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Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust

About

Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust (CNWL) is one of the largest trusts in the UK, caring for people with a wide range of physical and mental health needs. We have approximately 7,000 staff who provide healthcare to a third of London's population and across wider geographical areas, including Milton Keynes, Kent, Surrey and Hampshire.

As a Foundation Trust we involve service users, carers, the public, staff and partner organisations in the way that we are run and our future development. If you are interested in becoming a member of our Foundation Trust please visit: www.cnwl.nhs.uk

(source: Central and North West London NHS Foundation NHS Trust website)

Contact

Address: 350 Euston Road; Regent's Place; London; London; NW1 3AX
Contact Number: 02032145700

Find out more

Jobs Website

Open

Ref: 333-D-HJ-2072-A Vacancy ID: 8319539

Occupational Therapist - Surrey Prisons

Accepting applications until: 31-Oct-2026 23:59

Vacancy status: Open

Accepting applications until: 31-Oct-2026 23:59

Location

Site: HMP Downview
Town: Surrey
Postcode: SM2 5PJ
Major / Minor Region: London

Contract type & working pattern

Contract: Permanent
Hours: Full time - 37.5 hours per week (Health & Justice Services work to a 7 day working week)

Salary

Salary: £45,953 - £54,254 per annum inc. HCAS (pro rata if P/T)
Salary period: Yearly
Grade: (NHS AfC: Band 6)

Specialty

Main area: Health & Justice Services

CNWL (Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust) has almost 8,000 staff providing integrated healthcare to a third of London's population, Milton Keynes and areas beyond. We involve service users, carers, the public, staff and partner organisations in the way that we are run.

Our catchment area spans diverse communities, with over 100 first languages spoken. It contains areas of great affluence as well as areas of much deprivation. We are committed to providing services that meet the needs of the people who use them, and we actively encourage involvement from local people who can help make a difference. We’re proud of our diversity and we continue to undertake new initiatives to advance equality for LGBT+, BME and people with disabilities to promote good relations and understanding between our staff.

We are recognised locally, nationally and internationally for providing high quality, innovative healthcare. We aim to employ only the best people, and our experts are frequently called upon to contribute to national health strategy and policy, and many models of our care have been adapted for use in other countries.

We offer a generous relocation package (subject to eligibility assessment) and flexible working options, including bank assignments for most roles. For more information on these and other benefits of working for us, see our Benefits, Reward and Wellbeing page

Become part of our team. We care for you as much as you care for others.

CNWL NHS Foundation Trust are committed to safeguarding all children and vulnerable adults and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. We follow safe recruitment practices to protect children and vulnerable adults.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Clinical

To provide specialist OT clinical knowledge in the assessment, treatment & evaluation of people within prison. Applying an understanding of the effects of multiple, enduring & complex mental health needs on occupational performance.
To carry out mental health & risk assessment, for a caseload of service users & offer regular monitoring of mental state.
To work autonomously providing clinical professional judgement in clinical cases & referring to team members when necessary.
To contribute in the development of specialist individual & group programmes, supporting service users in achieving valued goals & satisfactory occupational performance outcome. Providing advice & support on lifestyle changes &d adaptations where necessary.
To select & use validated, evidence based standardised assessment tools (Occupational Therapy assessment, screening tools, sensory profiles etc) routinely &, exhibit, advanced clinical reasoning skills.
To monitor & evaluate the effectiveness of occupational therapy interventions & the agreed mental health interventions against clear aims.
To facilitate smooth transitions for service users between prisons & different service settings (i.e. prison to community). Establishing links & working in collaboration with partner agencies in order to contribute & manage aspects of an individual’s care plan.
To support service users & colleagues in ensuring care plans are developed in partnership with service users & that they reflect ‘personal recovery’ goals. These should be strengths-based & oriented towards reinforcing a positive identity and developing valued social roles.
To provide care which is culturally appropriate & sensitive, demonstrates trauma awareness & recognises the needs of the individual with regards to accessibility
To proactively undertake & ensure rigorous risk assessment & risk management strategies are applied. To ensure maximum ‘risk tolerance’ facilitates the individual’s recovery, in line with risk policies & local guidelines.
To be aware of & sensitive to safeguarding needs at all times, & knowledgeable both about potential indicators of abuse or neglect & about what to do if they had concerns about a persons welfare.
To facilitate the development of, & to work within, clinical pathways & protocols with particular reference to the CNWL Occupational Therapy care pathways & the Health and Justice OT pathway.
To be aware of medication issues in line with the CNWL OT Medication Management guidelines
To provide specialist OT input into the Neurodiverse pathway, working alongside CNWL colleagues & HMPPS Neurodiverse Service Manager for each site.

Communication

To demonstrate excellent communication skills with service users, forming positive therapeutic relationships, using warmth & empathy, enabling service user empowerment.
To develop & maintain effective professional communication structures with other professionals & agencies in order to ensure a comprehensive & consistent approach to client care.
To provide & receive highly complex, sensitive, condition related or distressing/unwelcome information to service users and carers demonstrating empathy and reassurance.
To ensure careful & efficient forms of communication skills when assessing & managing risk procedures within & beyond the prison service, inline with confidentiality agreements.
To demonstrate skills and resourcefulness in communication when barriers to understanding are present.
To promote the role of OT within services; representing an OT clinical perspective in all clinical meetings
To participate in OT, multi-disciplinary, clinical and business meetings
To ensure timely response to emails & requests for information.
To work in close co-operation with OT colleagues within the Trust contributing to relevant OT business/training meetings, both locally & trust-wide.
To provide feedback, to OT & MDT colleagues, from specialist interest groups & committees.

Documentation

To ensure that up to date, accurate, concise & informative records are written & maintained in the service user’s notes, on Prison & health care systems (CNOMIS and System One).
To attend & actively participate in relevant meetings, conferences & events, relating to patients health & care programmes.
To maintain accurate supervision records (junior staff & students) as defined in the Trust OT Guidelines, including the maintenance of a supervision record log.

Management And Leadership

To provide input into the recruitment of staff where appropriate.
To contribute to the writing of local protocols with regard to specialist OT knowledge.
To participate in OT & department specific training packages to promote awareness & understanding of health wellbeing within a prison population.

Personal and Professional Development

To keep abreast of changing clinical practice, new developments, evidence based practice & research
To contribute to activities, which continue to build on a culture of shared learning & evidence based practice
To undertake activities of Continuous Professional Development including identifying own learning needs & recording learning outcomes in a portfolio.
To assume personal responsibility for maintaining a working knowledge of new statutory guidelines that influence clinical practice.
To maintain a professional knowledge base & act as a resource to others regarding specialist areas of expertise i.e. occupational therapy, perinatal mental health conditions, parent infant interaction, child development, parenting skills assessment, health promotion, recovery & social inclusion.

Supervision and Appraisal

To review & reflect on own practice & performance; & that of others, through effective use of supervision, reflective practice, operational management supervision, CPD & appraisal
To participate in the Trust’s supervision and appraisal systems in conjunction with service managers/Head Occupational Therapist, ensuring that relevant training needs are identified and met through timely access/delivery.
To ensure a robust framework for the provision of regular and qualitative supervision and appraisal for students, junior staff, volunteers & sessional workers as required.
To offer learning and development opportunities to other professionals with regard to occupation within perinatal mental health, and other OT specialist skills
To be an educator for OT students on practice placement, in line with local guidelines, ensuring that practice placement educators facilitate placements for the required number of weeks as per the AHP fair share agreement.
To contribute to effective peer supervision if relevant
To ensure timely booking and attendance of mandatory and statutory training. Failure to do this may preclude further learning and development opportunities.
To contribute to multi-disciplinary training initiatives

Clinical Governance

To be knowledgeable about best practise for safeguarding, with support of supervision and the directorate Safegaurding lead and support forums
To apply national and Trust wide guidelines/standards of practice in line with Trust and the Royal College of Occupational Therapists’ standards and guidelines
To work as an autonomous practitioner, assuming accountability for own clinical practice
To maintain and observe confidentiality of all information relating to service users as laid down in the confidentiality and Caldecott principles.
To ensure compliance with relevant guidelines and policies e.g. safety and risk, DOLS, care act, Mental Health Act etc.

Service Development and Delivery

To contribute, as part of the MDT to new initiatives and service development
To ensure comprehensive knowledge of the service’s KPIs, quality and performance initiatives; ensuring timely response and contribution of the OT Service provision.
To ensure comprehensive knowledge of the Trust Recovery agenda e.g. Recovery and Wellbeing College
To contribute to defined projects as directed by the Health and Justice Lead Occupational Therapist
To contribute to and participate, as a member of the multi-disciplinary team, to the operational design and delivery of quality improvement initiatives within the service
To autonomously maintain a working knowledge of new statutory guidelines, particularly those relating to perinatal mental health
To take an active role in seeking user, carer and stakeholders feedback to help shape and influence the further development of the services.

Research And Development

To participate in local & Trust-wide OT service activities that promote & contribute to the building of knowledge & evidence base for the benefit of the professional body of occupational therapy.
To include making use of the support networks available throughout the Trust e.g. Special Interest Groups, forums and sub groups; & MDT team training sessions
To undertake, participate in & disseminate research & audit activities in line with local service priorities.
To participate in & implement service activities related to clinical effectiveness via evaluation, audit, research & evidence based practice; ensuring active participation of the OT Team in such activities.
To take a lead, within the MDT, in promoting a culture that focuses on all service users’ occupational needs, recovery principles & social inclusion

Professional Ethics

To adhere to the HCPC & RCOT Code of Ethics & Professional Conduct, demonstrating professional competence and fitness to practice
To maintain knowledge of legislation that affects clinical practice within prison health care such as MHA Act,

Emotional Effort

To provide care for service users who maybe come distressed or present with challenging behaviour.
To use available resources & protected spaces to support own wellbeing.

Work Conditions

To have the ability to work within an environment that may expose individuals to verbal & physical abuse.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

AI can be used as a support tool, not a replacement for the applicant’s own work. Applications must remain personal, accurate, and reflective of the candidate’s real experience. AI-generated content must not misrepresent skills, qualifications, or experience. Over reliance on AI-generated content is discouraged and may diminish the applicant's chances of success.

We monitor applications for any behaviour that could create an unfair advantage, and we check all references carefully. You are likely to be tested on your experience at interview, so be honest and make sure all the information in your application is correct. Please note that the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is prohibited during the interview process.

Vaccination

The successful applicant may have contact with patients or service users. As an NHS Trust we strongly encourage and support vaccination as this remains the best way to protect yourself, your family, your colleagues and of course patients and service users when working on our healthcare settings.

Due to the high response levels we receive for some vacancies, we may expire any of them prior to the advertised closing date and advise you to submit your application as soon as possible.
Applications from job seekers who require sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. Before submitting your application and to avoid disappointment please check that you are eligible under the UKVI points based system
Our Agenda for Change employment contracts are subject to a contractual 13 week probationary period.
If you are offered a job, information will be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system.

Applicant requirements

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.

Person specification

EDUCATION AND QUALIFICATIONS

Essential criteria

Degree or equivalent in Occupational Therapy
HCPC registered Occupational Therapist

Desirable criteria

Post graduate training specific to mental health
Qualifications/training in specialist skills eg. therapeutic/sensory interventions
Practice placement educators course

PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE

Essential criteria

Post qualification experience working in mental health services
Experience in participating in audit / research projects
Experience in developing service activities
Experience in using a range of standardised OT assessments
Experience of effective partnership working, with external providers, in promoting socially inclusive opportunities for service users.
Experience in completing Risk Assessment Tools

Desirable criteria

Experience in prison and/or secure settings
Experience of supervising students/junior staff

SKILLS, KNOWLEDGE, ABILITIES

Essential criteria

Ability to deal with sensitivities and complexities, using interpersonal skills
Excellent communication skills i.e. written, verbal, listening and proficient use of up to date systems of communication i.e. IT systems, e-mail, fax, telephone etc.
Knowledge of personal recovery principles and their application to service delivery
Clear concept of Occupational Therapy and models of practice
Ability to work autonomously, on own initiative and under pressure to meet deadlines; & to make and action decisions independently within agreed time frames
Ability to regularly identify and undertake appropriate learning and development opportunities as part of ongoing CPD
Ability to determine the impact of mental and physical conditions on a service user’s functional ability and undertake assessment/make recommendations with regards to the provision of equipment/aids and adaptations

Desirable criteria

Delivery of formal presentations and teaching sessions

ATTITUDES, APTITUDES PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS

Essential criteria

Demonstrates a commitment to personal development
Demonstrates an enthusiasm for the post
Ability to work independently and is self motivated

OTHER

Essential criteria

Ability to promote anti-discriminatory and anti-racist practices

Documents

Further details / informal visits contact

Name: Layla Bashir
Job title: Lead Occupational Therapist
Email address: [email protected]
Additional information: We are a friendly and supportive team and would love to hear from you. If you'd like to find out more about the role, ask any questions or arrange an informal visit, please don't hesitate to get in touch.

To learn more about our Health & Justice services and the difference we make every day, visit our website: CNWL Health & Justice.

Our services operate across a 7-day model, providing high-quality healthcare when it is needed most. As part of our team, you'll work alongside dedicated professionals who are passionate about delivering outstanding care and improving the lives of some of the most vulnerable people in our communities.