East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust

Therapy Assistant Practitioner - EOC

The closing date is 12 February 2026

Job summary

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Therapy Assistant Practitioner to work full-time within our Elective Orthopaedic team at the Kent and Canterbury Hospital.

This Band 4 post is an integral role within the therapy team and, by working closely with both Physiotherapists and Occupational Therapists, they will help to ensure an optimum and seamless patient experience for our orthopaedic patients.This role will include both in-patient and day surgery work, and will involve some independent work for our protocol driven pathways with oversight from our qualified team.

Main duties of the job

As a Band 4 you will work generically, providing high quality care through effective team work and will be expected to follow through treatment plans from admission to discharge. The team strives to provide high quality care and think innovatively to improve the service we deliver. As a team member you will assist and support the therapists in the Elective Orthopaedic team and work closely with all members of the multi disciplinary team.

The post holder will review patients pre and post operatively and be expected to carry out initial assessments of patient's ability and needs. They will also be able to effectively discharge plan and ensure the correct follow up is in place for patients on their discharge from hospital.

As a therapy team we are constantly involved in service development and the post holder will be involved alongside the therapy team in new projects, service developments and initiatives to ensure best practice at all times.

Regular supervision is available. There is regular in-service training provided by both therapies and other MDT members. There is an opportunity to enrol on the apprenticeship scheme to develop your clinical skills further. External training opportunities may also be applied for as appropriate.

About us

We are one of the largest hospital trusts in England, with five hospitals and community clinics serving a local population of around 800,000 people. Our vision is 'great healthcare from great people'. Everything we do is guided by our values: 'People feel cared for, safe, respected and confident that we are making a difference'. We have a new way of working at East Kent Hospitals, called 'We care'. It's about empowering frontline staff to lead improvements day-to-day. We're looking for compassionate people to be part of our improvement journey for the patients, families and carers we care for every day.

Please note that if you require a Certificate of Sponsorship to work in the UK you must declare this on your application form, even if you currently have a certificate of sponsorship or a work permit for another role and are already working in the country. Please note we are only able to sponsor candidates for a Skilled Worker Visa for roles that are eligible at the time of application

PLEASE NOTE - WE CANNOT PROVIDE SPONSORSHIP FOR THIS ROLE

Details

Date posted

06 February 2026

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 4

Salary

£27,485 to £30,162 a year pro rata per annum

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

344-6183DCB

Job locations

Kent and Canterbury Hospital

Ethelbert Road

Canterbury

CT1 3NG


Job description

Job responsibilities

Please scroll down to accessthe full Job Description and Person Specification located in Documents to download. If you havefurther queries please dont hesitate to contact the line manager using the contact details below.

Applications for this role should be written by the applicant. If artificial intelligence (AI)programmes are used then the application may be rejected due to this document being animportant part of the assessment process. This does not prevent applicants seeking appropriatesupport with applications should they need to for the purposes of any declared disability.

Job description

Job responsibilities

Please scroll down to accessthe full Job Description and Person Specification located in Documents to download. If you havefurther queries please dont hesitate to contact the line manager using the contact details below.

Applications for this role should be written by the applicant. If artificial intelligence (AI)programmes are used then the application may be rejected due to this document being animportant part of the assessment process. This does not prevent applicants seeking appropriatesupport with applications should they need to for the purposes of any declared disability.

Person Specification

Clinical Skills and Experience

Essential

  • Ability to follow prescribed programs of treatment.
  • Able to use and take initiative to seek additional work to assist the team as a whole (e.g. team administration tasks).
  • Works independently, manages caseload and carries out directed tasks with patients.
  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
  • IT skills.
  • Clinical moving and handling skills.

Desirable

  • Facilitating therapy groups with Allied Health Professionals.
  • Previous experience of working with patients within an in-patient or out-patient setting.
  • Working with members of the multi-disciplinary team.
  • Experience of working with vascular patients/ amputees.

Qualifications and Training

Essential

  • NVQ 3 or equivalent.
  • Previous experience of working as a band 3 therapy/ rehabilitation assistant within an NHS setting or equivalent experience with transferrable skills.

Desirable

  • Completion of Trusted Assessor Training

Governance

Essential

  • Understands issues of confidentiality and information governance

Personal/Professional Attributes

Essential

  • Able to listen and develop a rapport with patients and relatives.
  • Reliable and trustworthy.
  • Polite and respectful.
  • Confident and friendly.
  • Effective Team Player.
  • Willingness to work flexibly.
  • Awareness of own limitations.
  • Sets and maintains personal and professional boundaries.

Other requirements

Essential

  • To be aware of and adhere to the Trust's Vision, Mission and Values.
  • Car driver with access to own transport so able to visit patient home environments, and go between Trust hospital sites
Person Specification

Clinical Skills and Experience

Essential

  • Ability to follow prescribed programs of treatment.
  • Able to use and take initiative to seek additional work to assist the team as a whole (e.g. team administration tasks).
  • Works independently, manages caseload and carries out directed tasks with patients.
  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
  • IT skills.
  • Clinical moving and handling skills.

Desirable

  • Facilitating therapy groups with Allied Health Professionals.
  • Previous experience of working with patients within an in-patient or out-patient setting.
  • Working with members of the multi-disciplinary team.
  • Experience of working with vascular patients/ amputees.

Qualifications and Training

Essential

  • NVQ 3 or equivalent.
  • Previous experience of working as a band 3 therapy/ rehabilitation assistant within an NHS setting or equivalent experience with transferrable skills.

Desirable

  • Completion of Trusted Assessor Training

Governance

Essential

  • Understands issues of confidentiality and information governance

Personal/Professional Attributes

Essential

  • Able to listen and develop a rapport with patients and relatives.
  • Reliable and trustworthy.
  • Polite and respectful.
  • Confident and friendly.
  • Effective Team Player.
  • Willingness to work flexibly.
  • Awareness of own limitations.
  • Sets and maintains personal and professional boundaries.

Other requirements

Essential

  • To be aware of and adhere to the Trust's Vision, Mission and Values.
  • Car driver with access to own transport so able to visit patient home environments, and go between Trust hospital sites

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

Additional information

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

Employer details

Employer name

East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Kent and Canterbury Hospital

Ethelbert Road

Canterbury

CT1 3NG


Employer's website

https://www.ekhuft.nhs.uk/patients-and-visitors/ (Opens in a new tab)

Employer details

Employer name

East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Kent and Canterbury Hospital

Ethelbert Road

Canterbury

CT1 3NG


Employer's website

https://www.ekhuft.nhs.uk/patients-and-visitors/ (Opens in a new tab)

Employer contact details

For questions about the job, contact:

Inpatient Therapy Lead for Kent and Canterbury

Katy Sampson

katy.sampson@nhs.net

07825054160

Details

Date posted

06 February 2026

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 4

Salary

£27,485 to £30,162 a year pro rata per annum

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

344-6183DCB

Job locations

Kent and Canterbury Hospital

Ethelbert Road

Canterbury

CT1 3NG


Supporting documents

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