Thetford assistant psychologist Tabitha Taylor, 22, talks about her role with Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust

Ahead of International Women’s Day tomorrow, a young Thetford assistant psychologist has highlighted the importance of supporting individuals from underrepresented communities to join the profession.

For Tabitha Taylor, completing her first-class undergraduate degree in psychology and criminology at Anglia Ruskin University was filled with as much anxiety as relief.

Psychology graduates often find it hard to find a way into the highly competitive field and it is not uncommon for graduates to take on unpaid work or roles they are overqualified for to gain the experience that is often required for an entry-level role.

As someone from a low-income background and with a disabled father, her family could not financially support her taking on voluntary work.

Therefore, the 22-year-old was thrilled to discover the aspiring clinical psychologists access scheme with Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT).

The NHS England scheme is a paid work experience programme to support psychology graduates from underrepresented groups to gain clinical experience and strengthen future applications for unqualified psychological professional roles.

Tabitha said: “Jobs like this are hard to come by anyway, but I was really happy I found something close to where I live.

“The programme’s mission to support disadvantaged aspiring clinical psychologists deeply resonated with me and I felt seen and included in ways other opportunities hadn’t provided.

“It’s really important to enable that diversity because people from high-income areas might not have the same experiences as people from low-income areas. We can all add a lot of value in the field.”

After a successful application, Tabitha started her new part-time role as an assistant psychologist at West Suffolk’s older people’s community mental health team in August.

The 12-month post has seen her work under the supervision of a clinical psychologist while visiting service users in their homes for therapy. This has included behavioural family therapy, cognitive behavioural therapy and compassion-focused therapy.

She has also been working with not-for-profit organisation Civil Society Consulting to provide loneliness reduction training to community services in West Suffolk – an issue that is often at the root cause of many mental health issues.

The role has proven to be a transformative journey for Tabitha, building not just her professional experience but her confidence.

She said: “Sometimes I look at myself and I suddenly realise I’m a professional. I’m contributing to the community, I’m helping people and when I have my patients, they view me as a professional. That really gobsmacks me sometimes.

“For a woman to feel empowered enough to take these big steps can be an issue sometimes. The biggest thing I’ve had to overcome is leaving my comfort zone – you have to be confident in yourself to be able to support your patients.”

Determined to continue her growth, Tabitha has begun applying for new roles to continue expanding her expertise in mental health care.

Julie Hull, interim chief people officer at NSFT, said: “We are thrilled as a trust to have been able to offer this national scheme to improve diversity in the psychology workforce.

We have successfully secured additional roles through this programme and we look forward to supporting more graduates.

“We wish Tabitha all the best for the future.”