Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust

Band 5 Occupational Therapist
The closing date is 19 November 2026
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Job summary
The Home First service brings together nurses, therapists, health and therapy assistants, to work with the acute Multi-Disciplinary Team & Transfer of Care Hubs to promote an efficient, effective discharge from hospital to the patient's own home.

Our multidisciplinary teams work flexibly to provide a 7-day service, 365 days a year, between 8am and 8pm. Patients who are discharged from hospital into Home First will be receiving step-down intermediate care, involving community-based assessments and interventions provided in their own home to support recovery and monitoring of their health in the early days post discharge to prevent re-admission. Home First will, where required, provide acute reablement for up to 10 days, supporting people to achieve functional goals and work towards independence with activities of daily living.

You could become part of our exciting service, bringing the unique benefits of a wraparound recovery service from hospital discharge. The principle of the service ensuring that recovery involves working towards the person being as independent as possible through enablement.

We are looking for a Occupational Therapist to join us, so if you're an ambitious, proactive, with an interest in rehabilitation and reablement, looking for a role in a team that provides cutting-edge, excellent community care, we'd love to hear from you!

Main duties of the job
The postholder will work as a Therapist/Allied Health Professional within Home First or as part of a rotation in Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust. They will manage a caseload of patients with a variety of conditions. There will be an expectation to formulate and deliver an individual treatment programme based on a sound knowledge of evidence-based practice and treatment options using clinical assessment and reasoning skills.

About us
We are the main provider of NHS community services across East and West Sussex, with 6,000 staff serving 1.3 million people. We deliver essential care to adults and children, helping them manage their health, avoid hospital admissions, and reduce hospital stays.

Our Trust vision is to provide excellent care at the heart of the community. We offer opportunities across medical, clinical, support, and corporate services.

Why work for us?

• Positive 2024 NHS Staff Survey results, highlighting compassionate leadership and wellbeing
• Varied environments: community hospitals, patients' homes, and bases across Sussex
• Flexible working options: part-time, flexi-time, annualised hours, and flexi-retirement
• Excellent training, development, and research opportunities
• Cost-effective workplace nurseries in Crawley, Hove, and Brighton
• Active EMBRACE, Disability & Wellbeing, LGBTQIA+, and Religion & Belief networks
• Level 3 Disability Confident Leader and Veteran Aware Trust
• Beautiful Sussex location near the South Downs and coast

Our values -- Compassionate Care, Working Together, Achieving Ambitions, Delivering Excellence --guide everything we do.

We embrace diversity and encourage applications from all backgrounds, particularly from ethnically diverse, disabled, and LGBTQIA+ individuals. We aim to create an inclusive environment and support reasonable adjustments during recruitment.

This post may close early if sufficient applications are received.

Details
Date posted: 11 November 2026
Pay scheme: Agenda for change
Band: Band 5
Salary: £32,073 to £39,043 a year
Contract: Permanent
Working pattern: Full-time
Reference number: 150-GM3069-UPC-A
Job locations: Horsham Hospital, Hurst Road, Horsham, RH12 2DR, United Kingdom

Job description
Job responsibilities
You will need to able to drive with a full UK licence and access to a vehicle due to the geographic area covered by the team.
Further information is available in the attached job description and person specification.

Person Specification
Qualifications

• Essential: Occupational Therapy Qualification
• Essential: AHP Registration

Experience

• Essential: Community Experience

Other

• Essential: Licence and Car for Work

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.

Certificate of Sponsorship
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.

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

Employer details
Employer name: Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust
Address: Horsham Hospital, Hurst Road, Horsham, RH12 2DR, United Kingdom

Employer contact details
For questions about the job, contact: Operational Team Lead, Alice Crowley, alice.crowley3@nhs.net, 07484524557

Supporting documents
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