Job summary
An exciting opportunity has opened for a B5 Occupational Therapist to join our Brent Community Mental Health Rehab Function within our community service We will provide you with the opportunities to develop your skills, depending on your needs and goals. We are keen for people to develop in their area of interest to motivate and enrich our team. There is also the support of a broad and experienced senior MDT.

We are looking for people who are passionate about occupational therapy and want the opportunity to focus on their clinical OT skills, and who have ideas to grow and develop the occupational therapy provision within community mental health services.

We adhere to the belief that it is better to grow and develop our own staff; this is demonstrated in the fact that 92% of our senior colleagues were supported and promoted in-house.

The team serves the diverse and vibrant population of Brent, named London Borough of Culture 2020 and 'Council of the Year' at the LGC Awards 2020.

Hours are: 5 days working : 9am to 5pm each day.

Main duties of the job
Occupational therapists hold a key role within the community mental health team providing occupational therapy service and expertise; which will include individual and group work, assessment, intervention and evaluation in accordance with the Royal College of Occupational Therapy Code of Ethics.

You will be using MOHO and other evidence-based assessment tools in order to establish a baseline functional assessment from which recommendations can determine further on-going care and treatment to enable optimum functioning.

The role requires integrated evidence-based practice and skilful use of assessments & interventions with personal recovery principles, in order to improve the service users' quality of life and to support them to do the things they want to do and live the life they want to lead.

You would need to be committed to working within recovery principles. The successful applicant will be self-motivated with a desire to work in mental health, and willing to learn and grow within the team.

This post receives supervision from Senior OTs in the team and in addition there is a great support network working alongside other OTs in the borough and across the trust. Opportunities for training, reflective practice, case formulation using Trauma Informed Approaches, skill sharing and several other projects are available ongoingly.

About us
OT's in CNWL are very fortunate in having a long-established professional structure & this includes an AHP director, Trust-wide Professional Head of OT, borough and specialist Head OTs.

Personal and professional development is a high priority for the profession and is underpinned by our OT R&D strategy, R& D specialist groups and OT clinical networks. This enables us to invest in the development of our staff by providing excellent internal training as well as commissioning specialised external training and providing quality supervision. This ensures all our OTs reach their full potential at every stage of their career. Our commitment to research, audit and EBP is made possible by our strong links with local universities.

Job responsibilities
Aims of Service (some of these are trusts aims)
There are two main aims of this service. One is to provide continued rehabilitation provision in the community for people who are stepping down from inpatient rehabilitation services. The service is in addition to the Brent Community Mental Health Team hubs (CMHT) offer and will focus on peoples development of independent living skills within their new environments and integration into their communities.

The other main aim is preventative and aims to provide mental health rehabilitation in the community for people who would ordinarily receive this as an inpatient. Thereby promoting community connections and supporting people in the least restrictive setting possible.

The service is now approx 3 years up and running and whilst some of the roles within the setting have changed or adapted to meet the needs of the service the overall aim remains. Community first if at all possible. Data from the Tableau dashboard and qualitative information will help inform the understanding of the impact of the BMHCRF on the wider system. The key outcomes reviewed are:

• Peoples experience at a time of rehabilitation provision
• A reduction in numbers of referrals into residential rehabilitation services.
• A reduction in the average length of stay in residential rehabilitation services.
• A reduction in the length of stay of service users in CNWL/ Funded ECRs beds awaiting rehabilitation placements.
• A reduction in the number of service users who accessed community rehabilitation and where latterly referred to residential services.
• A reduction in the average length of spell of care for those referred to community rehabilitation.

Who is the service for?
This service is for those people who require mental health rehabilitation and who are able to safely and therapeutically be managed in a community setting.

Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential

• Degree (or Diploma) in Occupational Therapy
• Current registration to practice with HCPC

Desirable

• Evidence of post registration training/qualification
• Membership or involvement in special interest group

Experience
Essential

• Experience of working in the UK or similar health economy as a registered AHP.
• Experience of managing a caseload
• Experiencing of working and liaising with the MDT
• Experience of working with support staff and students.
• Experience of teaching junior staff.
• Experience of working or volunteering in a health or social care setting

Desirable

• Experience of working in relevant clinical specialism
• Experience of working with people in a community setting
• Experience of audit and/or research

Skills, Knowledge and Abilities
Essential

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• IT skills including Outlook, Word, A/I Excel, databases etc
• Demonstrates flexibility, problem solving, initiative and leadership skills
• Able to work autonomously, planning and prioritising own workload
• Understanding of clinical supervision
• Understanding of the problems of disability and its effects
• Able to demonstrate a good understanding of role of the AHP in specialist area as well as the role of other professionals in MDT
• Able to demonstrate an understanding of the application of Health and Safety
• Able to demonstrate clinical and professional development
• Awareness of developments in NHS and service delivery.

Desirable

• Ability to supervise and support junior staff
• Able to demonstrate clinical and professional development

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website.

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants.

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website.

Employer details
Employer name: Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust
Address: Park Royal Centre for Mental Health, Off Acton Lane, Harlesden, NW10 7NS
Employer's website: https://www.cnwl.nhs.uk/work

Employer contact details
For questions about the job, contact:
Lead OT for Brent Community MH Rehab Function
Stephanie McClafferty
stephanie.mcclafferty@nhs.net
07484515804