Occupational Therapist - SEN Schools in Leyland

Location: Darwen, Leyland, Preston

Salary: £32,302.40 to £38,729.60 pro rata (£27,749.00-£33,270.22 actual pay) - depending on skills, experience and qualifications

Hours: 40hrs per week, Term Time Only

The Aurora Group is an innovative provider of education and care for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities with an ambitious growth plan. We are looking for an enthusiastic Occupational Therapist to work as part of a therapy team in our North West Aurora Schools. Aurora Brooklands, Keyes Barn and Woodlands Schools provide flexible day placements for students aged 5 to 19 years with communication and associated difficulties or specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia. Some may be on the autistic spectrum or have anxieties and difficulties that create barriers to learning. This is an exciting new post that has been created to develop and embed our therapy offer to young people.

Key duties of the role include:

• Work closely with the SENCo and wider therapy team to ensure the delivery of high quality children’s healthcare and therapy at Woodlands, Brooklands & Keyes Barn
• Closely work with families and outside agencies to ensure that therapy is appropriate to children’s needs
• Undertake autonomous assessments of children with a wide range of additional needs, including autistic spectrum conditions, sensory and attachment difficulties within the setting of a specialist school
• Analyse and interpret assessments to recommend and deliver the best course of intervention for each child
• Support individual development and care plans and assist individuals in accordance with their needs and wishes, particularly their activities of daily living, self-care, productivity and leisure
• Formulate, evaluate and review individualised occupational therapy treatment plans, using clinical reasoning skills and utilising a wide range of treatment options to formulate a specialised programme
• Be responsible for the maintenance of accurate written records in line with professional code of conduct
• To be highly competent in assessing a wide range of conditions experienced by children with complex needs based on advance theoretical knowledge of anatomy, physiology and pathology, often in situations where conflicting evidence is present

Skills and Qualifications required:

• Diploma/Degree in Occupational Therapy – Essential
• HCPC Registration – Essential
• Ability to demonstrate and commit to continual professional development
• Previous experience in an occupational therapy role
• Experience of Multi-disciplinary team and multi-agency working
• Knowledge and experience of a wide range of approaches to the management of children by advanced clinical reasoning
• Knowledge of the management of children who have autistic spectrum conditions, sensory needs and attachment difficulties, including evidence based strategies
• Previous experience in a CAMHS or ASC occupational therapy role – Desirable
• Previous experience in a paediatric or special school occupational therapy role – Desirable

Benefits and Additional Information:

• Training and Development: We offer a wide range of programmes and opportunities to all our employees to improve your skills and further your career.
• Save money on your bills: With the cost of living rising we have a fantastic benefit through Perkbox to help with cutting costs.
• Competitive Pay and Reward: We compare the market rates of pay and rewards to ensure they are comparable or better to other similar organisations.
• UK Health Cash Plan: This plan can help cover your day to day healthcare expenditure such as optician and dental bills.
• Employee Assistance Programme: We have support available on a wide variety of issues, helping you with online tools, information and via a freephone counselling service available 24/7.
• Refer a friend for £1,000: We’ll reward you for recommending friends and family to come and join the company (*terms apply).

How to apply:

Please complete an online application form in full, remembering to include all employment and education details. Successful applicants will be subject to pre-employment safeguarding checks including an enhanced disclosure and barring service (DBS) check. The post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and the Aurora Group is therefore permitted to ask job applicants to declare all convictions and cautions (including those which are "spent" unless they are "protected" under the DBS filtering rules) in order to assess their suitability to work with children.

The Aurora Group is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of the children and young adults in our care and is a disability confident and equal opportunities employer.

This advert could be taken down at any point in time without prior notice if the position is filled. Please note that candidates that are shortlisted might be subject to an online search.

Safeguarding Statement: Aurora Brambles School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. We particularly welcome applications from underrepresented groups including ethnicity, gender, transgender, age, disability, sexual orientation or religion.