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Occupational Therapy Assistant Practitioner
Norfolk & Suffolk Foundation NHS Trust View all jobs
Posted 19 day(s) ago
Reference: 246-GYW8259794
Job summary
Do you have skills in motivating people, building people's independence and supporting people to achieve their Recovery goals!?
The Occupational and Fitness Therapy (OFT) team in Secure Services are looking for TWO Occupational Therapy Assistant Practitioner (OTAP) to join our Occupational Therapy services across two of our sites. One is to work on our Male secure units at Northside House and the second position is to work on our female secure inpatient unit at Hellesdon Hospital. We are looking to recruit to both positions via this one advert and round of interviews. For applicants who have a specific preference to work in either a Male or Female unit only (Northside/Hellesdon) then please indicate this on your application. Whilst successful candidates will be allocated to one specific ward, all employed staff can at times be required to support other wards according to service need.
NSFT Secure Mental Health Services have been consistently rated "Good" by the CQC and we need you to join us on our journey to Outstanding. As a part of the wider NSFT Secure Services OFT team, the post-holder will receive regular clinical and management supervision, and professional guidance from our knowledgeable, friendly and supportive team.
Main duties of the job
Within the service, we follow a Recovery-based and trauma-informed approach, working alongside Service Users who have a mental health diagnosis. The majority have also had contact with the criminal justice system. Your role would be to instil hope, inspire confidence, and work collaboratively with individuals to meet their goals and build on life skills. You will work alongside Service users, other OT Assistant Practitioners, Registered Occupational Therapists and Fitness Therapy Technical Instructors, to ascertain and work towards the individual's Recovery goals.
About us
Here at NSFT we pride ourselves on being a welcoming, talented, friendly and supportive team who like nothing better than sharing experiences and learning from each other. In addition to ongoing training and development opportunities, we are committed to providing an environment in which you can thrive.
Why work for us? We have challenges as a Trust, but we have ambitious aspirations, are pushing ahead with exciting transformation work and we need dedicated individuals to support us on our journey. We have strong, established professional networks coupled with an exceptional leadership team who will ensure you are truly cared for and cared about.
Why Norfolk and Suffolk? The people here are warm and welcoming, you'll never be far from the beautiful coastline or Broads National Park. We're an hour and a half away from London and have an international airport in Norwich too. Our villages, towns and cities are packed full of history, independent cafes, shops and theatres. We have excellent shopping, eating out, top ranking schooling and affordable house prices too.
Details
Date posted
14 September 2026
Pay scheme
Agenda for change
Band
Band 4
Salary
£28,392 to £31,157 a year gross per annum
Contract
Permanent
Working pattern
Full-time, Flexible working
Reference number
246-GYW8259794
Job locations
Northside House and Hellesdon Hospital (two separate sites)
Northside, Thorpe St Andrew
Norwich
NR7 0HT
United Kingdom
Job description
Job responsibilities
The role is varied and creative, and it is expected that you would bring your own skills to add to the team. Your time would be divided between offering therapeutic sessions on the ward and supporting people to access facilities in the local community. Each day will vary and be led by patient need, but would include facilitating group and one-to-one sessions in areas such as cooking, art, relaxation, self-care skills, leisure interests, community, vocational, domestic and social skills to name but a few. We are looking for someone who is non-judgemental and understanding of the specific challenges faced by service users within Secure Services. The ideal candidate will have experience of working with adult mental health service users and be able to adapt their skills to work with our client group.
We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role.
Please find attached our Job Description and Person Specification for more detail on your Key Accountabilities, then if you feel you have what it takes to make a difference in your local communities, click APPLY!
Job description
Job responsibilities
The role is varied and creative, and it is expected that you would bring your own skills to add to the team. Your time would be divided between offering therapeutic sessions on the ward and supporting people to access facilities in the local community. Each day will vary and be led by patient need, but would include facilitating group and one-to-one sessions in areas such as cooking, art, relaxation, self-care skills, leisure interests, community, vocational, domestic and social skills to name but a few. We are looking for someone who is non-judgemental and understanding of the specific challenges faced by service users within Secure Services. The ideal candidate will have experience of working with adult mental health service users and be able to adapt their skills to work with our client group.
We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role.
Please find attached our Job Description and Person Specification for more detail on your Key Accountabilities, then if you feel you have what it takes to make a difference in your local communities, click APPLY!
Person Specification
Experience
Essential
- Experience of working with groups of people
- Ability to work both independently and under supervision
- Experience of working within mental health
Qualifications
Essential
- Foundation Degree in Health and Social Care/mental health or Apprenticeship in H&SC/mental health L5 or Equivalent Qualification at L5 or above in a related subject
Skills
Essential
- Experience of facilitating groups
- Good communication skills (written and verbal).
- Ability to work under pressure
- Good Interpersonal skills.
- Confidence and competence in using IT systems (e.g. Outlook, Word, clinical or other record systems) relevant to the role.
Knowledge
Essential
- An understanding of Occupational Therapy and the importance of meaningful occupations.
- Health and safety risk awareness
Other
Essential
- Ability to undertake and maintain annual, full PMVA training as required for inpatient roles
Desirable
- Ability to travel independently (inpatient roles)
Person Specification
Experience
Essential
- Experience of working with groups of people
- Ability to work both independently and under supervision
- Experience of working within mental health
Qualifications
Essential
- Foundation Degree in Health and Social Care/mental health or Apprenticeship in H&SC/mental health L5 or Equivalent Qualification at L5 or above in a related subject
Skills
Essential
- Experience of facilitating groups
- Good communication skills (written and verbal).
- Ability to work under pressure
- Good Interpersonal skills.
- Confidence and competence in using IT systems (e.g. Outlook, Word, clinical or other record systems) relevant to the role.
Knowledge
Essential
- An understanding of Occupational Therapy and the importance of meaningful occupations.
- Health and safety risk awareness
Other
Essential
- Ability to undertake and maintain annual, full PMVA training as required for inpatient roles
Desirable
- Ability to travel independently (inpatient roles)
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 (Opens in a new tab).
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 (Opens in a new tab).
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 UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
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 (Opens in a new tab).
Employer details
Employer name
Norfolk & Suffolk Foundation NHS Trust
Address
Northside House and Hellesdon Hospital (two separate sites)
Northside, Thorpe St Andrew
Norwich
NR7 0HT
United Kingdom
Employer's website
https://www.nsft.nhs.uk/Pages/Home.aspx (Opens in a new tab)
Employer details
Employer name
Norfolk & Suffolk Foundation NHS Trust
Address
Northside House and Hellesdon Hospital (two separate sites)
Northside, Thorpe St Andrew
Norwich
NR7 0HT
United Kingdom
Employer's website
https://www.nsft.nhs.uk/Pages/Home.aspx (Opens in a new tab)