Occupational Therapy Assistant - Sowenna

Cornwall Partnership; Bodmin; On-site; GBP 26,000 - 27,000; Full time

Job summary

Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust is seeking two Occupational Therapy Assistants to join the in-patient team at Sowenna, Bodmin, working with young people with severe and enduring mental health presentations. This is a great time to join an expanding team and contribute to developing OT practices within a creative multi-disciplinary group.

Successful applicants will be part of the ward and wider MDT, supporting clinical staff, delivering individual and group OT interventions, and

Qualifications

• Qualification to level 3 or equivalent experience in relevant subject.
• Experience of providing social and recreational activities in group settings and with individuals.
• Experience of working with people who have cognitive, physical, learning disability or challenging behaviour.
• Recent experience of working in mental health setting.
• Qualifications in exercise, complementary therapies etc.

Responsibilities

• To manage individuals and groups of patients who are engaged in social and recreational activities on and off the ward.
• To contribute to the assessment of patients by reporting presentations, changes, performance and progress whilst engaged in individual and group activities.
• To complete occupational therapy interventions as directed from the ward based OT.
• Delivering individual and group OT interventions.
• Supporting occupational assessments through observation and feedback.
• Maintaining therapeutic boundaries.
• Promoting independence, recovery and social inclusion.
• Facilitating ADL, life skills, vocational, leisure and sensory interventions.
• Working with patients presenting with distress, challenging behaviour or cognitive impairment.

Skills

Motivational skills

Self-motivation

Education

Level 3 qualification in relevant subject

Job description

Occupational Therapy Assistant - Sowenna

Band 3

Main area Physiotherapy/Occupational Therapy Grade Band 3 Contract Permanent Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week Job ref 201-26-955

Site Sowenna Town Bodmin Salary £25,760 - £27,476 Per Annum Salary period Yearly Closing 02/11/2026 23:59

Thank you for your interest in joining us at Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust.

We pride ourselves in striving to be an employer of choice.

Strategic Themes

Great Care

• Care based on what matters to people.
• Care provided at home or close to home.
• Improvement through learning, research and innovation.
• Prevention and alternatives to hospital.

Great Organisation

• Buildings that support health and wellbeing.
• Technology enabled care.
• Care teams are supported by responsive corporate services.
• Safe, efficient, effective and productive.

Great People

• A place people love to work and feel valued.
• Living our values with staff (all voices count).
• Attract, grow and develop talent.
• Leaders with compassion, who continuously learn and listen.

Great Partner

• Encourage and enable effective partnerships.
• Joined-up community services.
• Work with others to maximise workforce opportunities.
• Reduce our impact on the environment.

At the NHS, we are reminded every day of how important life is. As a flexible working friendly organisation, we want to be sure that you can work in a way that is best for us and for our patients, and for you. Speak to us about how we might be able to accommodate a flexible working arrangement whether that’s job share, part time or another flexible pattern. In addition, although the role advertised may have a ‘home’ office base indicated, we remain committed to supporting flexibility around workplace locations. If it works for the service, we will do our best to make it work for you.

Job overview

We have a rare and exciting opportunity for two Occupational Therapy Assistants to join our in-patient team at Sowenna, working with young people with severe and enduring mental health presentations. This is a great time to be joining an expanding team and the post will provide the opportunity to contribute to the development of OT practices, working within a creative and innovative multi-disciplinary team.

The successful practitioners will be an integral part of the ward team, as well as key members of the wider MDT, supporting clinical staff and providing advice and guidance on the ward. We are looking for candidates preferably with experience of children’s mental health services, although this is not essential. The successful practitioners will be required to draw upon the developing evidence base to support assessment, formulation, intervention, and evaluation processes.

For further details, please contact Kirsty Pape, Senior Occupational Therapist, Tel: [phone].

Main duties of the job

To manage individuals and groups of patients who are engaged in social and recreational activities on and off the ward. This may include people who have physical disability and health needs, behaviours that challenge and learning disabilities as well as an acute episode of mental illness

To contribute to the assessment of patients by reporting presentations, changes, performance and progress whilst engaged in individual and group activities.

To complete occupational therapy interventions as directed from the ward based OT

Delivering individual and group OT interventions.

Supporting occupational assessments through observation and feedback.

Maintaining therapeutic boundaries.

Promoting independence, recovery and social inclusion.

Facilitating ADL, life skills, vocational, leisure and sensory interventions.

Working with patients presenting with distress, challenging behaviour or cognitive impairment.

Working for our organisation

We’re an NHS community and mental health provider Trust based in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. We deliver community and hospital-based care to improve people’s physical and mental health. We also provide specialist support to people with dementia or a learning disability.

We are a people organisation and people matter to us. As part of the team, you'll help support the health and wellbeing of the people who live and visit this beautiful part of the UK.

Over 5,000 people make up the Trust. This includes doctors, nurses, therapists, plus admin and support staff.

We work in people's homes, in community clinics and bases. Some staff work from one of our 10 community hospitals. Our aspiration is to have great people, provide great care, be a great place to work and a great partner.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

To view a detailed job description and person specification including the main responsibilities of this role please see ‘supporting documents’.

Person specification

Education / Qualifications and Relevant Experience

• Qualification to level 3 or equivalent experience in relevant subject.
• Experience of providing social and recreational activities in group settings and with individuals.
• Experience of working with people who have cognitive, physical, learning disability or challenging behaviour
• Recent experience of working in mental health setting
• Qualifications in exercise, complementary therapies etc.

Skills and Aptitude

• Ability to use persuasive, motivational and reassurance strategies to build rapport and engage patients in activities
• Able to self-motivate and work on own initiative.

At Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust we are proud to prioritise the development of our people. To support this, the following opportunities are available:

• Career conversations and individual development plans for succession planning and talent management
• Protected CPD time for registered staff
• Access to a dedicated central development fund supporting CPD for all staff
• Leadership and Management development programmes
• Coaching and mentoring opportunities
• A full clinical induction programme for operational skills
• Access to a care certificate programme for our band 1-4 clinical staff
• A bespoke and robust preceptorship programme to support newly qualified staff

Being part of a successful NHS Foundation Trust brings a portfolio of rewards and benefits for our staff. These include:

• Suite of health and wellbeing initiatives to support our colleagues physical and mental health
• Free access to individual HARP portfolios to support revalidation for nursing staff
• Free DBS checks where required
• Discounts available from retailers, UK hotels and main attractions
• Salary sacrifice car scheme
• Cycle to work scheme
• The Trust reimburses all application costs for staff eligible to apply for EU settlement status.

The Trust reserves the right to close this advert once a sufficient number of applications have been submitted.

Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust welcomes and values individuals with lived experience of mental or physical ill health joining our workforce. We aspire to have a culture that develops, promotes and supports lived experience roles - throughout the organisation.

If you are successful, you agree to Occupational Health accessing your health records from your current or previous employer to check the status of your inoculations and screening tests. Appointments are subject to full three year satisfactory references therefore please ensure you include correct contact details for your nominated referees including email addresses.

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.