Specialist Occupational Therapist

Job overview

Are you a dedicated Occupational Therapist looking to inspire and support the Children and Young People Mental Health Service redesign project as a Specialist Occupational Therapist? CYPMH Dorset is entering an exciting period of growth and development, supported by new investment and a strong commitment to transforming how children and young people access mental health support.

As the Specialist Occupational Therapist, you will be part of a service that places children, young people and families at the centre of decision‑making, working in our Getting Help and Getting More Help teams. With a strong focus on strengths, participation and outcomes that matter in everyday life working within a THRIVE‑informed, needs‑led model of care. You will bring specialist occupational expertise to assessment, formulation and intervention, supporting young people to engage in meaningful occupations across home, school and community contexts. Working collaboratively within a multidisciplinary team across THRIVE groupings, delivering evidence‑based interventions, contributing to service innovation, and supporting the embedding of occupationally focused practice within the wider CAMHS pathway.

The Specialist Occupational Therapist role is a part-time post. This role is a Pan-Dorset service wide role. Any queries, please contact clare.young2@nhs.net

Main duties of the job

Please note visa sponsorship for this role is unfortunately not available. Ensure you hold valid right to work in the UK and will not require sponsorship if successful.

Managing a complex clinical caseload, contributing to service development and quality improvement, offering clinical supervision and leadership to junior staff and students.

Deliver evidence‑based, strengths‑focused interventions that promote participation in everyday occupations across home, school and community contexts.

Work collaboratively with children, young people and their families, using shared decision‑making to agree goals and outcomes that are meaningful and occupation‑focused.

Contribute to multidisciplinary assessment, formulation and care planning, ensuring the occupational perspective is embedded within CAMHS pathways.

Provide clinical supervision, support and guidance to junior OT staff, support workers and students, as appropriate.

Contribute to the development, delivery and evaluation of OT‑led interventions, groups and resources aligned to the THRIVE framework.

Participate in service transformation, quality improvement and audit activity, supporting the ongoing development of the CAMHS service.

Work in partnership with education, social care and voluntary sector services to promote integrated, holistic support for children and young people.

Employment in this post requires an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check, which the Trust will cover the cost of.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

For the main duties and responsibilities for this role please read the attached job description and person specification. When completing your application please ensure your supporting statement reflects the criteria set out in these documents by showing how your experience and skills apply to this post.

We understand that AI can be a useful tool when completing your application. However, we are seeing an increasing over-reliance of AI tools, which can negatively affect your application as it reduces a candidate’s individuality, and makes it difficult for us to gain a clear and authentic understanding of your experience, skills, and in turn your suitability for the role.

All submissions must be truthful and if you do use AI, it should only be used to enhance your application and not create your supporting statement in its entirety. Your supporting statement should be in your own words and must accurately reflect your personal experience and achievements. Where we have concerns that AI has been used to generate content that misrepresents your experience and suitability for the role, we may withdraw your application.

As part of our vision to have a skilled, diverse and caring workforce, Dorset HealthCare offers support for people getting into work. We offer an employability service to support individuals with application writing, interview skills and other employment support. If you would like or know of anyone who would value this support, please do contact dhc.wideningparticipation@nhs.net

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.