East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust

Therapy Assistant Practitioner - Woodbridge

The closing date is 15 August 2025

Job summary

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Full-time Band 4 Therapy Assistant Practitioner working within the Woodbridge Integrated Neighbourhood Team. This will be a fixed term contract for 12 months. We are a busy dynamic team who actively support staff new to the community.

The Woodbridge Integrated Neighbourhood Team is based at Unit 7-9 Riduna Park, Melton, Woodbridge, IP12 1QT.

You will be required to work across the Woodbridge area, and the wider community services to meet service requirements.

The team consists Occupational Therapists, Physiotherapists, District & Community nurses, Assistant practitioners, generic workers and social care workers. The Therapy team is led by a Band 7 Therapy Lead with an INT manager managing all teams within the INT.

Previous applicants need not apply. https://sway.cloud.microsoft/3tndXp5oQxjhGyiT?ref=Link

Main duties of the job

Under the supervision of a registered Occupational Therapist or Physiotherapist, you will be expected:

To manage a designated caseload of patients.
To provide specific skilled support to the registered therapists in providing technical therapy interventions to patients in a variety of settings.
To use an evidence-based, person-centred approach in the planning, implementation, evaluation and monitoring of agreed interventions following guidelines and protocols to promote the functional fitness of patients and to aid discharge from hospital in a way that is consistent with their abilities, preferences, and cultural beliefs.
To be able to work flexibly over a 7-day service.
To communicate complex and sensitive information effectively to patients using skills of persuasion, motivation, explanation, negotiation, and empathy. There may be barriers to understanding such as hearing loss, speech difficulty, anxiety, fear, and depression.

About us

We are ESNEFT and we provide hospital and community health services to almost one million people across east Suffolk and north Essex. Our dedicated staff deliver care from acute hospitals in Colchester and Ipswich, community hospitals, surgeries, community clinics and in patients' own homes.

We are one of the largest NHS organisations in England, employing more than 12,000 staff.

We pride ourselves on supporting our staff. We offer a wide range of training and development opportunities, as well as flexible working options.

Along with supporting you to achieve your career goals we offer a generous pension scheme, unsocial hours payments (where applicable), 27 days annual leave on commencement (pro rata) and access to a range of NHS discounts. Our Staff Health and Wellbeing programme offer a variety of services.

Our philosophy is that Time Matters to everyone. Across the Trust, we concentrate on improving the things we do and removing those which cause time delays for our staff and patients.

We are investing in our commitment to Time Matters with a partnership with leading electronic patient record (EPR) supplier Epic. This digital transformation will bring what's widely regarded as the world's best EPR system to ESNEFT, transforming life in hospital for staff and patients.

If you are passionate about patient care and want to develop your skills and knowledge, then we want to hear from you.

Find out about living and working here - www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkPu7HphU8A

Date posted

08 August 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 4

Salary

£27,485 to £30,162 a year per annum

Contract

Fixed term

Duration

12 months

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

432-HR572-25

Job locations

7-9 Riduna Park, Melton, Woodbridge

Woodbridge

IP12 1QT

Job description

Job responsibilities

For full details of the responsibilities and duties of this role please see the attached job description.

Job description

Job responsibilities

For full details of the responsibilities and duties of this role please see the attached job description.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

Can demonstrate intermediate level of theoretical knowledge and clinical reasoning skills acquired through coursework, in-house training and experience to NVQ/Diploma Level 3 or equivalent

Desirable

Membership or special interest in a community care and integration
Assistant member of Professional group such as CSP or BAOT or working towards this

Experience

Essential

Experience as a Therapy assistant or experience at a similar level in a related field of health care / health and fitness sector
Demonstrable experience of delivering tailored personal care with an associated level of senior responsibility
Knowledge of medical conditions and functional needs within community setting or similar context.

Desirable

Knowledge of community resources and whole systems/ pathways approach to care
Experience of working across and liaising with variety of teams.
IT literate

Knowledge

Essential

Knowledge of specific treatment protocols for a wide range of health and social care conditions
Knowledge of role of therapy in Acute and Community Care
Able to support the provision of student placements and other experiential learning.

Desirable

Understanding of the role and application of occupational therapy and physiotherapy.
Knowledge of occupational therapy (OT) and physiotherapy (PT) within the Community or Acute care settings.
Experience of group work with patients.

Skills

Essential

oWillingness and ability to travel across Ipswich and East Suffolk using own or pool transport.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

Can demonstrate intermediate level of theoretical knowledge and clinical reasoning skills acquired through coursework, in-house training and experience to NVQ/Diploma Level 3 or equivalent

Desirable

Membership or special interest in a community care and integration
Assistant member of Professional group such as CSP or BAOT or working towards this

Experience

Essential

Experience as a Therapy assistant or experience at a similar level in a related field of health care / health and fitness sector
Demonstrable experience of delivering tailored personal care with an associated level of senior responsibility
Knowledge of medical conditions and functional needs within community setting or similar context.

Desirable

Knowledge of community resources and whole systems/ pathways approach to care
Experience of working across and liaising with variety of teams.
IT literate

Knowledge

Essential

Knowledge of specific treatment protocols for a wide range of health and social care conditions
Knowledge of role of therapy in Acute and Community Care
Able to support the provision of student placements and other experiential learning.

Desirable

Understanding of the role and application of occupational therapy and physiotherapy.
Knowledge of occupational therapy (OT) and physiotherapy (PT) within the Community or Acute care settings.
Experience of group work with patients.

Skills

Essential

oWillingness and ability to travel across Ipswich and East Suffolk using own or pool transport.

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.

Employer details

Employer name

East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust

Address

7-9 Riduna Park, Melton, Woodbridge

Woodbridge

IP12 1QT

Employer's website

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

Employer details

Employer name

East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust

Address

7-9 Riduna Park, Melton, Woodbridge

Woodbridge

IP12 1QT

Employer's website

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