Job summary
Are you an experienced Occupational Therapist ready to take the next step in your leadership career?
We are seeking an enthusiastic and motivated Occupational Therapist to join our Allied Health Professional (AHP) Leadership Team within Adult and Older Persons' Mental Health Services across Portsmouth and South East Hampshire.
As one of our AHP Team Leads, you will provide leadership, support and professional development to Occupational Therapists, Physiotherapists, AHP Support Staff, and Peer Support Workers within our Occupational Therapy-led Personality, Trauma and Response Team. The role combines operational and professional leadership with a specialist clinical caseload, enabling you to maintain and develop your clinical expertise while supporting workforce development and service improvement.
We pride ourselves on fostering a supportive and collaborative culture, underpinned by visible and compassionate leadership. In return, we offer regular clinical and managerial supervision, ongoing professional development opportunities, and support to pursue specialist clinical interests.
In recognition of our commitment to workforce development, innovation and high-quality patient care, our AHP services received the Chief Allied Health Professions Officer Workforce Award in 2025. We continue to build on this success as we strengthen and develop services for adults and older people experiencing mental health difficulties.
Main duties of the job
Why Join Us? We are a friendly, established and forward-thinking AHP team that values collaboration, innovation and continuous learning. As AHP Team Lead, you will shape practice, drive service improvement and champion the role of AHPs in mental health services, while leading and managing staff to make a meaningful difference for adults and older people accessing our services.
This rewarding role offers the opportunity to:
*Lead, manage and develop Occupational Therapists, Allied Health Professionals and Support Staff across Adult and Older Persons' Mental Health Services.
*Provide professional leadership, supervision and workforce development within inpatient and community settings.
*Drive service improvement and innovation through the use of audit, outcome measures and service user feedback.
*Support effective caseload management and patient flow across mental health pathways.
*Represent the AHP workforce within operational, governance and service development forums.
*Work collaboratively with multidisciplinary colleagues, partner organisations and external agencies to improve outcomes for service users.
*Support student education, practice placements and the development of future AHP professionals.
*Contribute to clinical governance, professional standards and wider AHP initiatives across the Trust.
*There is scope to work clinically where appropriate, to support direct patient care and clinical leadership.
About us
Hampshire and Isle of Wight Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust provides joined-up mental and physical healthcare for around two million people across our communities. With over 13,000 staff working in the community and local hospitals, we deliver care at every stage of life, helping people live their best and healthiest lives.
Our mental health services include community-based support and early intervention in psychosis (EIP) for both adults and young people, alongside a network of specialist inpatient wards covering forensic, learning disability, eating disorder and older person's care.
We deliver extensive physical health services too, from urgent community response teams helping frail and older patients remain safely at home, to hospitals at home teams providing acute-level care in familiar surroundings. Our neurological services offer rehabilitation and treatment for conditions including Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson's Disease, Motor Neurone Disease, Head Injury, Cerebral Palsy and Stroke. Across Hampshire, our community hospitals provide inpatient rehabilitation as a step down from acute care, and our dedicated teams also staff Treetops Sexual Assault Referral Centre in Portsmouth, offering expert, compassionate support.
Everything we do is underpinned by our CARE values of compassion, accountability, respect and excellence
Job description
Job responsibilities
Further information about the Trust and this role can be found on the Job Description and Person Specification document attached. It is important to us that we ensure our recruitment processes are accessible and inclusive to everyone - if as a potential candidate you are concerned a person specification may prevent or restrict your application for employment as a result of unintentional barriers on the grounds of your sex, race, age, sexual orientation, religion/belief or disability please initially contact the Trust's Recruitment team - detailed in the advert. The Trust will seek to resolve this issue wherever possible.
Flexible Working - We understand that flexibility matters. We are happy to discuss flexible working options and encourage candidates to raise these during the recruitment and interview process.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Further information about the Trust and this role can be found on the Job Description and Person Specification document attached. It is important to us that we ensure our recruitment processes are accessible and inclusive to everyone - if as a potential candidate you are concerned a person specification may prevent or restrict your application for employment as a result of unintentional barriers on the grounds of your sex, race, age, sexual orientation, religion/belief or disability please initially contact the Trust's Recruitment team - detailed in the advert. The Trust will seek to resolve this issue wherever possible.
Flexible Working - We understand that flexibility matters. We are happy to discuss flexible working options and encourage candidates to raise these during the recruitment and interview process.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- *Degree-level qualification in the relevant Allied Health Profession - Occupational Therapy.
- *Current HCPC registration as an Occupational Therapist.
- *Evidence of leadership or management qualification, training and/or equivalent experience.
- At present, the Trust is unable to offer Skilled Worker visa sponsorship for this post. Applicants must have the right to work in the UK at the time of application.
Desirable
- Evidence of study at Masters' level or working towards this qualification relevant to area of practice.
Experience
Essential
- *Significant post-registration experience within mental health services.
- *Experience of working in complex clinical environments and making decisions in challenging, unpredictable situations.
- *Proven clinical leadership and presentation skills.
- *Knowledge of the Clinical Governance Framework and implementation for service delivery.
- *Knowledge of professional standards, codes of conduct and current mental health policy.
- *Knowledge of supervision, reflective practice and staff development.
- *Knowledge of relevant legislation, including the Mental Health Act.
- *Knowledge of national agendas relevant to mental health and AHP practice.
- *Experience of working autonomously, managing competing priorities and supporting teams effectively.
- *Competence in using clinical systems, digital tools and management information systems.
Desirable
- *Experience supporting student practice placement education.
- *Experience delivering teaching, training or professional development programmes.
- *Knowledge of local health and care strategies.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- *Degree-level qualification in the relevant Allied Health Profession - Occupational Therapy.
- *Current HCPC registration as an Occupational Therapist.
- *Evidence of leadership or management qualification, training and/or equivalent experience.
- At present, the Trust is unable to offer Skilled Worker visa sponsorship for this post. Applicants must have the right to work in the UK at the time of application.
Desirable
- Evidence of study at Masters' level or working towards this qualification relevant to area of practice.
Experience
Essential
- *Significant post-registration experience within mental health services.
- *Experience of working in complex clinical environments and making decisions in challenging, unpredictable situations.
- *Proven clinical leadership and presentation skills.
- *Knowledge of the Clinical Governance Framework and implementation for service delivery.
- *Knowledge of professional standards, codes of conduct and current mental health policy.
- *Knowledge of supervision, reflective practice and staff development.
- *Knowledge of relevant legislation, including the Mental Health Act.
- *Knowledge of national agendas relevant to mental health and AHP practice.
- *Experience of working autonomously, managing competing priorities and supporting teams effectively.
- *Competence in using clinical systems, digital tools and management information systems.
Desirable
- *Experience supporting student practice placement education.
- *Experience delivering teaching, training or professional development programmes.
- *Knowledge of local health and care strategies.
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.
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see
NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
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.
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see
NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
Employer details
Employer name
Hampshire and Isle of Wight Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
Address
The Limes, St James' Hospital
Woodlands Walk
Portsmouth
Hampshire
PO4 8GB
United Kingdom
Employer's website
https://hiowhealthcare.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)
