Highly Specialist Occupational Therapist

Job Purpose To deliver high quality support and guidance to Southend mainstream schools and settings to develop their universal and targeted provision for children and young people with physical and sensory needs To lead on pilots and projects across Southend related to occupational therapy To supervise a team of occupational therapy assistants delivering targeted services to schools To monitor and develop universal and targeted support for schools including data capture and reporting. To contribute to service and policy development. Principal Accountabilities and Responsibilities This will involve: Provide regular supervision and line management to the occupational therapy assistant team to ensure effective practice, encourage reflection, and support career development. Participating in training programmes and associated work experiences to facilitate progression opportunities. Coordinate caseloads and allocate resources effectively to ensure timely and high-quality service delivery.
Foster a positive and supportive team culture, promoting collaboration, innovation and continuous improvement. Use a range of evidence and performance data to refine and improve future service design. Support the creation of innovative projects aimed at improving outcomes and support for children and young people. Maintain accurate and up to date records of intervention and outcome measures. Deliver training sessions and workshops to school staff, parents and care givers on strategies to support physical and sensory development in children. Provide guidance and support to teaching staff and teaching assistants in implementing occupational therapy techniques within the classroom setting. Work with schools and settings to promote better understanding and improvements to support systems, learning environments, curriculum adjustments and approaches aimed at improving outcomes and the educational experience for children and young people. Provide universal and targeted support to schools and
settings, children and young people, and their families. To work closely with Specialist Teaching Service and other learning service areas to monitor and evaluate the impact of outreach provision to ensure it meets individual and local needs. Maintain current knowledge and expertise in government legislation and guidelines pertaining to schools, children, and young people with SEND, as well as their families, and effectively communicate this information as necessary. Collaborate closely with schools, children, young people, and their families to address educational challenges, ensuring accurate identification of service requirements, valuing their perspectives, and actively engaging them in enhancing future service design. To implement and understand the services complaints procedure, to deescalate and manage initial complaints from families, carers, and other professionals. Work within Southend City Councils safeguarding policy and framework. Monitor and manage potential risk within area
of responsibility. Employees should be aware of and are required to act in such a way that promotes the health and well-being of children and young people with SEND and vulnerable learners. This Job Description is a guide to the level and range of responsibilities the post holder will be expected to undertake. It is neither exhaustive nor inclusive and may be subject to changes to meet legislative requirements in relation to the SEND Code of Practise, changing circumstances and business demands of the service. You are expected to operate flexibly to support delivery of services and from time to time will be required to undertake responsibilities outside the normal remit of your role description as required by the line manager, which are broadly commensurate with the job level and scope of competence. These duties will be subject to regular appraisal and any amendments will be made in consultation and agreement with the post holder.