Job Introduction
Join our dynamic and inspiring Occupational Therapy Team at Medway Council
Are you a highly motivated Occupational Therapy Assistant (OTA) looking to make a meaningful impact? Or do you have relevant experience to become an excellent OTA?
We are a welcoming and well-established Occupational Therapy Team in Adult Social Care.
About the Role: As an OTA, you will conduct home-based functional assessments focusing on daily living activities. You'll employ a variety of preventive interventions to support independence, including equipment provision, home adaptations, and enablement. Your assessments will cover areas such as:
- Accessing bathing facilities
- Toileting
- Personal care
- Mobility and transfers
- Kitchen activities/tasks
- Connecting individuals to their communities is a vital aspect of this role.
Key Responsibilities:
- Remote Assessments
- Conduct virtual or telephone-based assessments to identify individuals' needs promptly.
- Provide guidance and support to ensure immediate solutions, including signposting and equipment provision where appropriate.
- Home Assessments
- Visit individuals in their homes to evaluate their living environment and assess functional abilities.
- Identify potential risks and recommend adaptations/ equipment/ interventions/assistive technology to enhance safety and independence.
- Provision of Equipment and Adaptations and assistive technology
- Recommend, arrange, and facilitate the delivery of appropriate equipment to meet assessed needs.
- Coordinate home adaptations to improve accessibility and daily living.
- Reablement
- Support individuals in regaining skills and confidence following illness, injury, or a change in circumstances.
- Develop tailored, short-term reablement plans that encourage independence and reduce reliance on long-term care services.
- Community Resource Utilisation
- Identify and connect individuals with local community resources and services that promote wellbeing and independence.
- Signpost individuals to social, recreational, or support networks to reduce isolation and improve quality of life.
- Strengths-Based Practice
- Focus on individuals' capabilities and strengths, empowering them to make decisions about their care and support needs.
- Collaboration with Multidisciplinary Teams
- Work closely with occupational therapists, social workers, social care officers and healthcare professionals, carers (both paid and informal) and voluntary services to provide holistic support.
- Record Keeping and Compliance
- Maintain accurate and up-to-date records of assessments, interventions, and outcomes.
- Ensure compliance with relevant policies, procedures, and legislation, including the Care Act and health and safety regulations
Our Approach: We adhere to the Care Act and Occupational Therapy principles, utilising a ‘Strengths-based’ (or asset-based) approach. This holistic and multidisciplinary practice focuses on individuals’ strengths, including personal and community networks, to promote wellbeing. Our approach is outcomes-led, ensuring that we prioritise the individual's goals and needs.
Why Join Us?
Be part of a supportive and collaborative team dedicated to professional growth.
Benefit from guidance and supervision from experienced Occupational Therapists
Make a genuine and lasting impact on the lives of individuals in your community
Join us and take the next step in your career while making a real difference
Please read the OTA job profile for more info.
We look forward to welcoming you to our team!
In return we will offer you:
- Generous annual leave entitlement
- Generous local government pension scheme package
- Access to wider training and development qualifications
- Flexible working scheme
- Travel plan discounts
- Access to CAREFIRST advice & counselling service
- Employee discount scheme for national and local retailers
Career Progression Frameworks (CPF) have been introduced for all roles at Medway Council. These frameworks provide a mechanism for employees to take ownership of their development within their post and be rewarded accordingly. This means that the salary you will be offered will be at level A unless, based on an assessment against the CPF criteria, you demonstrate that you are meeting the criteria of level B or C. There will be further opportunity once in post to progress from level A to B, and B to C.
When writing your application, it is important to ensure you identify your suitability against the requirements of the job profile, as this information will be used for shortlisting and may contribute to the CPF assessment. Your application may be rejected if the minimum required criteria is not met. Further information relating to the requirements for this role can be found in the CPF Guidance document attached.
The person specification of a job profile is split into three levels:
Level A details the essential criteria that all applicants must be able to demonstrate through their application and interview.
Level B details the developed competencies that an individual who is practised in this role would be able to demonstrate and will be a progression of knowledge, experience and skills from level A.
Level C requires the highest level of competence and applicants would need to fully meet and demonstrate all aspects of the job profile, including qualifications, knowledge, skills and experience.
You can demonstrate knowledge, experience and skills to allow you to perform within this role. You will identify, through application, how you meet the elements detailed within the person specification, at either Level A, B or C. You will be supported to develop in your role through induction, probation and a supportive Performance Appraisal and Career Conversation. Through your induction you will be introduced to the Career Progression Framework (CPF), which will help you to identify your areas of strength and any development needs.
Our organisation:
Medway is a unitary authority in the South East of England, made up of the towns of Strood, Rochester, Chatham, Gillingham and Rainham and more rural areas, including the Hoo Peninsula.
Situated in Kent in the South-East of England, the area has plenty of green spaces, excellent facilities and easy access to the national motorway and rail networks, facilitating superb transport links to London.
We provide all local Government services for a quarter of a million people, looking after education, environment, social care, housing, planning, business and much more - everything from frontline services such as rubbish collection and events like the Dickens Festival to work that goes on behind the scenes to ensure services in Medway run smoothly and cost effectively.
Working at Medway Council means that you get to be part of this journey working alongside talented, professional colleagues to drive forward change to transform the lives of our residents and the communities they live in.
Important Information-
Applicants must be able to demonstrate all essential requirements as listed in the job profile
Equal Opportunities Commitment Statement
Medway Council is committed to creating an inclusive work environment with a diverse workforce. All appropriately qualified candidates will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, disability or age
For further information please refer to the Medway information pack available as a download or to view online
Please be advised that if you are not contacted within 3 weeks of the advert closing date then you have not been shortlisted. All recruitment correspondence, including interview letters and contracts of employment will usually be sent out via email.
Please visit http://www.mindfulemployer.net/ for information on how Medway Council put good practices in place to ensure employees and job applicants who declare mental health issues receive the right level of support.
We reserve the right to close this vacancy at any time prior to the closing date.
If you are not contacted within 3 weeks of the advert closing date then you have not been shortlisted.
All recruitment correspondence, including interview letters and contracts of employment will usually be sent out via email, if you require documentation/correspondence in different format such as braille or large print, please contact the Resourcing Team on 01634 332878.
