About this role
Job summary LeadOccupational Therapist - Acute Inpatient Services
1 x Full Time (37.5 HPW) Post at Lynfield Mount Hospital1 x Part Time (30 HPW) Post at Airedale Centre for Mental Health
An exciting opportunity has arisen to join our Acute Inpatient Services as an Occupational Therapy Clinical Lead. This senior role provides clinical, professional and operational leadership across our acute mental health wards, supporting high-quality, recovery-focused care for people with complex mental health needs.
You will provide expert clinical guidance, lead service development, workforce planning and professional supervision, and work closely with service managers and multidisciplinary teams to enhance Occupational Therapy services. The post holder will promote evidence-based practice, quality improvement, clinical governance and innovation to ensure positive outcomes for service users and carers.
The successful candidate will be a HCPC-registered OT with substantial experience within mental health services, including inpatient settings. You will have a proven track record in clinical leadership, staff supervision and service development, alongside a passion for supporting colleagues and improving care.
This is an excellent opportunity to influence practice, shape services and lead the future direction of Occupational Therapy within Acute Mental Health Services.
Join us and help deliver compassionate, person-centred care while making a meaningful difference to the lives of those we support.
Main duties of the job Copilot said:
Main Responsibilities
Manage a specialist occupational therapy caseload, undertaking assessment, treatment planning, care coordination, rehabilitation and discharge planning for individuals with complex mental health needs. Provide clinical leadership and expert occupational therapy advice to staff and multidisciplinary teams, ensuring high-quality, evidence-based and recovery-focused care. Lead the development and delivery of occupational therapy services across acute inpatient settings, supporting service improvement and operational objectives. Supervise, support and develop occupational therapy staff and students through clinical supervision, appraisal, induction, training and professional development. Work collaboratively with internal and external partners to maximise service user outcomes, rehabilitation opportunities and safe discharge planning. Lead quality improvement, clinical governance, audit and research activity, promoting evidence-based practice and continuous service enhancement. Manage workforce responsibilities including recruitment, performance management, absence management, workload planning and staff wellbeing. Contribute to professional and organisational development through participation in working groups, policy development and service transformation initiatives. Closing Date: 24 August 2026Shortlisting Date: W/C 25 August 2026Interview Date: TBC
About us
Everything we do is underpinned by our core values: -
We Care- We act with respect and empathy, and always value difference
We Listen- We understand people's views and respond to their individual needs
We Deliver- We develop and provide excellent services and support our partners
We will consider a variety of flexible working arrangements to enable staff to balance their work and home lives and support staff by offering a fantastic range of benefits including :
Increase mileage rates for > 4500
A wide range of health and wellbeing support packages
A range of internal and external development and learning opportunities
Plus many more.
We are also proud to pledge our support to the Armed Forces and hold a Bronze Award in the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme.
BDCFT is dedicated to environmental and social sustainability by delivering on the commitments within our Green Plan. All staff are actively encouraged and supported to participate in training and to identify and implement sustainable quality improvement across all service areas and activities.
Please note that the Trust reserves the right to close the vacancy before the closing date if a sufficient number of applications are received. It is in the candidate's best interest to apply as soon as possible
Job description Job responsibilities
Please read the attached Job description and person specification for further details about this role.
Right to Work in the UK
Applicants should be aware that for any individual who requires a visa to work in the UK, the Trust provides sponsorship for registered healthcare practitioner roles only. This is an essential requirement of the role, and the Trust is unable to offer you a role if you are unable to meet Trust requirements for sponsorship and Home Office requirements for a visa.
Prior to your appointment you will be asked to provide confirmation of your right to work andresidein the UK. During your continued employment with the Trust, you have a personal responsibility to notify your manager as soon as possible should there be any changes to your right to work status.
Regrettably, if the role is not eligible for sponsorship under the Trusts eligibility criteria, the Trust are unable to extend your employment beyond theexpirationof your current visa. The Trust is not responsible or liable for ensuring that your employment continues after this period.
As a condition of continuous employment, it essential youmaintainthe legal right to work in the United Kingdom throughout the duration of your employment with Bradford District Care NHS Foundation Trust (BDCFT). Any change in your right-to-work status, including but not limited to visaexpiration, revocation, or denial of renewal, mayimpactyour eligibility for employment with the Trust. It is your responsibility to promptly inform your Line Manager of any changes in your right-to-work statusimmediatelyand to provide necessary documentation for verification purposes. Failure to obtain or renew your visain a timely manner is a breach of employment conditions and will result in termination of your employment. We appreciate your attention to this matter and your commitment to fulfilling this requirement promptly.
Person Specification
Qualifications and Training Essential
BHSc (Hons) Occupational Therapy or equivalent Registration with Health Care Professions Council Training in clinical supervision, appraisal and recruitment (or willingness to undertake within an agreed timescale)
Desirable
Evidence of higher level professional development e.g. accredited modules at post-graduate or Masters level in Occupational Therapy or related subject
Experience Essential
Specialist clinical experience of direct occupational therapy clinical work with people with mental health problems Experience working within in-patient services. Experience of using highly specialist occupational therapy assessments and interventions relevant to the clinical area Experience of contributing specialist occupational therapy knowledge within a multidisciplinary team. Experience of involvement in leadership, service improvement, quality and governance, research and audit and gaining service user feedback.
Desirable
Experience of leadership. Experience in design and delivery of staff training and development activity
Knowledge Essential
Knowledge of key national and local drivers in the development of adult mental health. Knowledge of policies, procedures and standards of practice and how to apply to clinical practice Knowledge of the Mental Health Act, Mental Capacity Act and Care Programme Approach and its application in practice
Desirable
Knowledge of the business planning process and HR procedures
Skills Essential
Demonstrate effective clinical leadership Ability to develop and maintain communication with people about complex and difficult matters and / or in difficult situations. Ability to manage own and team caseloads, prioritise and delegate effectively Ability to provide supervision and specialist education to other staff and good quality practice education for students. Ability to contribute to the improvement of the services: engaging with Service Users.
Desirable
Evidence of contributions to service improvements and delivering on targets set by those commissioning services
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 Bradford District Care NHS Foundation Trust
Address Lynfield Mount Hospital
Heights Lane
Bradford
BD9 6DP
United Kingdom
Employer's website https://www.bdct.nhs.uk/current-vacancies/ (Opens in a new tab)