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.