University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust

Clinical Specialist Paediatric In-Patient Occupational Therapist

The closing date is 29 October 2025

Job summary

Band 7 Clinical Specialist Occupational Therapist - Inpatient Paediatrics

University Hospital of Leicester, Leicester Royal Infirmary

30 hours per week/permanent contract

Are you a passionate and experienced Occupational Therapist with a strong background in paediatrics? Are you ready to take the next step in your career and lead clinical practice in a specialist inpatient setting?

We are excited to offer an excellent opportunity for a Band 7 Clinical Specialist Occupational Therapist to join our dynamic and supportive multidisciplinary team working within our inpatient paediatric services and alongside our inpatient physiotherapy team.

The Paediatric Team provide a service to the Children's and Women's Services and the successful applicant will provide care within the following areas: General medicine, High Dependency, Orthopaedics, Oncology, Long Term Ventilation, Neurology, and neurodevelopmental needs.

Join us and make a meaningful difference in the lives of children and their families every day.

Main duties of the job

Serving the population of Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland, Leicester Childrens Hospital is one of the busiest acute and general paediatric centres in the United Kingdom. Our Children's Assessment Unit currently sees around 14,000 children a year ad this is in addition to the children who attend our Paediatric Emergency Department.

The majority of our wards have recently undergone a full or partial refurbishment and we have benefitted from the constriction of a brand new Paediatric Theatre Reception, paediatric Recovery area, Paediatric Emergency Department and a paediatric Observation ward.

Main Duties

  • Act as the clinical lead for Occupational Therapy within the inpatient paediatric unit.
  • Provide highly specialist assessment and intervention for children with complex medical, Long Term Ventilation, Orthopaedic, Oncology neurological, and developmental needs.
  • Work closely with families, carers, and the wider MDT to deliver person- and family-centred care.
  • Support and develop junior staff through supervision, training, and mentoring.
  • Contribute to service development and quality improvement initiatives.
  • Be involved in audit, research, and evidence-based practice projects.
  • Develop and implement individualized treatment plans based on clinical reasoning and best practice guidelines.
  • Utilise a range of therapeutic techniques to address fine motor skills, sensory processing, self-care abilities, play skills, and environmental adaptations.

About us

Our new strategy, developed with the support and feedback of colleagues, patients, and partners, is our compass for the next seven years (2023-2030).

We have four primary goals:

  • high-quality care for all,
  • being a great place to work,
  • partnerships for impact, and
  • research and education excellence

And we will embed health equality in all we do - taking active steps to reduce the avoidable differences in healthcare that some people face, working in partnership with communities.

Our strategy is underpinned by new values and we will work to ensure they are an everyday reality for all:

  • we are compassionate,
  • we are proud,
  • we are inclusive, and
  • we are one team

This is an exciting moment as we look to the future with clarity on what we already do well and where we need to focus our energies to make an even bigger difference for the people we serve.

About the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust:

https://www.uhleicester.nhs.uk

Details

Date posted

15 October 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 7

Salary

£47,810 to £54,710 a year Pro Rata

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Part-time

Reference number

358-7474603-CSI

Job locations

Leicester Royal Infirmary

1 Infirmary Square

Leicester

LE1 5WW


Job description

Job responsibilities

The Clinical Specialist will:-Provide clinical and professional leadership to Occupational Therapy or Physiotherapy colleagues in the speciality area

Lead, evaluate, and develop clinical practice within a specialty ensuring compliance with national and local guidelines and frameworks

Be responsible for the clinical standards, evidence based practice and quality metrics within the speciality

Work as an autonomous practitioner to provide specialist therapy assessments, diagnose and develop individualised treatment programmes based on the patient need, using advanced clinical reasoning skills

Be responsible for a clinical caseload; which will include complex cases within their area of specialty

Undertake an active role in developing and promoting Occupational Therapy or Physiotherapy within the specialty

Be responsible for the day to day management of the delivery of the Occupational Therapy or Physiotherapy specialist team in an efficient and effective way within a fast and pressurised environment

Participate in the planning, development and evaluation of Occupational Therapy or Physiotherapy within the specialist team holding responsibility for defined projects

Work alongside the Therapy Specialty Lead / Therapy Clinical Team Leader to develop links between the specialist Therapy team and relevant CMGs within UHL

Ensure the training and development of staff within the Therapy speciality TeamLiaise with colleagues and work across site/cross specialty if appropriate in order to ensure the provision of a seamless equitable service

Deputise for the Therapy Clinical Team Leader as appropriateDevelop the evidence base for practice through audit, clinical effectiveness and research activity

Assist and support the Therapy Leadership team within the service in the improvement and transformation of Therapy services

To be responsible for the advancement of personal skills and knowledge in a clinical and leadership context and to attend post registration training in order to maintain own and others CPDMaintain up-to-date knowledge and understanding of the best available evidence for practice for the specialty

Job description

Job responsibilities

The Clinical Specialist will:-Provide clinical and professional leadership to Occupational Therapy or Physiotherapy colleagues in the speciality area

Lead, evaluate, and develop clinical practice within a specialty ensuring compliance with national and local guidelines and frameworks

Be responsible for the clinical standards, evidence based practice and quality metrics within the speciality

Work as an autonomous practitioner to provide specialist therapy assessments, diagnose and develop individualised treatment programmes based on the patient need, using advanced clinical reasoning skills

Be responsible for a clinical caseload; which will include complex cases within their area of specialty

Undertake an active role in developing and promoting Occupational Therapy or Physiotherapy within the specialty

Be responsible for the day to day management of the delivery of the Occupational Therapy or Physiotherapy specialist team in an efficient and effective way within a fast and pressurised environment

Participate in the planning, development and evaluation of Occupational Therapy or Physiotherapy within the specialist team holding responsibility for defined projects

Work alongside the Therapy Specialty Lead / Therapy Clinical Team Leader to develop links between the specialist Therapy team and relevant CMGs within UHL

Ensure the training and development of staff within the Therapy speciality TeamLiaise with colleagues and work across site/cross specialty if appropriate in order to ensure the provision of a seamless equitable service

Deputise for the Therapy Clinical Team Leader as appropriateDevelop the evidence base for practice through audit, clinical effectiveness and research activity

Assist and support the Therapy Leadership team within the service in the improvement and transformation of Therapy services

To be responsible for the advancement of personal skills and knowledge in a clinical and leadership context and to attend post registration training in order to maintain own and others CPDMaintain up-to-date knowledge and understanding of the best available evidence for practice for the specialty

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

  • BSc OT
  • HCPC

Desirable

  • Evidence of accredited course or working at masters level in clinical area

Enthusiam for post

Essential

  • Enthusiasm for working in Paediatrics specialty

Desirable

  • Enthusiasm for working in an acute setting

Experience

Essential

  • Experience of working in the relevant clinical area
  • Evidence of teaching/supervising staff

Desirable

  • Experinece of inputting into student education
  • Experience of inputting in to a service development project/audit

Experience

Essential

  • Evidence of experience of managing and leading a Team

Communication

Essential

  • Evidence of using communication skills within a professional setting

Trust Values

Essential

  • Experience of working to trust values
Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

  • BSc OT
  • HCPC

Desirable

  • Evidence of accredited course or working at masters level in clinical area

Enthusiam for post

Essential

  • Enthusiasm for working in Paediatrics specialty

Desirable

  • Enthusiasm for working in an acute setting

Experience

Essential

  • Experience of working in the relevant clinical area
  • Evidence of teaching/supervising staff

Desirable

  • Experinece of inputting into student education
  • Experience of inputting in to a service development project/audit

Experience

Essential

  • Evidence of experience of managing and leading a Team

Communication

Essential

  • Evidence of using communication skills within a professional setting

Trust Values

Essential

  • Experience of working to trust values

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).

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.

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).

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

University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust

Address

Leicester Royal Infirmary

1 Infirmary Square

Leicester

LE1 5WW


Employer's website

https://www.jobsatleicestershospitals.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)


Employer details

Employer name

University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust

Address

Leicester Royal Infirmary

1 Infirmary Square

Leicester

LE1 5WW


Employer's website

https://www.jobsatleicestershospitals.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)


Employer contact details

For questions about the job, contact:

Therapy Clinical Team Lead

Cheryl Woodford

cheryl.woodford@nhs.net

07929825444

Details

Date posted

15 October 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 7

Salary

£47,810 to £54,710 a year Pro Rata

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Part-time

Reference number

358-7474603-CSI

Job locations

Leicester Royal Infirmary

1 Infirmary Square

Leicester

LE1 5WW


Supporting documents

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