Lead Occupational Therapist

Priory; North East; On-site; GBP 43,000 - 53,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Free on-site parking

Enhanced maternity pay

Birthday Holiday

Contributory pension scheme

Flexible benefits including gym access

IPD sponsorship

Leadership & management development

Long service award

Refer a friend bonuses

Job summary

Priory Hospital Middleton St George is seeking a HCPC registered Lead Occupational Therapist to lead and develop our OT service. You will provide clinical and operational leadership, guide treatment planning, and ensure high standards of care across a multidisciplinary team in Darlington, County Durham.

The role emphasises governance, staff supervision, and patient recovery. As part of Priory, you will work with Therapy Services Manager to drive service improvements, participate in training and

Qualifications

• HCPC registration is essential.
• Postgraduate qualification (certificate, diploma or master's) preferred.
• Experience leading and supervising OT staff and students.

Responsibilities

• Provide clinical and operational OT leadership to the service.
• Lead quality governance, audits and service improvements.
• Oversee student placements and supervise staff.
• Collaborate with Therapy Services Manager to align with Priory objectives.
• Represent OT at meetings and manage budget responsibilities.

Skills

Leadership

Supervising OT/OTAs and students

Clinical governance

Education

HCPC registered

Postgraduate certificate/diploma/Masters

Tools

MoHO

VdTMoCA

Sensory Integration

Job description

Description

Priory Hospital Middleton St George
Up to £48,118 depending on experience
Full Time - 37.5 Hours

Priory Hospital Middleton St George has an opportunity for a HCPC registered Lead Occupational Therapist to join our team.

Priory Hospital Middleton St George, Darlington, County Durham is a specialist inpatient service for adults with mental health issues, complex needs and behaviours that challenge. It is accessible by public transport, with a local train station approximately 5 miles away and local bus services to Darlington.

What you'll be doing

As the Lead Occupational Therapist, you will provide clinical, professional and operational leadership to the Occupational Therapy (OT) service, working in collaboration with Therapy Services Manager to ensure OT services are proactive and supportive of Priory objectives. In this role, you will play a key part in patient recovery, supporting the assessment and delivery of tailored treatment plans while ensuring dignity, respect, and high standards of care.

• Work closely with multi-disciplinary colleagues across the hospital site to support integration around patient care.
• To deliver a highly specialised and advanced standard of OT assessment, treatment and management for patients.
• Ensure that own practice and service meets agreed local and national standards and clinical governance requirements, including COT Standards for Practice, Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct.
• Participate in site service quality improvement initiatives including conducting investigations and Quality monitoring assurance objectives and clinical audit Oversee student placements within the OT team.
• Attend all site required meetings including Clinical Governance and Patient Safety and represent the OT department.
• Attend Regional OT meetings and feedback to site Take responsibility for identified budget responsibilities related to role for example; the therapy activity budget.

You can find additional information in the attached job description.

What you'll bring to the role

Essential for the role – Lead Occupational Therapist

Candidates must be HCPC registered and hold a postgraduate certificate, postgraduate diploma, or Master’s degree, or have completed formal postgraduate study (award or non-award bearing). They must have experience in team leadership and driving change, experience supervising Occupational Therapists or Occupational Therapy Assistants and students, a working knowledge of current national and local healthcare issues, and training in relevant models of practice such as MoHO, VdTMoCA, and Sensory Integration.

What we will give you in return

We want you to succeed at Priory and thrive in your role. You will be well supported with regular career conversations. We also offer full training and numerous pathways into leadership and qualified clinical positions to help you shape your career with us.

Healthcare benefits

• Free on-site parking
• Enhanced maternity pay
• Birthday Holiday - Your Birthday as an extra days annual leave
• Contributory pension scheme
• Flexible benefits including reduced rates and access to new schemes including gym membership, IT technology (laptops / tablets / smartphones) and private healthcare
• Access to development opportunities
• Sponsorship of professional qualifications through our Individual Professional Development (IPD) panel
• Leadership & management development
• Long service award
• Refer a friend bonuses

Shortlisting may begin upon receipt of applications, and the Recruiting Manager may close the vacancy early if enough suitable candidates are identified.

About Priory

Priory is the UK’s leading independent provider of mental health and adult social care. With 12,000 colleagues and a network of 270 services, we support over 24,000 people each year to live their lives as fully and independently as possible. We treat more than 70 conditions – including depression, anxiety, eating disorders and children’s mental health – and provide residential and supported living care for autistic adults, people with a learning disability, Prader–Willi Syndrome, brain injuries and older people.

We are an equal opportunities employer committed to providing an inclusive, accessible recruitment process. Learn more about the accessibility support we offer here. All roles are subject to a successful disclosure at an appropriate level from the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS), Access NI or Disclosure Scotland. Priory will cover the cost of a DBS check.