but availability of resources to address training needs was relatively low.

Exemplar 4B: Identification of training needs and consequent planning and delivery of training in anticipation of job role changes within Psychological Services at HMP X.

This exemplar demonstrated my competence in recognising a situation where additional training was required, liaising with key personnel in relation to the identification of training needs, design and delivery of training and, finally, evaluating the impact of the training. In September 2007 plans were put in place at HMP X to significantly change the way in which forensic psychologists in training (FPiTs) were able to apply their skills and develop professionally. Rather than being assigned a particular role, FPiTs entered a placement system, whereby they would change role every six to twelve months. This was with a view to increasing breadth of experience and learning in order to meet the competency-based approach to Chartership. In undertaking the work described within the exemplar, I provided key managers with relevant information regarding the team’s skills profile, allowing them to make more informed strategic decisions. I also assisted FPiTs and their line managers to anticipate training requirements in order that FPiTs could aim to address their skills and knowledge gaps prior to assuming a new role.

In my next article I will discuss the way in which my exemplars were presented for assessment, as well as sharing with readers the feedback received from assessors in relation to my submissions.

Research Particpation

I'll be the first to admit that this blog was not started to be used as a medium to gain research particpants however, as this is for Core Role 2a I think I might just get away with it.

The link below is for a piece of rearch exploring attitudes to mentally disordered offenders. 

It takes 10 minutes.

I would be very grateful if readers of the blog could take a few minutes to complete it.

Many thanks

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/MDOffenders

Ciara

Securing a Placement for Training

Placements are one of the most necessary yet most difficult to access, aspects of forensic psychology training. In the prison service or secure mental health services you are able to access and work with the client groups but what do you do if you do not work in these sectors and need to gain experience?

Trainee counsellors and psychotherapists are required to have a placement and gain a certain number of client contact hours as evidence of experience. At the institutions they train at, they often have placement coordinators or a placements database where they can select and apply for placements. Many organisations will have placements that advertise for trainees and these can range from NHS to private such as The Priory, occasionally prisons, but also charities and private counselling organisations. Here, experience and placements are part of the training and it is made as easy as possible for trainee counsellors and psychotherapists to access a range of placements, gain a range of experience and accrue hours of client contact. Sadly as forensic psychologists in training we do not have these facilities especially for those on the independent route. So what can we do?

As mentioned in an earlier post, volunteering is one way of gaining experience with a client group, but what about learning about the services? What about more severe clients groups who are a better reflection of the type of client you will be expected to work with when you qualify? What about working with multiple agencies and staff teams in a forensic setting? These are all necessary for understanding and learning so it makes sense to try to gain a placement somewhere as a volunteer trainee.

Speaking to my supervisor I realised that most services won't take on a volunteer trainee for a placement without the minimum of a masters degree as they are asked so often by students and need to narrow the selection pool. Once you have these, accessing a placement should be easier but here is the next pitfall; what if they expect you to be available during the day but you work and cannot take time off for a placement? Quite a dilemma. This is not something I can advise about, merely something for you to consider when applying for placements. Below I have written a list of key points that I found helpful in applying for placements and getting responses:

Who to send it to?
Make sure that you are sending it to a relevant organisation and that you tailor your letter slightly to suit whether the organisation is public, private or 3rd sector.

Why their organisation?
Let them know why you are keen to work with them.  Is it their client group?  Is it there level and range of experience they can offer you?

What do you want from them?
Why are you approaching them, what are you hoping to gain from a placement with them?

What can you offer them in return?
The most IMPORTANT part.  What can you offer them in return.  Most places will want to know that you are capable if helping as well as learning from them.  Are you a good researcher?  Can you help with any research or evaluation they are trying to complete?  Perhaps you have developed and delivered training at your work and you are able to offer them free in house training that their staff might need.  Find what your strengths and experiences are and let them know how you can apply those strengths to benefit their organisation.

When are you available?
This is key.  Most places only have staff hours during the day when you can be supervised by senior psychologists.  When you are writing to organisations check if they are open in the evenings or weekends and let them know what you are happy to do.  Are you available on Saturdays etc?

Why you are applying?
You must be clear about why you are applying.  What is the Stage 2 Chartership?  Why does it require you to have a placement and how will it help?

Importance of having a supervisor?
You should have a supervisor.  This person is supervising your work and therefore a placement are gaining the benefit of you and your supervisor who will be ensuring that you are practising appropriately.
  
This blog post is in no way a dig at the DFP; I feel that the chartership process is fantastic at preparing trainees to work as forensic psychologists however I do feel that we could take a leaf from the book of the counselling and psychotherapy trainees. If there are going to be less trainee posts and assistant psych posts are too difficult to attain because of the number of applicants, then there should be some sort of database held within the DFP that has a list of services, number and type of placement available and contact details and trainees should be able to use that to apply for placements. This I believe would help both independent and non independent trainees gain the breadth and depth of experience required in order to charter. Trainees would feel more supported and hopefully be able to charter much more quickly than they are now.

Your thoughts and comments on this post will be most gratefully received.

Until next time.....

Volunteering

There are lots of agencies across the country that interact at different levels of intensity with offenders from befriending and prison visits to mentoring, acting as an appropriate adult, accompanying offenders to court and youth offender panels.  Although these are not strictly psychological placements, they are a way to gain face to face experience with offenders, with the settings and with the multi-agency environment that surrounds an offender. 

My first of these volunteering posts was with a charity that mentored ex-offenders, helping them to find work and get into education or training.  I found the induction and training invaluable.  I felt that this training was readiness to begin work with offenders and a step away from the theory behind offending behaviour, assessment and treatment that you receive on a Masters course.  Training from charities that work in this way with offenders, if presented well, should prepare you to hold your boundaries, to consider your personal safety, to be aware of offending behaviours, to be aware of the offence someone may have committed and to talk to ex-offenders as fellow people not just 'offenders'.

Volunteering in this way also gives you the opportunity to learn from the offender.  As someone on the independent route and not working in a prison, I learnt so much volunteering about how difficult things are for prisoners on 6-12 month sentences and can now understand why they are the group of offenders most likely to re-offend.  Working in this way also gave me the opportunity to understand how the offence they have committed can effect the training and work opportunities they can access.  For example one ex-offender I worked with had a drugs conviction and wanted to become a youth worker so that he could pass on his first hand experience of the system and keep young males away from drugs and prison.  As expected, no course would accept him to work with young people with this conviction, however this is sad because he is probably the best person to be sharing the experience and consequences of his actions with young people.

Charities also have many needs that you as a psychologist can offer to help with especially if you are enrolled on the Stage 2 Chartership route.  For example, two of the Stage 2 Core Roles are training and consultancy.  Charities and third sector organisations will often be grateful of the opportunity to have someone come and deliver FREE training and consultancy to them.  This is something that I have definitely experienced as I am completing one of my exemplars as a consultant to a London based charity working with offenders and another exemplar offering training to an organisation.  The key of course is to have built a good rapport with the charity or organisation, perhaps by having volunteered for them in the past and then to really sell your proposal to them. 

The benefit of having volunteered with the charity first is not only the development of a rapport but also that you will have been able to see what possible needs there are that you could help with and you will have an insight into the structure, nature and politics of the organisation and can therefore present an idea that fits within those three areas or is able to answer the questions that those three areas of an organisation will raise.  If you are going to propose an core role idea to a charity that you are volunteering with you need to make sure that it is going to be relevant to both the charity and your Stage 2 and that it fits within the politics of the organisation i.e. you are not stepping on anyone's toes or suggesting something that deviates from the charity's mission statement.  Anything you do as a trainee and for a core role will need to be offered for free and you will also need to be able to explain to the organisation what Stage 2 is and arrange for one of them to be your Designated Supervisor and what that will entail for them.  It sounds like a lot but it can be successful.

As always I will include some words of caution:
1. Do nothing without the support of your supervisor.  There can be lots of politics and issues arising through completing a core role, your role within the organisation depending on which core role you are completing (training instruction or consultant) and the demands of colleagues working for the organisations (they are under pressure often too!).  Sometimes you can feel pulled in different directions; a great learning experience but it is really important to have your supervisor's support.

2. Be prepared for constant change and for the work to be stop-start.  Charities often have a high turnover of staff, are dependent on funding and often under-staffed and overworked.  There may be times when you aren't updated on progress as often as you would like, people don't respond to your calls and emails and you generally feel isolated.  If you have previously volunteered with the charity these feelings should be moderated as you will have experienced first hand the nature of the organisation and the pressure they are under and will be more empathic when things like this happen.  Make sure you mention it in your practice diary, how you cope with it and your strategies for improving the situation.

I don't want anyone to feel put off by this, working with a charity can be fantastic experience and can offer brilliant opportunities to complete core roles.

Until next time........

Publishing Your Research and Book Reviews

Ciara Wild MBPsS, Forensic Psychologist in Training

For many of us, getting published is one of the hardest parts of psychology training.  Publications of research are what reflect psychology as a science and us as scientist-practitioners.  This being said, achieving publication through the rigorous critique of our research can be the hardest part.  It is important to understand that published research must be of as high a standard as possible to maintain the quality of the outcomes in psychology, however this does not mean that your work is impossible to publish and doesn't mean that you cannot get your name in print attached to an article or otherwise.  We all have to do a research dissertation for our masters. There is a great deal of work that goes into to it from us and our research supervisors so why not publish it?  Many universities will offer to publish what they see as the best reports but there is no reason why you can’t go to journals yourself.

I chose to publish my masters dissertation and to try to get my name in as many relevant publications as possible through book reviews and articles.  My particular experience of this has been quite successful. Initially I chose to publish my masters dissertation.  I felt that I had worked hard on it and that it was currently relevant in the forensic psychology field, however I was also afraid that journals such as those by Sage or Wiley would not accept my dissertation so I decided to send it to the Division of Forensic Psychology (DFP) instead to be published in Forensic Update.  This was a very tense time for me, would they accept my research for publication or wouldn't they?  Luckily my report was accepted with the caveat that some changes needed to be made to the content to ensure the explanations were appropriate and to remove sections that were needed by the examiners of the masters course and not by readers. 

It was harder than anticipated to cut my dissertation down to publishable size especially after all the time writing, sweating and crying over it; I felt that everything was relevant!  All reports will need to be amended for publication if not for size then to answer the questions of the peer reviewers and to address the issues suggested by the editors however, the benefits of having your name in print makes it all worth it.  Having something published not only looks great on your CV to potential employers and placements but should make it easier in the future for you to publish again as you will have some experience of the process and what is needed for a successful publication. A word of caution with regards to publishing; publishers will consider whether your research is current and relevant to issues either happening now or topics where there is not enough information, these are the ones most likely to be selected for publication.  You may have to consider whether your research will need updating to make it more current and whether this will be viable.

In the case of book reviews. Lots of magazines and journals have a back log of books that need reviewing and this can be an alternative way of getting your name into print and practising analytic and concise writing skills. Book reviews are also a great way to learn about an area from a book you may not necessarily choose to buy for yourself. If you have the time to read the book and write a short piece about it then this might be a great starting point for you.  Alternatively, you could submit a non-research article to a magazine such as the Psychologist.  Perhaps you have been on work experience, helped with a particularly interesting project or done some volunteering and the charity or company are happy for you to write an article about your experiences there and an evaluative piece on its impact and outcomes.  These are all possibilities for starting the process of submitting for publication.  Other more mainstream magazines also often look for articles to be submitted and sometimes pay a small fee for the articles they receive.

I hope this has been of some help to all.  Please feel free to leave any comments or ask any questions.

Until the next instalment......

Reflections upon Stage 2 Training as an Independent Practitioner

Sally Lopresti, BSc (Hons), MSc, MBPsS, Independent Forensic Psychologist in Training

 As discussed in my last article (23 July 2012), I was employed as a forensic psychologist in training (FPiT) by HM Prison Service until May 2008. Since that time, I have been working as an independent FPiT.  In this article I will reflect on the positives, as well as the pitfalls of independent work and the ways in which it has helped, and hindered, my progression towards chartership and registration as a forensic psychologist.

Of course, there are many models of independent practice and so my experiences may not directly relate to those of other trainees who are working independently. To give you some background, since 2008 I have been self-employed as a sole trader. I am an associate of Psychological Services UK Ltd (PSUK) whose Director is also my coordinating supervisor. The way our business model works is that PSUK is instructed to undertake assessment and treatment work, and the work is then allocated to its associates. The majority of my work is instructed by solicitors and tends to relate to preparing psychological risk assessment reports for the purpose of parole hearings. However, I have also worked in association with, and under the instruction of, HMPS; undertaking risk/need assessments and cognitive behavioural treatment with offenders. As an associate rather than an employee, I invoice PSUK after I complete each piece of work.

So, what are the benefits of being an independent FPiT?

Home working: I work from home. This means that I don’t have to commute, saving both time and money.  When I travel to visit clients I charge for mileage and travel time. I’m fortunate enough to have a dedicated office within my house which means that I still ‘go to work’. There are lots of benefits to home working which I suppose will be of varying value depending on your overall lifestyle and priorities. At the risk of making my life sound really dull, I get to hang washing out, receive parcels (no more red cards through the letterbox) and keep the dog company! I don’t have to worry about fitting in trips to the hairdresser, vet or dentist because I have the flexibility to shift my working day around to suit myself.

Managing my own workload: I get to dictate to a large extent how much work I want to take on. This has to be done with some degree of planning in order that the company director knows which cases to allocate to me. However, it has meant that I have been able to dedicate chunks of time to focusing on chartership work and submissions. When I was working for HMPS I really struggled to focus upon chartership because my workload was so high and there were always more immediate deadlines to be attended to.

Flexibility to seek out a variety of opportunities: As well as undertaking work in association with PSUK, I have sought out experiences elsewhere. In some cases these have been in order to fulfil the requirements of chartership (for example, undertaking some research at a London prison), but others have been in order to further my own professional development and build upon professional links with other practitioners and institutions (for example, lecturing on a MSc forensic psychology course, and marking psychology papers for an examination board). Self-employment allows me to be my own boss and, within the confines of my own financial commitments and the need for my practice to be supervised, the world is my oyster, so to speak.

 And the pitfalls of being an independent FPiT?

Home working: Working from home takes great discipline and my experience is that I never achieve as much in a day as I plan to, so financial projections may not play out. I’m lucky that I have colleagues (other PSUK associates) with whom I get along extremely well and we make a point of meeting up on a monthly basis for peer supervision, as well as the more frequent emails and telephone conversations that provide some element of human contact. This helps not only to mitigate the loneliness element of home-working, but also provides an opportunity to share and challenge ideas; a key part of maintaining good standards of practice.

Hidden costs: Not all independent FPiTs are necessarily self-employed. However, if you are you need to consider the costs associated with our work. I pay my own BPS and DFP membership, my annual maintenance fee, supervision fees and the costs of submitting exemplars for assessment. I also pay for my office supplies, professional indemnity insurance, my CRB checks, my registration with the Information Commissioner’s Office (Data Protection) and any training or conference fees. As a self-employed practitioner I get no paid annual leave, sick leave, maternity pay or pension.

Income uncertainty: Being self-employed means that, when times are good, I can earn significantly more than was possible as a FPiT within HM Prison Service. However, work can go through fits and starts, which can be an issue when there are regular bills to be paid. Good personal discipline in financial planning can go a long way to mitigating this, and in my own case I’m part of a dual income household where my partner has a more regular income that reduces the financial risk associated with this.

Access to resources: Did you know that SPSS costs well over £1800 for a 12 month licence?! In order to complete my Core Role 2 exemplars, I had to beg and borrow to complete my statistical analysis because I simply couldn’t afford to purchase it. I’m thankful that the BPS is now providing a much greater degree of access to journal articles because finances no longer prevent me to the same degree from engaging in professional development or undertaking research in a given area.

Breadth of work: My ‘bread and butter’ work tends to relate to assessments and interventions, providing me with ample experience of Core Role 1.  Undertaking work in relation to the other core roles requires me, as an independent practitioner, to be proactive in seeking out opportunities. Fortunately, I had completed exemplar work for Core Roles 3 (consultancy) and 4 (training) prior to leaving HM Prison Service.  I was able to use professional connections I had made during my time in HMPS to secure access to participants in order to undertake Core Role 2 (research) work. The potential for a good breadth of work as an independent practitioner is great, but I think you have to work a bit harder at it.

 My advice to others?

I’m glad that I gained my earlier experience within HMPS because it provided me with a range of opportunities in terms of training, access to the client group and multi-disciplinary working. However, I haven’t looked back since becoming an independent practitioner. I have a huge appetite for learning and improving and find that I have more time to focus upon my own professional needs now, in order that I can in turn provide a better service to my clients. My words of warning for those considering independent work relate mainly to ensuring that you can secure a coordinating supervisor, making sure that you factor in the hidden costs of being a self-employed FPiT, and being prepared for the level of self-directed learning and networking involved.

Reflections upon Stage 2 Training within HM Prison Service

Sally Lopresti, BSc (Hons), MSc, MBPsS, Independent Forensic Psychologist in Training

It’s been a good couple of weeks for me. I received confirmation that I passed my final core role and I’m about to submit my monolithic pile of practice diaries and supervision log entries to the Chief Supervisor for final scrutiny. Chartership and HPC registration feel as though they are finally within reach.

I’ve agreed to write a series of articles for this great new blog. These will reflect upon my experiences as a forensic psychologist in training (FPiT) both as a HMPS employee and as an independent practitioner. I will also address each of the core roles in turn, sharing my understanding and experiences of each of them, as well as thoughts on the feedback that I’ve received from assessors.

I’m ashamed to say that I started my training back in 2004. I was employed by HM Prison Service and working in a high security prison at the time. I was one of the first FPiTs to join the ‘new’ competency based route. The new route was very different to previous routes and it took me, my supervisors and colleagues a long while to fully grasp what was required. I think this was in some part due to the lack of clarity offered at the time by the DFP; this has improved greatly, in my opinion, since John Hodge came into role as Chief Supervisor. In retrospect however, I am also able to point the finger firmly at myself for taking such an avoidant approach to anything chartership-related.

The remainder of this article is a reflection on my experiences as an FPiT within HM Prison Service and the benefits, but also the pitfalls, of trying to complete Stage 2 in a prison setting. It’s important to note my caveat, which is that I left HMPS in May 2008 and I understand that there have since been a number of changes to the way in which psychological services are structured within the service. I think, however, that the majority of the points I raise remain valid.

Breadth of experience

When I look back at my career as an FPiT within HM Prison Service, I am enormously appreciative of the breadth of experience I gained. When I say ‘breadth’, I’m referring to the job roles that I held, the core roles that I fulfilled, the client group that I treated/assessed/supported and the range of professions that I worked alongside.

I joined HMPS in 2002 as a psychological assistant.  The following year I was successful in gaining promotion to the grade of FPiT. In the five years that followed I filled the following roles: research psychologist (assessing staff coping styles), drug treatment programme facilitator, drug treatment programme treatment manager, lead risk assessment psychologist, and discrete unit team leader (Segregation Unit, Healthcare and Close Supervision Centre). Throughout this time I was also a wing psychologist on the vulnerable prisoner unit, working predominantly with sexual offenders and prisoners with mood and personality disorders.

When I consider my experience within the context of each of the Stage 2 Core Roles, I had ample opportunity to engage in Core Role 1 work (interventions and assessments) for example. As well as delivering and managing drug and alcohol treatment, I completed Category A and parole reports, which included the use of structured risk assessments such as the HCR-20 (Historical Clinical Risk), the SARN (Structured Assessment of Risk and Need – sexual offenders) and the SARA (Spousal Assault Risk Assessment).  Later in my HMPS career, I had the opportunity to engage in treatment work within the Close Supervision Centre.

The Head of Psychology at the time (pre-2008) was a respected and resolute member of the establishment’s senior management team. The input of psychological services was valued by the No. 1 Governor and the forensic psychology team was involved in a range of initiatives across the prison.   For example, I had the opportunity to play an instrumental role in setting up the establishment’s new Risk Assessment and Management Unit, which incorporated the parole, sentence planning, OASys and psychological risk assessment sections. I took the psychological lead in this process which involved creating a new way of feeding psychological assessment and treatment work into the sentence management process. I was responsible for overseeing the improvement of OASys assessments, which involved supervising OASys reports, as well as engaging in professional development / support supervision sessions with the OASys assessors.

Other consultancy roles included attendance at sentence planning boards, mental health reviews, suicide /self-harm risk reviews, segregation reviews and officer recruitment interviews. The opportunities to undertake Core Role 3 (consultancy) and Core Role 4 (training) work were plentiful.  

Core Role 2 was, in my experience, the more difficult of the core roles to undertake within HMPS. This was not because of a lack of access to participants. Rather, it just didn’t seem to fit within the day to day priorities of the business. For me, it was very much additional work that I did on top of ‘the day job’.

Training and support

Being an independent practitioner, I am far more appreciative in retrospect of the level of training that I had access to as a HMPS FPiT.  I now have to self-fund Stage 2, as well as CPD events and opportunities. My two year part-time MSc in Applied Forensic Psychology (2003-2005) was fully funded by HMPS, although there was an assumption that the week’s work would fit into the remaining four days when I wasn’t attending the University of York. I saw this as the pay-off for having the course funded, but it made for a challenging couple of years.

I was also fortunate enough to receive training in motivational interviewing, therapeutic (CBT) skills, the PCL-R (Psychopathy Checklist – Revised), the WAIS-III (Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale), supervisor skills, the HCR-20 (Historical, Clinical Risk), SVR-20 (Sexual Violence Risk) and SARA (Spousal Assault Risk Assessment), to name but a few. This is nothing to be sniffed at; the courses typically cost £500+ to attend.

In addition to the training I attended, my BPS/DFP membership was funded by HMPS, as were my Stage 2 fees. In the heyday of my HMPS career, I had regular access to my coordinating supervisor and was surrounded by a range of other chartered forensic and clinical psychologists with a variety of backgrounds and experience which they seemed happy to share with me.

Of course, I wouldn’t want readers to think that HMPS does all of this out of the pure goodness of its heart! The training costs are all factored into the pay package. The working hours were long and there was an expectation that I would take on responsibilities that were arguably above my pay grade. When I left my FPiT role in 2008, having been at that grade for five years, my salary was in the region of £18,000 gross per annum. I had been responsible for service delivery, meeting key performance targets, line management of other FPiTs and had supervised prison officers who were earning £10-15k more per annum than I was.

So why leave?!

My reasons for leaving were particular to my own circumstances and those of the prison at the time. The senior management had changed and our Head of Psychology had left. The culture and regime changes brought about by the change in management led to a significant amount of disillusionment on the part of many of my colleagues, as well as a sense that the profession was becoming increasingly devalued within that particular setting. One by one the remaining chartered psychologists left. The Stage 2 FPiTs highlighted to managers that we were effectively unable to practice without a supervisor and so we successfully arranged for an independent forensic psychologist to visit the prison on a monthly basis in order to provide the minimum requirement in terms of supervision.  I was consequently offered the opportunity to join the chartered psychologist in her independent practice and didn’t hesitate (well, not for long!).

Looking back, my experience of being an FPiT in HMPS involved a huge amount of learning and experience; not just in terms of how to be a psychologist, but also regarding how to consult, supervise and work in a truly diverse and multidisciplinary setting.  In my view, I am a far more assertive, confident and competent practitioner than I would have been had I not undertaken most of my training within that prison.

I wouldn’t rule out a return to HMPS in the future, but I’m not ready yet. My time in HMPS was a real baptism of fire. I worked extremely long hours, including unpaid overtime and often felt as though the task was pretty thankless. I didn’t prioritise chartership because everything else felt so hectic and more timebound. Days (particularly as a manager within the team) were spent dealing with crises and evenings were spent getting the bread and butter work done. I’ll always remember my Head of Psychology coming to say goodnight to me on her way out of the department at 8pm one evening. She remarked “Are you working late again? Still, it’s the key to success” (paraphrased). I’m not sure I can agree with that; I don’t think it’s sustainable in the long term and if I had my time again I would take a much healthier and robust approach to my work-life balance.

My advice to others?

Seek out employment opportunities within HMPS if you can; especially at the beginning of your training. However, make sure you will have regular access to a coordinating supervisor and that you make time for your Stage 2 submissions. I suspect the relatively newly introduced Stage 2 Quarterly Supervision Plans will help in making sure you’re moving forward in your training.

Next article – same time next month: Stage 2 training as an independent FPiT.

Supervision

Through the Division of Forensic Psychology (DFP) trainees forum, I often see fellow trainees struggling to get on the first rung of the ladder for Stage 2 and that is accessing an appropriate supervisor. As trainees we need to understand something about the forensic psychology arena so as to understand the difficulties that can arise in accessing appropriate supervision.

My experience so far, from speaking to other trainees and through my experience of securing a supervisor is that forensic psychology is currently underfunded and overworked which is leading to a bottle neck in the training process. Students are completing their masters only to find there are very few trainee forensic psychology posts available in the prison service and NHS and these are in high demand. What all this amounts to is that there is less money to take on trainees so instead assistant psychologists roles are preferred. Chartered forensic psychologists have high case loads and without the trainees to support them, they are left with very little time to supervise Stage 2 training. Therefore, as expected, students completing their masters are working elsewhere, trying to gain experience and secure a supervisor independently.

To secure a supervisor can be a lengthy process but do not be disheartended, there will be a supervisor out there for you. Whilst some chartered forensic psychologists do not take on independent trainees as they feel we are unable to get the experience, many others see the benefits of having independent trainees not as an extra source of income but as essential to the development of the wider forensic psychology arena.

The first place to start when looking for a supervisor would be to contact Alex Johnson at the DFP (see bottom of page for website link). Alex has a list of current supervisors and their contact details so that you can start canvassing for supervision. The only thing the list doesn't provide is information on whether the supervisors have any current availability.

I went the long way round to finding a supervisor and instead searched the British Psychological Society (BPS) website for all the chartered forensic psychologists in the London area where I am based. I also made sure to note what areas they had experience in and where they worked as it helps to have a supervisor who holds the same interests in forensic psychology as you do, for example, if you do not agree with the prison system and do not want to work in that setting, you want to look for a supervisor who perhaps has experience of secure units, police or community work. Furthermore, if your interest is in the courts and eye witness testimony etc, you may find a supervisor who has only worked with offending behaviour and mental health more difficult to work with. On the other hand, a good supervisor may be able to support you despite your differences in interests.

Trying to secure a supervisor is very similar to sending your CV out for a job. You have to sell yourself. It can take some time between securing a supervisor and finishing your masters and supervisors will want to know what you have been doing in the mean time to keep your skills sharp, to gain experience and to continue your professional development. This is where volunteering and placements can come in really handy and if you need help in organising and logging your continued professional development (CPD) then the BPS have a great CPD site on their main website which allows you to keep a record of your CPD, your learning and your reflections. In subsequent articles I will talk more about volunteering and placements but for now, let's stick to supervision.

It can be hard to know what it is supervisors are looking for in order to sell yourself to them. To help with this dilemma i asked my supervisor what she looks for and what she thinks other supervisors look for in a trainee. To summarise her view, she feels supervisors are looking for people who are motivated and able to work independently as the supervisors are there to advise and guide and you will be doing the work for yourself. You will need to demonstrate a high level of organisation so that a supervisor can be certain that you are capable of working in this capacity. Of course a variety of experience is also helpful even if it is voluntary work. As with any job or placement, showing that you are mature and professional in your approach to securing a supervisor can also help so a CV and cover letter stating your intention for supervision, what stage your are at with your CPD and training and where you want to go in the future are a must.

It is with supervision that the independent route has a short fall. Unless your workplace will fund this training, you will have to fund supervision yourself. Supervisors costs vary but are usually between £50 - £100 an hour and half again for marking working that you send to them. Ok, deep breath, don't panic. You only need to see your supervisor for 4 hours a month once you are enrolled on Stage 2, it can take up to a year to do all the preparation and have your application completed and approved and you won't need to see your supervisor for 4 hours a month during that time. Once you are enrolled thats when you must see a supervisor for 4 hours a month however this can include a designated supervisor who is overseeing your examplar work at your placement or in your workplace. So for example, if you are doing a placement with a college for one of your exemplars then someone has to be named your designated supervisor and you can see this person for 3 out of the 4 supervision hours a month, saving you a bit of money. A word of caution, your coordinating supervisor is there to make sure that your work is up to standard and to ensure that you are practising appropriately therefore if they feel at any point that you are struggling then you will need to see them more often. This isn't a bad thing and can only help to improve your practice and the likelihood of passing your exemplars first time.

I hope this article has been helpful to you. If you have any questions about the Stage 2 process and any questions about supervision then you can access the DFP website through a link at the bottom of this blog. You can also find Alex's details to email her any questions you have. If you have any questions about my experience of supervision then feel free to leave any comments or email me.

Until next time......

Until the next full installment of the Forensic Psych Trainees blog, if you are are considering a career in forensic psychology but are not yet sure of the types of issues that you will studying or what will be expected of you then take a look at the website below.  I have found this really useful throughout my masters degree and training as it gathers together on one site, information about forensic psychology internationally.  There are great articles about eye eitness testimony, prison psychology and psychopathy amongst others as well as links to free resources.

www.all-about-forensic-psychology.com

 

 

Preparing for Stage 2 Training

For many trainees, issues around preparing for Stage 2 and finding a Supervisor come as part of their employment package, however, there are a growing number of students completing their masters who are unable to access a Forensic Psychologist in Training post within the prison service or NHS.  It is these students who often embark upon the independent route to forensic psychology chartership.

The independent route has many pitfalls but it also has many benefits in terms of the Stage 2 work.  Stage 2 requires a wide breadth of experience as well as showing depth of working.  Many Forensic Psychologists in Training have had to locate to new places of work and pick up extra volunteering, in order to achieve the breadth of experience required by the Stage 2 assessors.  In the independent route you are able to access a wide variety of sources with which to complete your Stage 2 but may struggle with some of the more in-depth work due to issues around accessing clients or patients. 

So, how do you prepare for these challenges?  Networking, making contacts and selling yourself to potential organisations are important methods for succeeding in this and I can’t say enough about having a supervisor to support and guide you. Based on my experiences of the independent route, I have listed points for preparation that can be made for the Stage 2 process.

Volunteering – There are lots of agencies across the country that interact at different levels of intensity with offenders from befriending and prison visits to mentoring, acting as an appropriate adult, accompanying offenders to court and youth offender panels.  Although these are not strictly psychological placements, they are a way to gain face to face experience with offenders, with the settings and with the multi-agency environment that surrounds an offender.  Charities also have many needs that you as a psychologist can offer to help with.  For example, two of the Stage 2 Core Roles are training and consultancy.  Charities and third sector organisations will often be grateful of the opportunity to have someone come and deliver FREE training and consultancy to them.  This is something that I have definitely experienced as I am completing one of my exemplars as a consultant to a London based charity working with offenders and another exemplar offering training to an organisation.

Placements – I feel that I may have been a little behind the times on this one and that may well be because I took so long to find a supervisor however, placements are the perfect way to gain experience in the field if you are not already working there.  I work in a training institute for counsellors and psychotherapists where there is a dedicated placements database and placements coordinator to help them gain experience and increase their practice hours.  There is nothing of this sort yet for forensic psychology and I am hoping that one day we will have one to help us all complete our chartership.  Placements can be accessed by offering your services as volunteer to an organisation or department in return for learning and work experience.  More than we realise, departments in the NHS and private organisations take on volunteers for a placement, this is not unusual practice.  The key here is a good CV and cover letter stating what experience you would like but most importantly, what you can offer them in return.  I am still working on arranging a suitable placement for myself but when I do I will certainly update the blog with my experiences.

Research and Book Reviews – We all have to do a research dissertation for our masters.  There is a great deal of work that goes into to it from us and our research supervisors so why not publish it?  Many universities will offer to publish what they see as the best reports but there is no reason why you can’t go to journals yourself or to the DFP publications such as Forensic Digest and publish there.  You will of course need to amend your report for publication in terms of word count but most journals will have guidelines for potential publishers.  Having something published not only looks great on your CV to potential employers and placements but should make it easier in the future for you to publish again as you will have some experience of the process and what is needed for a successful publication.  This is also the case for book reviews.  Lots of magazines and journals have a back log of books that need reviewing, this can be an alternative way of getting your name into print and practice analytic and concise writing skills.  Book reviews are also a great way to learn about an area from a book you may not necessarily choose to buy for yourself.  A word of caution with regards to publishing; publishers will consider whether your research is current and relevant to issues either happening now or topics where there is not enough information, these are the ones most likely to be selected for publication.

Supervision – For me, having a supervisor has been the key to navigating my way through the Stage 2 process so far.  There are so many documents to read and people have so many different experiences with the process that it can make your head swim.  A supervisor helps keep everything in perspective, keeps you focused and supports you with your endeavours.  Over a year of supervision and preparing for my Stage 2 I can see how I have changed and grown in confidence and understanding of my skills and abilities.  This makes approaching organisations about possible Core Roles less daunting and feeling supported in this has made the work enjoyable.  A co-ordinating supervisor is necessary in order to complete the Stage 2 process but they are a personal benefit to you in making progress.

I hope this has given you some food for thought.  In the coming weeks I will follow this up with articles going into greater depth on the points above.  If there is anything else you would like to see addressed please feel free to contact me or alternatively write an article of your own to be included in the blog.  These of course are my experiences and I am sure fellow readers would like to hear of other people’s thoughts and experiences.  Also, if you are a Forensic Psychologist in Training working with the NHS or Prison Service I would love to hear your experiences of the process.

Till next time....

For 2 years now I and other potential trainees have been navigating the chartership arena hoping to find away to become chartered forensic psychologists. The area appears to be littered with obstacles however there are safe paths through the debris if you know where to look for them. I am writing this blog in the hope that in the future I can offer a place for trainees and potential trainees to access information on supervisors and placements swiftly and where your questions can be answered quickly and advice offered from fellow trainees. The blog will be published once a month on Twitter, facebook and the forensic psychology trainees forum and I am hoping that with the support and interest of my fellow trainees we can develop a site and blog where we can advertise placements, supervisors, offer a space for issues in forensic psychology training to be discussed,research to be published and discussed and latest news and changes to the stage 2 process easily accessed. I would like to invite you all to get in touch with me and let me know the types of issues you would like to see this blog address and I would also like to invite you to share any thoughts and experiences that you have had that can be published as an article and part of the blog. Together we can develop a concise and effective resources for all trainees and those considering Chartership can use. To contact me please email wildc98@hotmail.com Ciara Wild Forensic Psychologist in Training