Senior Psychologist / Clinical Psychologist – Private Addiction & Recovery Retreat The Haven Retreats | Gold Coast, QLD

Brand-New Luxury Private Drug & Alcohol Recovery Retreat

About The Haven Retreats The Haven Retreats is a brand-new luxury private drug and alcohol recovery retreat on the Gold Coast, created to provide a highly personalised, compassionate and comprehensive approach to recovery.

Operating with a deliberately small number of residential clients, The Haven has been designed as an alternative to high-volume, institutional-style rehabilitation.

Our philosophy is simple

Treatment should address the person, not just the substance.

We recognise that problematic alcohol and other drug use rarely exists in isolation. Trauma, grief, anxiety, depression, relationships, environment, behavioural patterns, emotional regulation and other psychological and social factors may all influence an individual's relationship with substances and their recovery.

Our goal is to provide clients with the opportunity to understand these factors while developing the practical tools, confidence, emotional regulation skills and resilience needed to navigate everyday life and support long-term wellbeing.

The Haven brings together psychology, counselling, AOD support, physical wellbeing, nutrition, healthy routines and carefully selected complementary therapies within a private residential environment.

We want clients to leave The Haven not simply having completed a program, but with a greater understanding of themselves and a realistic plan for continuing their recovery beyond our doors.

The Opportunity

We are seeking an exceptional Senior Psychologist / Clinical Psychologist to become a foundation member of The Haven's clinical team.

This is more than a traditional psychology position.

The successful candidate will have the opportunity to work closely with a deliberately small client cohort while contributing their clinical expertise to the development of The Haven's psychological treatment framework, clinical standards and multidisciplinary approach.

Rather than working through a high-volume diary of back-to-back appointments, you will have the opportunity to understand the individuals you are treating, collaborate with the professionals supporting them and contribute meaningfully throughout their residential recovery journey.

We are particularly interested in psychologists with significant experience or professional interest in addiction, alcohol and other drugs, trauma, complex mental health presentations and behavioural change.

For the right senior clinician, there is also an opportunity to take a leading role in shaping and developing the psychological component of The Haven's program as the service grows.

Your Role

As a senior member of The Haven's clinical team, you will provide psychological assessment, formulation and evidence-based psychological intervention while contributing to coordinated treatment planning across the client's stay.

Your responsibilities may include

- Conducting comprehensive psychological assessments and clinical interviews.
- Assessing psychological, behavioural and psychosocial factors relevant to alcohol and other drug use.
- Developing comprehensive psychological formulations and individualised treatment plans.
- Identifying co-occurring mental health concerns and determining when additional psychiatric, medical or specialist assessment may be appropriate.
- Providing individual psychological therapy.
- Helping clients identify triggers, behavioural patterns, emotional responses and psychological factors associated with substance use.
- Supporting clients to develop healthier coping mechanisms and emotional regulation strategies.
- Working with clients to strengthen motivation, self-awareness and readiness for behavioural change.
- Developing evidence-based relapse-prevention and ongoing wellbeing strategies.
- Delivering psychological education relating to addiction, behaviour, emotions, relationships and mental wellbeing.
- Facilitating therapeutic or psychoeducational groups where appropriate.
- Conducting family or relationship sessions where clinically appropriate and within professional scope.
- Contributing to individualised discharge and continuing-care planning.
- Participating in multidisciplinary case reviews and treatment planning.
- Collaborating with counsellors, AOD practitioners and other relevant professionals involved in client care.
- Maintaining accurate, comprehensive and confidential clinical records.
- Conducting appropriate psychological and risk assessments and responding to concerns in accordance with professional obligations and The Haven's clinical procedures.
- Identifying circumstances where a client's presentation falls outside The Haven's scope and recommending appropriate referral or escalation.
- Supporting the development and ongoing review of psychological policies, procedures and treatment pathways.
- Contributing to a culture of ethical, evidence-based and client-centred practice.

For an appropriately experienced candidate, the position may also involve clinical leadership, mentoring and contributing to clinical governance and program development. Understanding the Person Behind the Addiction

At The Haven, we recognise that two people can use the same substance for completely different reasons.





For one person, substance use may be closely associated with trauma.

For another, grief, anxiety, depression, relationships, environment, learned behaviours or difficulty regulating emotions may be significant factors.

For others, the clinical picture may involve multiple interconnected issues.

This is why we do not believe in a one-size-fits-all approach to recovery.

Our psychological program should seek to understand the individual person, their history, circumstances, strengths, risks and factors maintaining their behaviour, before determining the most appropriate evidence-based therapeutic approach.

Our clients should understand not only what they want to change, but develop greater insight into why certain patterns developed and what they can do differently when they return to everyday life.

Evidence-Based Psychological Care

Depending on your qualifications, clinical judgement and individual client needs, therapeutic approaches may include:

- Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- Motivational Interviewing
- Relapse Prevention Therapy
- Dialectical Behaviour Therapy-informed strategies
- Behavioural interventions
- Mindfulness-based psychological approaches
- Trauma-informed psychological interventions
- Psychoeducation
- Emotional regulation and distress-tolerance strategies
- Values and identity work
- Grief and loss interventions
- Family and relationship interventions where appropriate

We recognise that treatment must be tailored to the individual and expect our psychologists to practise within their professional competence, registration requirements and the available evidence base.

Who We're Looking For

We are looking for a highly capable psychologist who combines strong clinical judgement with genuine human connection.

Our clients may arrive at The Haven during an extremely vulnerable period in their lives.

Some will be highly motivated for change. Others may experience uncertainty, resistance, shame, fear or ambivalence about recovery.

The successful psychologist will know how to establish trust while maintaining appropriate therapeutic boundaries and accountability.

You will be compassionate without being permissive, clinically confident without being rigid, and capable of appropriately challenging clients when therapeutically indicated.

Essential Requirements

You will require

- Recognised tertiary qualifications in psychology.
- Current registration as a psychologist with AHPRA.
- Demonstrated experience providing psychological assessment and evidence-based intervention.
- Strong case formulation and treatment-planning skills.
- Demonstrated understanding of risk assessment and appropriate clinical escalation.
- Excellent written clinical documentation.
- Excellent interpersonal and communication skills.
- Solid professional and therapeutic boundaries.
- Commitment to ethical, confidential and evidence-based practice.
- Ability to work effectively within a multidisciplinary environment.
- Appropriate professional indemnity arrangements relevant to your employment or contracting structure.

Highly Regarded We would particularly welcome applicants with experience or advanced training in:
- Alcohol and other drugs (AOD)
- Addiction psychology
- Substance use disorders
- Trauma and complex trauma
- PTSD
- Dual diagnosis / co-occurring mental health presentations
- Anxiety and depressive disorders
- Grief and loss
- Motivational Interviewing
- CBT
- ACT
- DBT-informed approaches
- Relapse prevention
- Family therapy or systemic approaches
- Residential rehabilitation
- Private mental health treatment
- Clinical leadership or supervision
- Program development
- Clinical governance

Clinical Psychology endorsement and relevant postgraduate qualifications will be highly regarded. We also welcome applications from experienced generally registered psychologists with substantial relevant addiction, trauma or mental health experience.

The Person Matters

Qualifications and clinical experience are essential, but the person behind those qualifications matters enormously to us.

We want someone clients can trust.

Someone who listens carefully, asks the difficult questions when necessary and understands that genuine compassion and personal accountability can coexist.

We want our clients to feel respected rather than judged, supported rather than institutionalised, and actively involved in their own treatment.

Our psychologist should be approachable while maintaining excellent professional boundaries.

Discretion and confidentiality are particularly important within The Haven's private treatment environment.

A Different Environment to Traditional Practice

This is not intended to feel like a traditional high-volume psychology clinic.

Our deliberately small residential model creates an opportunity for greater continuity and individualisation of care.





Rather than seeing someone for an isolated appointment before they immediately return to their usual environment, you will be part of a multidisciplinary team supporting clients through an intensive period of behavioural and lifestyle change.

You will have the opportunity to observe progress throughout the program, communicate with relevant members of the treatment team and adjust psychological interventions as the client's needs evolve.

The environment itself is intentionally different.

The Haven aims to provide the professionalism and clinical integrity expected of a high-quality recovery service while maintaining the warmth, privacy and comfort of a premium residential retreat.

Multidisciplinary Recovery

Psychological treatment forms an important part of The Haven's broader recovery model.

Clients may also participate in counselling, AOD recovery work, physical training, nutrition and healthy lifestyle development, yoga, mindfulness, breathwork and other carefully selected wellbeing activities.

These services are intended to complement appropriate psychological, medical and AOD care — not replace it.

Our Senior Psychologist / Clinical Psychologist will play an key role in ensuring psychological care remains evidence-based, professionally appropriate and coordinated with the client's broader recovery plan.

Help Us Build Something Exceptional

One of the most exciting aspects of this position is the opportunity to join The Haven from the beginning.

We are not looking for someone simply to inherit an established diary.

We are looking for a senior clinician who is interested in contributing ideas, experience and professional expertise to the development of an exceptional private recovery service.

Depending on your experience and interests, you may have the opportunity to contribute to:

- Psychological treatment pathways
- Client assessment processes
- Clinical intake criteria
- Individual treatment planning frameworks
- Risk-management procedures
- Clinical documentation standards
- Group therapy and psychoeducation programs
- Family involvement frameworks
- Relapse-prevention planning
- Discharge and continuing-care pathways
- Multidisciplinary case-review processes
- Clinical policies and procedures
- Quality improvement
- Future psychology recruitment and mentoring

We want to build a clinical program that grows deliberately and maintains high standards as The Haven develops. What We Want to Achieve

Our ambition is to establish The Haven Retreats as a highly respected private addiction and recovery service on the Gold Coast, known for exceptional clinical standards, individualised treatment, discretion and meaningful client care.

We are not seeking to become the largest rehabilitation provider.

We want to become known for the quality of what happens inside our doors.

That means maintaining small client numbers, attracting exceptional professionals and creating an environment where practitioners have the time and resources to provide genuinely individualised care.

Ultimately, we want clients to leave The Haven with more than sobriety alone.

We want them to leave with a greater understanding of themselves, stronger coping strategies, healthier routines, practical relapse-prevention tools and a realistic foundation for continuing recovery.

Employment Structure

We are open to discussing full-time, part-time or contractor arrangements depending on the qualifications, experience and availability of the successful candidate and the final structure of our clinical program.

The position may incorporate a combination of:

- Initial psychological assessments
- Individual psychology sessions
- Psychological formulation and treatment planning
- Group therapy and psychoeducation
- Family sessions where clinically appropriate
- Multidisciplinary case reviews
- Progress assessments
- Risk assessment and clinical consultation
- Discharge and continuing-care planning
- Clinical program development
- Clinical leadership responsibilities

For an exceptional senior candidate, we are open to discussing a broader clinical leadership role within The Haven. Remuneration will be negotiated according to qualifications, clinical experience, employment structure and level of responsibility.

Join The Haven

This position would suit a psychologist who wants the opportunity to practise differently.

Someone who values the ability to work closely with a small client cohort, collaborate with other professionals and contribute to the development of a new treatment environment from its foundation.

If you believe effective addiction treatment requires understanding and supporting the whole person rather than focusing solely on substance use, we would love to hear from you.

Please apply with your CV and a cover letter outlining:

- Your qualifications and AHPRA registration status
- Your clinical experience
- Your experience working with addiction, AOD, trauma and/or complex mental health presentations
- Relevant therapeutic modalities and areas of specialisation
- Any clinical leadership, supervision or program-development experience
- Your preferred employment arrangement and availability
- What you believe you could contribute to The Haven's clinical program

The Haven Retreats Private Recovery. Personal Transformation. A Foundation for Life Beyond Addiction.

Benefits

- Maternity leave
- Parental leave

Work Location: In person

📌 Senior Psychologist / Clinical Psychologist – Private Addiction & Recovery Retreat (Tallai)
🏢 Haven Retreat
📍 Tallai