Occupational Therapist or Advanced Occupational Therapist

South Gloucestershire Council; Warmley; On-site; GBP 38,000 - 46,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Generous annual leave

Wellbeing support

Staff discounts

Job summary

South Gloucestershire Council is seeking an Occupational Therapist or Advanced Occupational Therapist to support people in the community to live more independently. You will assess clients in their homes, advise on equipment and housing adaptations, and work with the team to implement effective interventions.

You will manage complex caseloads, collaborate with health and voluntary sector partners, and ensure CPD and supervision are in place. Travel across the authority is required.

Qualifications

• Qualified Occupational Therapist with HCPC registration
• Experience delivering person-centred interventions in hospital, community, voluntary or agency OT settings
• Up-to-date knowledge of legislation, policy and guidance relevant to Social Services Occupational Therapy
• Experience managing complex caseloads and strong assessment skills
• Excellent time management and organisational skills
• 2 years post-qualification experience for Advanced Occupational Therapist
• Commitment to Continuous Professional Development (CPD)

Responsibilities

• Undertake community-based OT assessments in clients' homes to help maintain independence.
• Support the wider team with interventions using task analysis and OT techniques; recommend equipment, assistive technology and adaptations.
• Manage a caseload with supervision and work with locality teams in a strength-based approach.
• Provide advice on services and the Care Act for service users and carers.
• Develop and maintain strong relationships with service users, families and carers, and with health and voluntary sector partners.

Job description

How you'll make a difference

As an Occupational Therapist or Advanced Occupational Therapist, you will empower people to identify and build on their strengths and abilities, supporting them to set meaningful goals and achieve greater independence in their daily lives.

Working collaboratively with Assessing Practitioners and service providers, you will help ensure individuals receive the right support at the right time, enabling them to maximise and maintain their independence and wellbeing.

What you will be doing

• It will be your responsibility to undertake occupational therapy assessments in the community, helping individuals in their own homes to achieve their goals and maintain their independence.
• Drawing on your expertise, you will support the wider team in delivering effective interventions by applying task analysis and occupational therapy techniques, and recommending appropriate equipment, assistive technology and housing adaptations to help people live safely and confidently.
• With regular supervision and support, you will manage a caseload and work alongside colleagues in the locality teams in a strength-based approach, in line with the 3-conversation model.
• To enable individuals to access the most appropriate solutions for their needs, you will provide advice and information to them and their carers about the services and support available, including those delivered under the Care Act.
• With responsibility for making recommendations involving significant expenditure, resources will be allocated proportionately to ensure value for money and effective use of available funding.
• You will develop and maintain strong working relationships with service users, their families and carers, as well as partners across health and voluntary sector organisations, using your effective communication skills to achieve positive outcomes.

Advanced Occupational Therapist – Additional Responsibilities:

• As an experienced practitioner, you will support students on placement.
• You will be fully up to date with the core training expectations.
• Drawing on research and evidence-based resources, such as Research in Practice and other online tools, you will enhance practice and promote shared learning across the team.

What we need from you

• We require you to have a professional Occupational Therapy qualification, Dip COT, BSc Honours OT, (or equivalent), and be registered with the Health Professionals Council.
• You must have the ability to apply experience gained within hospital, community, voluntary or agency Occupational Therapy settings, to deliver effective, person-centred interventions.
• It is essential that you have an up-to-date and sound knowledge of legislation, policy and guidance relevant to Social Services Occupational Therapy.
• Due to the nature of this role, you will have experience of managing complex cases and be able to apply excellent assessment skills in practice.
• You must have excellent time management and organisational skills, enabling you to work efficiently and effectively to meet service requirements.

Advanced Occupational Therapist – Additional Requirements:

• It is essential that you bring at least 2 years post-qualification experience, including working with individuals with complex needs.
• You must evidence advanced level practice, demonstrating high-quality professional reasoning, sound judgement and leadership in complex situations.
• A clear commitment to Continuous Professional Development (CPD) is required.

What you need to know

• To be considered for the Advanced Occupational Therapist, you must provide clear and detailed evidence within your application. The salary is offered within the following bands, dependent on experience:

• Occupational Therapist: £37,563 - £40,444
• Advanced Occupational Therapist: £42,123 - £45,529

• This is a 16 month limited term contract.
• We are also offering this as a secondment opportunity; you should first seek your line managers permission before applying.
• You will be expected to travel throughout the authority and surrounding area so must have a full, valid driving licence with regular access to a vehicle or have alternative appropriate means of travel.
• Business insurance will need to be added to your insurance policy and you can claim back mileage expenses.
• Please note that due to the nature of this role it is a requirement of employment that an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check is obtained for this post.

Interviews will be held on 19th October.

How a career at South Gloucestershire Council is different

• As part of our benefits package, you will receive generous annual leave (pro rata), employee wellbeing support and you will have access to a range of staff discounts, including eye tests, travel, shopping and leisure activities.
• We recognise that our diverse team of skilled and dedicated people make us a great place to work. We welcome applications from everyone and ensure that individuals are selected, promoted and developed on the basis of their merits and abilities.
• What’s special here is the strength of the team ethos. We are a relatively small local authority, so managers know staff well. They can plan their services to ensure teams have manageable caseloads and have effective supervision so feel supported to make decisions which are right for the people they work with.
• We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the safety and welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. Ensuring all our staff are given right skills, knowledge and support to recognise and respond effectively to potential abuse or neglect.

Our teams at South Gloucestershire Council are making a real difference to the lives of people who live, work and learn here.

• We're building and shaping communities which people are proud of.
• We're working with the most vulnerable in our community to help them achieve what they want in life.
• We're investing in our schools to ensure every child and young person in South Gloucestershire achieves their full potential.

We've achieved a great deal, but we need talented and dedicated people to ensure we continue to make a difference.

We’re making a difference, be part of it!

To view the full job description, please click this link: Occupational Therapist & Advanced Occupational Therapist