Clinical Specialist OT -Learning Disabilities & Autism

Job summary

Fixed Term: 2 Years | Full-Time: 37.5 hours per week Location: Springfield Hospital (covering all sites)

Are you a passionate and experienced occupational therapist ready to take the next step in your career? Join our new dynamic team as a clinical specialist OT and contribute to transforming the quality of care for individuals with mental health needs, learning disabilities, and autism in acute inpatient settings.

This exciting role is part of the Mental Health Learning Disability and Autism Inpatient Quality Transformation Programme (MHLDA IQTP), a national initiative dedicated to improving outcomes and experiences for service users and their families. Learn more about the programme here.

Main duties of the job

About the Role: As an OT, you will play a pivotal role in delivering high-quality, person-centred care to identified clients .

This includes:

• Leading the implementation of specialist OT interventions across inpatient services.
• Supporting service users with complex needs, particularly those with learning disabilities and neurodiversity.
• Driving research, quality improvement initiatives, and innovative care approaches.
• Acting as a role model, supervisor, and mentor for less experienced staff within the MDT.

You will be working alongside a multidisciplinary team and fostering collaborative relationships within the Trust and beyond, ensuring inclusivity, resilience, and hope in care delivery.

What We're Looking For:

• A Registered Occupational Therapist with extensive experience of working in Mental Health Services who;
  • Has worked at a senior level to lead and embed positive clinical practice
  • Has also developed or started to develop, their clinical expertise, to expand to learning disability, autism and/or neurodiversity

About us

We are Proud to Belong at South West London and St George's Mental Health NHS Trust.

We have expert services, a rich history and a clear commitment to providing the best quality care for those with mental ill-health. The Care Quality Commission already rates our services as 'good' - we aspire to be 'outstanding'.

This is a great time to join us. We are transforming the way we care for our communities to support our mission of Making Life Better Together. We have built two brand new mental health facilities at Springfield University Hospital, which are amongst the best in the world. More developments are planned across our sites and services.

We are inclusive and diverse and strive to be actively anti racist. We want to attract people from all backgrounds and experiences to enrich the work we do together.We are proud to co-produce and involve our local communities in all that we do.

We offer flexible working, career development and a variety of benefits to enable a positive, welcoming environment in which our people and their careers can thrive.

About our locations:

Springfield University Hospital, Tooting

Our largest, 19-ward site is in Springfield Village, created following our £150m investment into two new world class mental health facilities. A 32-acre public park, shops and cafes are coming soon. Close to shops, cafes and Tooting Bec on the Northern Line plus Earlsfield and Tooting rail stations and bus routes.

Job description

Job responsibilities

To complete specialist assessments and interventions, including providing individualised and client-centred care plans and interventions.

To apply a high level of understanding of the effects of disability on occupational performance and provide training and advice on lifestyles changes and environmental solutions to the clients social and physical needs.

To promote equality of outcome for service users that reflects their mental health needs and those of ethnicity, gender, culture physical health and age.

To promote social inclusion and physical and mental well-being using evidence-based practice. This is underpinned by the principles of hope and recovery, health promotion and relapse prevention.

To independently manage a clinical caseload of service user with complex mental health needs

To apply advanced clinical reasoning to identify occupational therapy goals as part of the overall care plan, using specialist mental health and occupational therapy assessments, including Model of Human Occupation (MOHO) tools in conjunction with other relevant theoretical perspectives.

To exercise independent clinical professional judgement in complex clinical cases and difficult clinical situations, referring to team members when necessary.

To consider both physical and mental health needs as part of the occupational therapy process.

To plan and implement specialist individual and/or group interventions collaboratively, to enable service users to achieve valued goals and satisfactory occupational performance outcome.

To identify any significant risk factors in line with local policies, with support from senior staff

To lead on the development of therapeutic programmes and to work within clinical pathways and protocols with reference to the MoHO.

To facilitate training across the Trust in working with this client group and to supervise and provide support to OTs working with identified clients.

To advise on appropriate outcome measures and evaluate effectiveness of therapy interventions and quality of clinical decisions in conjunction with service users/carers, other professionals etc.

To identify and respond to safeguarding concerns, complying with London Child Protection Procedures on the management of child protection issues and those of South West London and St Georges Mental Health NHS Trust, making appropriate referrals and liaising closely with colleagues within Childrens Services as required.

If required to visit clients alone at their homes or in the community to adhere with the Trust and Team Lone Working Policies

Job description
Job responsibilities

To complete specialist assessments and interventions, including providing individualised and client-centred care plans and interventions.

To apply a high level of understanding of the effects of disability on occupational performance and provide training and advice on lifestyles changes and environmental solutions to the clients social and physical needs.

To promote equality of outcome for service users that reflects their mental health needs and those of ethnicity, gender, culture physical health and age.

To promote social inclusion and physical and mental well-being using evidence-based practice. This is underpinned by the principles of hope and recovery, health promotion and relapse prevention.

To independently manage a clinical caseload of service user with complex mental health needs

To apply advanced clinical reasoning to identify occupational therapy goals as part of the overall care plan, using specialist mental health and occupational therapy assessments, including Model of Human Occupation (MOHO) tools in conjunction with other relevant theoretical perspectives.

To exercise independent clinical professional judgement in complex clinical cases and difficult clinical situations, referring to team members when necessary.

To consider both physical and mental health needs as part of the occupational therapy process.

To plan and implement specialist individual and/or group interventions collaboratively, to enable service users to achieve valued goals and satisfactory occupational performance outcome.

To identify any significant risk factors in line with local policies, with support from senior staff

To lead on the development of therapeutic programmes and to work within clinical pathways and protocols with reference to the MoHO.

To facilitate training across the Trust in working with this client group and to supervise and provide support to OTs working with identified clients.

To advise on appropriate outcome measures and evaluate effectiveness of therapy interventions and quality of clinical decisions in conjunction with service users/carers, other professionals etc.

To identify and respond to safeguarding concerns, complying with London Child Protection Procedures on the management of child protection issues and those of South West London and St Georges Mental Health NHS Trust, making appropriate referrals and liaising closely with colleagues within Childrens Services as required.

If required to visit clients alone at their homes or in the community to adhere with the Trust and Team Lone Working Policies

Person Specification

Education, Training & Qualifications

Essential

• Diploma or degree in Occupational Therapy
• Masters degree / post degree study in subject relevant to clinical post or equivalence of knowledge and skills base attained through further training, short courses, relevant study
• Registration to practice in the UK (HPC registered)
• Practice placement educators' course within one year of appointment
• Evidence of post registration training or experience relevant to learning disabilities and mental health practice

Desirable

• Evidence of further professional development related to management and leadership

Experience

Essential

• Experience in a senior professional role (Band 7 or above)
• Experience of multi-professional collaboration at a senior level including partnership working with other statutory and voluntary organizations.
• Experience of service development.
• Experience of supervision and appraisal and addressing performance issues
• Experience of working in a range of mental health settings including with learning disabilities and/ or forensic mental health
• Experience of carrying a caseload of service users with complex and diverse needs in a mental health setting
• Post-graduate clinical experience highly related to clinical field
• Experience of working in a multi-cultural context
• Experience of maintaining a written record of continual professional development
• Experience of individual and groupwork
• Experience of being a practice placement educator
• Experience of writing specialist occupational therapy reports
• Experience of clinical audit

Desirable

• Experience of publishing own work
• Post-registration research activity

Person Specification
Education, Training & Qualifications

Essential

• Diploma or degree in Occupational Therapy
• Masters degree / post degree study in subject relevant to clinical post or equivalence of knowledge and skills base attained through further training, short courses, relevant study
• Registration to practice in the UK (HPC registered)
• Practice placement educators' course within one year of appointment
• Evidence of post registration training or experience relevant to learning disabilities and mental health practice

Desirable

• Evidence of further professional development related to management and leadership

Experience

Essential

• Experience in a senior professional role (Band 7 or above)
• Experience of multi-professional collaboration at a senior level including partnership working with other statutory and voluntary organizations.
• Experience of service development.
• Experience of supervision and appraisal and addressing performance issues
• Experience of working in a range of mental health settings including with learning disabilities and/ or forensic mental health
• Experience of carrying a caseload of service users with complex and diverse needs in a mental health setting
• Post-graduate clinical experience highly related to clinical field
• Experience of working in a multi-cultural context
• Experience of maintaining a written record of continual professional development
• Experience of individual and groupwork
• Experience of being a practice placement educator
• Experience of writing specialist occupational therapy reports
• Experience of clinical audit

Desirable

• Experience of publishing own work
• Post-registration research activity

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 .

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. .
UK Registration

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

Additional information
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 .

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. .
UK Registration

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

Employer details

Employer name

South West London and St Georges Mental Health NHS Trust
Address

Springfield Hospital

Tooting

SW17 7DJ

Employer's website