Job summary
We are looking for a dedicated, compassionate, and professional Occupational Therapist Clinical Specialist who wants to make a genuine difference in the lives of people.

You will work as part of our team, liaise and work closely with therapists in the acute hospital and community rehabilitation, as well as our transfer of care hub (TOCH) and community prescribers.

You will lead lead and manage the team of OTs at the Community Hospitals, providing support, mentoring and supervision. You will also manage the internal rotation of the Band 6s within the community hospitals, as well as supporting their rotation whilst they are at the community hospital. You will also be involved in the planning for the OT needs and provision of a new ward at Clacton Hospital opening in the coming months. The aim is for this ward to become an dedicated Assessment Unit, providing rapid assessment, diagnostics, and treatment forappropriate patients, reducing avoidable admissions to the Colchester acute site.

You will support the Physiotherapy Hospital Lead, in managing therapy staffing, rostering, and where necessary, covering in the PT Band 7 Lead's absence.

Proposed Interview date: 30th October 2026

Main duties of the job
Key Responsibilities

• To work as an autonomous practitioner, to be professionally and legally responsible and accountable for all aspects of own work including the management of patients in your case.
• To ensure a high standard of clinical care for the patients under your management, and support more junior staff to do likewise.
• To gain consent and undertake highly specialist occupational therapy assessments, clinically diagnose and to formulate and implement treatment plans using specialist knowledge and experience. This will include the treatment of complex patients in a manner that respects people's choice, privacy, dignity and individuality.
• To interpret and analyse clinical and non-clinical facts using advanced clinical reasoning and problem-solving skills to form accurate diagnoses and prognoses in a wide range of complex conditions to recommend the best course of intervention from a range of options and develop comprehensive care management and discharge plans.
• To take part in the departmental emergency on call rota, as appropriate.
• A significant part of this role is forging links with the community rehabilitation team, and the acute therapy team. This will also include consideration of a Left Shift approach to support the process of optimising the pathway from acute to community hospital to community re for better patient outcomes.

About us
We are ESNEFT and we provide hospital and community health services to almost one million people across east Suffolk and north Essex. Our dedicated staff deliver care from acute hospitals in Colchester and Ipswich, community hospitals, surgeries, community clinics and in patients' own homes.

We are one of the largest NHS organisations in England, employing more than 12,000 staff.

We pride ourselves on supporting our staff. We offer a wide range of training and development opportunities, as well as flexible working options.

Along with supporting you to achieve your career goals we offer a generous pension scheme, unsocial hours payments (where applicable), 27 days annual leave on commencement (pro rata) and access to a range of NHS discounts. Our Staff Health and Wellbeing programme offer a variety of services.

Our philosophy is thatTime Mattersto everyone. Across the Trust, we concentrate on improving the things we do and removing those which cause time delays for our staff and patients.

We are investing in our commitment to Time Matters with a partnership with leading electronic patient record (EPR) supplier Epic. This digital transformation will bring what's widely regarded as the world's best EPR system to ESNEFT, transforming life in hospital for staff and patients.

If you are passionate about patient care and want to develop your skills and knowledge, then we want to hear from you.

Find out about living and working here - Apply through our website

Details
Date posted: 29 September 2026
Pay scheme: Agenda for change
Band: Band 7
Salary: £49,387 to £56,515 a year
per annum
Contract: Permanent
Working pattern: Full-time
Reference number: 432-HR884-26
Job locations: Colchester Hospital, Turner Road, Colchester, CO4 5JL, United Kingdom

Job description
Job responsibilities
For full details of the responsibilities and duties of this role please see the attached job description.

Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential

• Degree/Diploma in Occupational Therapist
• HCPC Registration
• Working at Masters Level as demonstrated by ongoing CPD including 'M' level accreditation. . Commitment to advanced clinical and professional development
• Commitment to advanced clinical and professional development

Desirable

• Recognised post graduate qualification e.g. MSc
• Membership of appropriate Special Interest Group

Experience
Essential

• Extensive post registration experience
• Proven Band 6 (rotational) experience in a variety of relevant specialities including at least one in a surgical/medical specialism . Experience of working within a multidisciplinary / interdisciplinary team . Previous experience of student supervision and clinical education . Previous experience of formal presentations to multi professional groups
• Experience of working within a multidisciplinary / interdisciplinary team

Desirable

• Previous experience of student supervision and clinical education
• Previous experience of formal presentations to multi professional groups
• Experience of research methodology

Knowledge
Essential

• Highly specialist knowledge and experience of a wide range of approaches to the management of complex and chronic conditions, demonstrated by expert clinical reasoning. . Demonstrated understanding of the role of physiotherapy and occupational therapy within the current evolving health environment . Clear understanding of other disciplines' roles and expectations
• Demonstrated understanding of the role of physiotherapy and occupational therapy within the current evolving health environment
• Clear understanding of other disciplines' roles and expectations

Desirable

• . Robust understanding of all aspects of Clinical Governance including previous experience of quality issues, audit and risk management

Personal Skills
Essential

• Highly specialist clinical practitioner
• Exceptional team building and team working skills
• Able to work independently
• Excellent time management and organisational skills
• Able to present information, written and orally in a clear and logical fashion
• Ability to keep legible and accurate records in English using SOAP format
• Ability to comprehend and work within the Trust's policies including data protection, equal opportunities and Health and Safety to meet the differing needs of the patient
• Conduct professional affairs in a confident and assertive manner
• Able to recognise in yourself and individuals work related stress and pressures
• Ability to exert moderate to intense physical effort for frequent period of up to 40 minutes at a time throughout the working day
• Able to carry out concurrent activities (multi tasking) and work in an unpredictable working pattAbility to cope with daily exposure to patients/carers suffering from chronic pain who may have high levels of anxiety, depression and may be aggressive

Desirable

• Competent IT skills
• Proven clinical leadership ability
• Confidence in teaching multi-disciplinary staff groups
• Excellent presentation skills

Disclosure and Barring Service Check
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.

UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Employer details
Employer name: East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust
Address: Colchester Hospital, Turner Road, Colchester, CO4 5JL, United Kingdom
Employer's website: https://www.esneft.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)

Employer contact details
For questions about the job, contact: Professional Lead for Occupational Therapy, Duncan Higgins, Duncan.Higgins@esneft.nhs.uk

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.
Applicants must have current UK professional registration.