Senior Occupational Therapist
Band 6 Occupational Therapist or Band 5 Development Post

Newly Qualified Occupational Therapists Welcome - HCPC Registration Pending or Newly Registered

Are you due to qualify as an Occupational Therapist and looking for an exciting opportunity to begin your career in mental health? Or are you an experienced Occupational Therapist ready for your next challenge?

We are looking to recruit a passionate and motivated Occupational Therapist to join Newcastle Community Mental Health Services. We welcome applications from experienced Band 6 Occupational Therapists as well as newly qualified Band 5 Occupational Therapists who are keen to develop their skills and progress towards Band 6 competencies within a supportive learning environment.

The successful candidate will spend:

• Three days per week based within Lymebrook Community Mental Health Team (CMHT), supporting adults with a range of complex mental health needs within a recovery-focused community setting.
• Two days per week working alongside the Intensive Outreach Team (IOT), predominantly supporting the psychosis pathway and working with individuals who require more intensive support to remain well within their communities.

The IOT element of the role will be in place for 12 months, after which the arrangement will be reviewed in line with service needs and workforce development opportunities.

An excellent opportunity to develop specialist skills in psychosis care while maintaining a broader community mental health caseload.

Main duties of the job
The Role
Working as part of supportive multidisciplinary teams, you will:

• Manage a defined clinical caseload with appropriate supervision and support.
• Complete evidence-based occupational and functional assessments to understand an individual's strengths, needs, goals, and barriers to participation.
• Work collaboratively with service users, carers, and partner agencies to develop person-centred care and recovery plans.
• Deliver interventions that enable individuals to maximise independence, improve wellbeing, and engage in meaningful daily activities.
• Support individuals experiencing severe and enduring mental illness, including those accessing psychosis services.
• Communicate complex or sensitive information in a compassionate and accessible way, ensuring individuals and families are fully involved in decision-making.
• Contribute to service development and quality improvement initiatives across community mental health and outreach services.
• Promote the value of Occupational Therapy within integrated community teams.
• Be part of a supportive Trust-wide network of Allied Health Professionals.

About us
As a Trust we remain bold and ambitious with plans for both service and system collaborative transformation over the coming years to improve the health and wellbeing of our local people through high quality care.

We pride ourselves on ensuring our team has their wellbeing put first and as such provide a range of wellness opportunities including flexible working.

We are committed to the Greener NHS national ambition to becoming the world's first 'carbon net zero' national health system by 2045. As part of this, sustainability is embedded in our strategy as one of our four key enablers. In order to deliver on this commitment, we recognise that we need a workforce that is as passionate as we are about achieving these goals, for the benefit of our service users, workforce, local communities and the planet alike.

The Trust is committed to ensuring that a diverse workforce is representative and inclusive at all levels. We would very much welcome applications from all under-represented groups including women, people with disabilities, people from global majority backgrounds, and those from the lesbian, gay, bi and trans communities.

The Trust is committed to the Step into Health scheme and actively encourages applicants from the Armed Forces Communities to apply.

Salary £39,959 to £48,117 a year pro rata per annum
Contract Permanent
Working pattern Full-time
Reference number 232-CMT-7913497-C
Closing date 05 November 2026

Person Specification
Essential Qualifications

• Degree in Occupational Therapy.

Essential Experience

• Substantial Post Graduate experience within the role of Occupational Therapist / Mental Health.

Essential Knowledge

• Awareness of national and local policies and how these impact on service provision.

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. For further information please see NHS Careers website.

Contact
Team Leader: Carly Pedley, carly.pedley@combined.nhs.uk

Apply through our website