Occupational Therapist

Rotherham Doncaster and South Humber NHS Foundation Trust; Doncaster; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 48,000; Full time

Job summary

Rotherham Doncaster and South Humber NHS Foundation Trust in Doncaster is seeking an experienced Occupational Therapist to lead a bespoke OT service at Danescourt, a six-bed community forensic step-down unit. You will deliver assessments, develop pathways, and support transitions from secure settings to community living.

The post holder will work autonomously, ensuring recovery-focused planning, risk management and MDT collaboration, with professional leadership provided by the Clinical Lead OT

Qualifications

• Occupational Therapy degree or equivalent.
• HCPC registration.
• Documented evidence of professional development.
• Postgraduate training relevant to forensic mental health.
• Training in forensic risk assessment.
• Practice Educator qualification or willingness to undertake.

Responsibilities

• Hold responsibility for all occupational therapy provision within Danes Court.
• Manage a specialist caseload of forensic service users.
• Deliver comprehensive occupational assessments and intervention programmes.
• Lead on occupational formulation, recovery planning and discharge pathways.
• Contribute to forensic risk assessment and management.
• Support service users progressing from inpatient secure services into community placements.
• Provide specialist occupational therapy advice across the MDT.
• Contribute to service improvement and pathway development across forensic services.
• Supervise occupational therapy support staff, apprentices and students where appropriate.
• Participate in directorate-wide occupational therapy initiatives.

Skills

Autonomy

Clinical reasoning

Risk assessment

Communication

Supervision

Training delivery

Education

Occupational Therapy degree

HCPC registration

Professional development evidence

Forensic mental health qualification

Practice Educator qualification

Job description

Employer Rotherham Doncaster and South Humber NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site Danescourt Town Doncaster Salary £39,959 - £48,117 per annum, pro rata Salary period Yearly Closing 23/10/2026 23:59

Occupational Therapist

NHS AfC: Band 6

Job overview

The Occupational Therapist will provide the occupational therapy service to Danescourt, a six-bed community forensic step-down unit supporting individuals transitioning from secure forensic settings towards greater community independence.

The post holder will function as the sole Occupational Therapist within the unit, holding responsibility for the delivery, development and evaluation of the occupational therapy pathway for service users with complex mental health needs, offending histories, forensic risks and significant occupational functioning difficulties.

The role plays a key part within the wider RDaSH Learning disability and forensic directorate, supporting recovery, rehabilitation, risk reduction and successful community reintegration.

The post holder will work autonomously, providing specialist occupational therapy assessments and interventions whilst contributing to multidisciplinary decision-making regarding recovery progression, leave, transitions, discharge planning and community risk management.

Professional leadership, support and supervision will be provided by the Clinical Lead Occupational Therapist for the Forensic Directorate.

Main duties of the job

The Occupational Therapist will:

• Hold responsibility for all occupational therapy provision within Danes Court.
• Manage a specialist caseload of forensic service users.
• Deliver comprehensive occupational assessments and intervention programmes.
• Lead on occupational formulation, recovery planning and discharge pathways
• Contribute to forensic risk assessment and management.
• Support service users progressing from inpatient secure services into community placements.
• Provide specialist occupational therapy advice across the MDT.
• Contribute to service improvement and pathway development across forensic services.
• Supervise occupational therapy support staff, apprentices and students where appropriate.
• Participate in directorate-wide occupational therapy initiatives.

Working for our organisation

Rotherham Doncaster and South Humber NHS Foundation Trust (RDaSH) employ around 4000 talented colleagues who are very much appreciated, valued, and respected.

We have a wide portfolio which includes mental health, physical health, learning disability and drug and alcohol services.

We are dedicated to the development of our our people and hold a learning half day every month for our colleagues.

We are passionate about enhancing the quality of our service and we work hard to attract and select the right colleagues for our organisation. Our goal is to employ those who share our passion for providing first class care while remaining committed to our vision and values. Please view our Strategy using the link below:

To find out more about working for RDaSH and the fantastic benefits we offer visit our website:

We are committed to inclusive cultures and really value people in our organisation, view our Allyship video on YouTube to find out more:

The main terms and conditions of service can be found here:

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please see attached job description and person specification for further information regrading this job role.

Person specification

Qualifications

• Occupational Therapy degree or equivalent
• HCPC registration
• Documented evidence of professional development
• Practice Educator qualification or willingness to undertake.
• Training in forensic risk assessment.
• Postgraduate training relevant to forensic mental health.

Experience

• Experience working with adults experiencing complex mental health or learning disability needs.
• Experience of independently managing a clinical caseload.
• Experience of delivering occupational therapy assessment and intervention
• Experience working within multidisciplinary teams.
• Experience contributing to risk assessment and risk management.
• Experience within forensic services
• Experience within rehabilitation services
• Experience supervising staff or students.
• Experience undertaking audit or service improvement projects.

Knowledge

• Recovery-oriented practice.
• Occupational therapy process and models of practice.
• Mental Health Act and relevant legislation.
• Safeguarding procedures.
• Clinical governance principles.
• Risk assessment and risk management processes.
• Occupational performance and functional assessment.
• Knowledge of forensic pathways.
• Knowledge of offending behaviour frameworks.
• Knowledge of psychologically informed environments.
• Understanding of trauma-informed practice.

Skills

• Ability to work autonomously as a lone Occupational Therapist.
• Ability to prioritise and manage a complex caseload.
• Strong clinical reasoning and decision-making skills.
• Ability to lead occupational therapy interventions.
• Ability to analyse and manage risk.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Ability to influence practice within multidisciplinary teams.
• Ability to supervise and support others.
• Effective organisational and workload management skills.
• Experience delivering training.
• Experience using outcome measures within forensic services.

**Eligibility for sponsorship - please read before submitting your application**

Please note, not all vacancies or applications are eligible for sponsorship.

*****Before applying, you can make a self-assessment of potential eligibility for sponsorship here: https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa

**Please note, there have been some changes made to Home Office guidance including changes to salary thresholds for sponsorship applications and eligibility for dependent visas from 9 April 2025 and from 22 July 2025**

Employer certification / accreditation badges

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.