Quality Assurance & Training Lead – Psychology

Quality Assurance and Training Lead - Psychology

Quality Assurance & Training Lead for Psychology

SOMEK AND ASSOCIATES (medico-legal consultancy)

Somek and Associates Limited (S&A) is part of the Frenkel Topping Group.

Our main function is toprovide expert witnesses and professional reports for medico-legal purposes.

Our mission is:

• To ensure courts have the best expert evidence with which to deal with cases justly.
• To ensure lawyers litigating cases (and other case workers instructing us) have supreme confidence in their decisions based on our quality expert input.
• To ensure our expert input is seen as value for money.

POSITION

Location:

Remote working and occasional work in the S&A offices in Chesham, Buckinghamshire

Accountable to:
Head of Medico‑Legal Operations

Close Liaison:
Quality Assurance and Development Lead (Quantum).

ROLE OVERVIEW

The role overview in this document is intended as a guide to describe the main duties.

We are seeking a visionary Psychology Expert Witness Service Lead to establish, develop and oversee a new psychology expert witness service. The role combines strategic leadership, clinical and expert witness insight and service innovation to ensure the delivery of a high quality expert witness service.

The Quality Assurance & Training Lead for Psychology will have a clinical background and have significant experience working as an expert witness in clinical negligence / personal injury cases.

The Psychology Lead will be required to provide quality assurance / mentoring and training to less experienced associates for all aspects of the expert witness role, and in particular to ensure the standard of reports being submitted is appropriate.

The postholder will be responsible for the professional leadership and management of psychology expert witnesses with the following professional /skill mix:

Clinical Psychologists

Counselling Psychologists

Educational Psychologists

Forensic Psychologists

Primary Role:

• Design and implement the psychology expert witness service, embedding it within Somek and Associates’ current operational workflows.
• Lead the recruitment and onboarding of psychology experts across specialisms (clinical, neuropsychology, educational and forensic).
• Develop service standards, report templates, and quality assurance protocols and evaluations, aligned with Somek & Associates’ policies, legal and clinical best practice.
• Collaborate with marketing and client services to position the service.
• Shape service positioning and enhancing client engagement, driving thought leadership in the psychology expert witness field.
• Providing clinical insight training and guidance to the Clinical Business Management team around the handling of psychology enquiries, with a focus on selecting the most appropriate psychology discipline and expert for each case.
• Actively promote Somek and Associates’ psychology expert witness services to clients, including claimant and defendant firms, through direct engagement, strategic outreach, and participation in professional forums or events.
• Support the evolution of the psychology expert witness service, identifying opportunities for innovation and growth.

2. Training

• Provide expert guidance and oversight to psychology associates, tailored to experience level and case complexity.
• Collaborate with the reports team proof readers and trainers to ensure consistency, accuracy and procedural excellence.
• Collaborate with fellow trainers to deliver comprehensive core training to all Somek and Associates experts — including those from other health professions — covering all aspects of casework:
  • Case conferences
  • Expert meetings and trial preparation
  • Supplementary reporting
• Design and implement specialist in-service expert witness training programmes / training materials, specifically for psychologists, aligned with evolving best practices and legal standards. Training may be delivered as individual webinars or via the Somek and Associates’ annual conference.
• Engage with psychology experts during case preparation, including preassessment discussions and first report drafting. Be available for ongoing case‑related queries and support.
• Review initial and subsequent reports/written…