Full job descriptionThe Affordable Counselling Network is a Community Interest Company with all work undertaken online. We are a small, friendly organisation doing something we’re genuinely proud of: making counselling affordable and accessible, while giving trainee counsellors a supportive, well-supervised place to grow into confident practitioners. Our trainees and clients consistently tell us how supported they feel and how valuable our service is. We currently support 300 weekly clients a week and provide training placements for 100 counsellors.
We’re looking for an experienced, HCPC-registered practitioner to take on independent clinical governance and safeguarding oversight across our placement service. This is a genuinely meaningful role with real decision-making authority, in a close-knit team where your judgement will be trusted and your input will be felt.
This is a new, flexible, remote role — around 1 hour a day, paid weekly as a retainer at £50/hour. Any additional hours needed, for example during a busier week, are also paid at £50/hour.
About the Role
As Clinical Governance & Safeguarding Lead, you provide independent clinical oversight across ACN’s placement service — currently around 100 trainees, 25 supervision groups, and around 20 new clients requiring assessment each week. You’ll review supervision records, assess new client suitability for allocation, and provide clinical judgement on safeguarding matters as they arise. You’ll work closely with our Director and Clinical Lead, but the clinical decisions within this role are yours to make.
What You’ll Be Doing
*Independently reviewing supervision records within 48 hours of submission, considering client safety, safeguarding, risk and the appropriateness of clinical interventions.
*Reviewing new client assessments and determining suitability for allocation within the trainee counselling service.
*Matching clients to the most appropriate trainee counsellor, weighing presenting need, complexity, risk and the trainee’s developmental stage.
*Providing independent clinical judgement on safeguarding concerns, including when escalation to statutory or external agencies is indicated.
*Recommending further supervision, assessment or review where a clinical review raises questions.
*Advising on safeguarding, information and clinical governance matters as required.
*Keeping clear, auditable records of your clinical reviews and the reasoning behind them.
What We’re Looking For
*HCPC registration as a Clinical Psychologist, Counselling Psychologist, or Art Therapist, with an integrative or relational orientation.
*Confident exercising independent professional judgement and comfortable being accountable for it.
*Experience with safeguarding practice and risk assessment in a talking-therapies or clinical setting.
*Well organised — able to turn around reviews reliably within a 48-hour window.
*Appropriate professional indemnity insurance in place to cover this role.
*Enhanced DBS.
*Excellent written and verbal communication skills, strong organisational and assessment abilities, and the ability to work collaboratively with a multidisciplinary team.
*Strong understanding of ethical requirements and legal regulations related to mental health treatment, with the ability to maintain professional boundaries and confidentiality.
*Commitment to culturally competent and socially responsible practice, with an understanding of the impact of social and cultural factors on mental health and wellbeing.
*Evidence of continuing professional development as required by the HCPC.
*Confident holding clinical responsibility, sharing any concerns with the Director as they arise.
Why ACN
We’re small enough that you’ll know the people you work with, and your judgement will genuinely shape how the service runs — this isn’t a role where your decisions get lost in a big system. If you want independent clinical responsibility, straightforward flexible hours, and a team that takes clinical governance as seriously as you do, we’d love to hear from you.