Senior Academy Performance Psychologist

The club

We are Wolves. Progressive, determined, bright, unified and humble. A pack that is hungry for success. Wolves is one of the fastest growing professional football clubs in the UK, and also boasts one of the richest histories in the beautiful game.

Formed in 1877, Wolves was a founder member of the Football League, and was one of the country’s most successful sides in the fifties and sixties. During a two-decade spell, the Black Country’s most decorated side won three First Division titles and one of its four FA Cups.

Fast forward 70 years and Wolves are back amongst football’s elite. In the past six years we have celebrated promotion to the Premier League, back-to-back 7th placed finishes and a Europa League quarter-final campaign.

Now, we will be competing in the Premier League for a sixth successive season. But this post is not about what we have done, but what we will achieve next.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults at risk. We expect all colleagues and volunteers to share this commitment.

This means that the post-holder is required to apply all relevant policies and uphold the Club’s commitment to safeguarding children, young people and adults at risk and to ensuring that Wolves is free from discrimination and harassment.

Job purpose

Wolves are recruiting for a ‘Senior Academy Performance Psychologist’ working within the Academy, as a fully integrated member of the support team.

The full-time role will require a practitioner to become immersed in the programme, applying psychological principles, promoting Wolves values, and working closely with players, coaches, and support staff and parents.

This full-time psychology role working mainly within the PDP aims to further enable staff and players to maximise performance and enhance wellbeing.

Key responsibilities

1. Support understanding of the psychological needs of players and inform targeted interventions:

• Work on a daily basis with PDP coaches, and multi-disciplinary staff to identify and enhance understanding of the psychological needs of players.
• Offer 1:1 direct performance support for PDP players where appropriate.
  Support player transitions between U16-PDP.
• Work with the Goalkeeping department to support them across the academy.
  Attend loans meetings to support staff in thinking psychologically about individuals.

2. Targeted group workshops (based on identified needs):

• To provide relevant education for academy coaches and multi-disciplinary staff.
• Provide a variety of psychological workshops to PDP players throughout the season to
  support their understanding and development of the Wolves psychology characteristics
  (Drive, Openness, Regulation).

3. Integrating psychology into training, matches, and tournaments:

• Travel to matches and with the PDP teams on away tours.
• To observe, facilitate staff and player reflections, and support the implementation of psychological training interventions.

4. Responding safely and appropriately to the wellbeing needs of players:

• To contribute to and support the wellbeing forums.
• Work closely with the Player Care team, Safeguarding, and the academy Clinical Psychologist, to educate the system and support player’s wellbeing.

5. To ensure the academy meets the EPPP standards for Psychology provision:

• EPPP adherence.

General responsibilities

• Compliance with Club policies
• Compliance with the Club’s health and safety procedures
• Compliance with the Club’s safeguarding policies
• To promote the Club’s values of progressive, humble, determined, bright and unified
• To work consistently to embed equality & diversity into the Club
• To undertake such other duties as may be reasonably expected
• To maintain professional conduct at all times

Key relationships

• Head of Academy Performance Services
• Academy Manager
• Changing Minds Contracted Psychologists
• PDP MDT

Person specification

Skills/ knowledge/ qualifications:

Essential

• Post graduate degree in Psychology or Sport Psychology.
• BPS chartered, HCPC registered Sport Psychologist.
• Fully enhanced DBS Check and up to date Child Protection Certificate.
• Experience of working with adolescents in an elite sporting context.
• Excellent interpersonal skills, the ability to connect and build relationships with staff and players is crucial.
• Evidence of impactful 1:1 psychology support AND / OR delivery of psych-education to a relevant population.
• Evidence of working with and through coaches / support staff in the delivery of psychology.
• Open to learning and dedicated to self-improvement and personal development. Reflective and able to demonstrate appropriate self-care and emotional regulation skills.
• Ability to work under pressure and willing to work unsociable hours to meet deadlines.

Desirable

• Ability to provide transition support between the YDP and PDP phases and work closely with the Head of Academy Performance Services.
• Experience working in Academy or Senior Football, ideally within the Professional Development Phase.
• Organised, methodical and logical approach to work.
• Creative presentation skills and experience of presentation delivery.

How to apply

Please complete our Application Form and Diversity Monitoring Form, then email them to jobs@wolves.co.uk 

Please include the job reference code (SG-00-31032025) and the job title in the subject line.

Please note, we reserve the right to close any advertised vacancy before the stated closing date. We recommend applying to our vacancies early, to avoid any disappointment.

For safeguarding reasons, we are unable to progress candidates who have not applied with our application form. Thank you.

#onepack