Occupational Therapist

About Us:

THE EXTRAORDINARY STORY OF SHOFA’S MARKET. 

Children’s Services in Westminster City Council is a world of extraordinary stories. Where courageous and inspiring professionals bring everything to their work. 

Sometimes this even includes heartbreak. Shofa is a shining example. Shofa’s brother suffered with his mental health and died tragically young. She uses his memory as motivation to give Westminster Youth Council members the opportunity to have a voice and get involved in decision making. This passion resulted in in her innovation: The Westminster Youth Market. Here local teenagers learn about entrepreneurship and develop their personal skills. This is an inclusive platform where everyone’s contribution and abilities are celebrated. Inspired by a promising life cut short, Shofa believes without vision there is no direction and every young person should be supported to realise their dreams. 

Please view the extraordinary story of Shofa’s Market here.

The Role:

As a Children’s Occupational Therapist you can make your own powerful contribution when you join our Bi-Borough Short Breaks Occupational Therapy team. Providing a community based OT service to children with disabilities, their families and carers, you’ll assess and advise service users on all aspects of their daily life, and recommend appropriate equipment and adaptations to their homes. Working in partnership with parents, carers, teachers, health professionals and others to provide professional advice regarding the needs of the children you work with, you’ll also be responsible for providing reports for the Education, Health and Care plan for children you work with.

Keeping abreast of the latest research, knowledge and best practice in the field of OT, you’ll participate in training in order to maintain your HCPC registration, and be an active member of the Bi-borough Short Breaks Service. We’ll also expect you to help to supervise Occupational Therapy students and support OT apprenticeships, and be conversant with essential departmental policies and procedures and relevant government legislation.

Your other tasks will include working closely with social workers and the City of Westminster Housing Department to support children with disabilities and their families who are in need of rehousing, using tools such as Mosaic to maintain accurate, up to date and relevant case records.

Please refer to the Job Description for more information.

About You:

With a Degree or Diploma in Occupational Therapy and State Registered Qualification through HCPC, you should either have two years’ post qualification experience, including a minimum of one year’s experience in paediatrics, or experience of working in a community based setting. It’s essential that you have knowledge of the Occupational Therapy process from referral through to discharge or review, and experience of working with issues of loss and bereavement.

Skilled in the assessment and intervention of children’s occupational performance, and with the ability to focus on all the activities of daily living, self care, mobility, seating, bathing, toileting and feeding, you’ll have experience of working with complex disabilities. With a sensitive and empathetic understanding of the issues affecting families and carers of children with disabilities, you’ll have the ability to work with clients from diverse racial ethnic, religious and cultural backgrounds, and with those living various lifestyles. Capable of assessing and prescribing the most suitable form of special equipment for a wide range of complex disabilities, you will also be ready to plan interventions and set goals with the children and families you work with.

What We Offer:

Westminster is an amazing place. We are home to over 250,000 residents from all backgrounds, over 50,000 vibrant and vital businesses and three-quarters-of-a-million people work in Westminster. Westminster City Council’s strategy is to work towards a Fairer Westminster. A Fairer Westminster is one in which our communities are at the heart of our decision-making and help to determine the city’s future. By working directly with our communities and other partners, we can build a more inclusive city that celebrates our diverse communities, and where residents, workers and visitors from all backgrounds will feel welcome and safe. 

At Westminster City Council, we pride ourselves on being an inclusive workplace and employer of choice. We encourage and welcome applications from people from all backgrounds and aim to have a workforce that, at all levels, represents the communities we serve. We champion equality, diversity, inclusion and wellbeing and aim to create a workplace where everyone feels valued, has a sense of belonging and is empowered to be their best, that is the Westminster Way. To find out more about how we do this visit https://www.westminster.gov.uk/health-and-social-care/public-health-strategy-policies-and-reports/equality-duties 

As a forward-thinking Council we appreciate that people work in different ways, therefore our staff benefit from working a range of flexible working patterns as well as Agile working. 

The Council is a Disability Confident Employer. If you have declared a disability in your application, we guarantee an interview if you meet the essential criteria of the job. If you are invited for interview, you will be asked if you need any reasonable adjustments in order to attend, and we will make these wherever possible. 

Closing date: 11 September 2023

Contact details for an informal discussion: Linh Thuy Nguyen via email at LNGUYEN@WESTMINSTER.GOV.UK