Lead Children's Physiotherapist

Job overview

Lead Children's Physiotherapist  Fixed-term contract for 10-month maternity cover. Department: Children's Physiotherapy, Therapies Hours: 29.25 hours/week

All MKUH roles will be considered for flexible working.

We are looking for an enthusiastic and highly motivated Band 7 Childrens Physiotherapist to join our team for a 10-month period of maternity cover from 1st April 2026.

The team delivers physiotherapy services to children and young people aged 0-19 years within acute and community settings. This post will involve working in the Childrens Physiotherapy department based in Stony Stratford Health Centre and Milton Keynes Hospital. Being able to drive between sites is essential.

The role includes jointly managing the paediatric ward and a neurodisability out-patient caseload. This involves complex assessment, developing and reviewing programmes, ordering and reviewing equipment, reviewing and writing annual reviews for EHCP plans and liaising with families and the wider multi-disciplinary team.

We are looking to recruit a physiotherapist with experience of working with children and young people with complex needs and wishes to continue to develop the physiotherapy service at Milton Keynes Hospital. The postholder will be involved in the supervision and support of Band 5 & Band 6 physiotherapists, assistant practitioners and students.

This role can not be sponsored.

Interview date: 09.03.2026

Main duties of the job

We care We communicate We collaborate We contribute

“- NHS Survey, 2024'' Allied Health Professionals experience a high diverse and equal work environment, supporting this with 8.33 out of 10.

• To be responsible for managing a highly specialist clinical caseload of Paediatric patients for the Milton Keynes University Hospital (MKUH). Patients will be assessed and treated in a variety of different settings including outpatients, inpatients and/ or community as required by the area of clinical specialty.   •    To jointly take the physiotherapy lead children with neurological, neuromuscular and developmental conditions.  •    To jointly take the physiotherapy lead on the acute children’s ward.              •    To work in collaboration with Lead Therapists and the Therapy Service Leads to jointly provide clinical and managerial leadership to the Paediatrics team, employed by MKUH, in the delivery of a high-quality service for its patients.  •    The post holder will have knowledge of emerging clinical developments, provide advice to inform service development in the speciality in support of the appropriate Therapy Lead. •    To demonstrate and role model specialist clinical assessment and treatment skills for an agreed caseload of patients.  •    To continually review staffing levels/skill mix in accordance with the changing needs of the service and informing the Therapy Lead of any problems that may arise.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Leadership and Management •    To provide clinical and managerial leadership to the clinical team in area of clinical speciality by working collaboratively with other Lead Therapists and the Therapy Service Lead. •    On an adhoc basis you may be required to deputise for the Therapy Service Lead in their absence and to support them in the delivery and development of area of clinical speciality. •    To contribute to the development of the Therapy Services vision and strategy in conjunction with the wider Trust and other divisional strategies, ensuring that opportunities for development and collaborative working are promoted.

Clinical Practice  •    To be professionally and legally accountable for all aspects of your own work, ensuring a high standard of clinical care for the patients under your management by supporting more junior staff to do likewise. •    To accept clinical responsibility for a designated caseload of patients Outpatient, Community and Inpatients, as applicable to post] and to organise this effectively and efficiently with regard to clinical priorities and use of time. To oversee the caseloads of more junior staff. •    To undertake comprehensive specialist assessment, treatment and discharge of patients including those with diverse and complex presentations and multiple pathologies. Use specialist clinical reasoning, evidence-based practice, investigative and analytical skills.

Professional Duties •    To maintain own competency to practice through CPD activities, demonstrating awareness of new trends and developments and their incorporation into practice as necessary. •    To actively participate in the in-service training programmes by attending and delivering presentations, tutorials, individual training sessions, peer review, external courses and professional clinical interest groups.  •    To decide priorities for own work area, balancing other patient related and professional demands and ensure that these are discussed in conjunction with the wider therapy teams when managing capacity issues.

Governance •    To demonstrate a sound understanding of Clinical Governance and Risk Management and their application to work situation. •    To assess and manage clinical risk within patient caseload in a wide variety of settings, providing guidance to junior staff.  •    To actively participate in relevant forums and a rolling programme of education, clinical evaluation audit and research within area of speciality.

Please refer to the job description for further details.