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Job summary

Main area
Occupational Therapy
Grade
NHS AfC: Band 7
Contract
Permanent
Hours
Part time - 37.5 hours per week (Weekend Working as part of a 7/7 rota)
Job ref
249-7612179-3
Employer
Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Employer type
NHS
Site
Great Western Hospital
Town
Swindon
Salary
£49,387 - £56,515 pro rata per annum
Salary period
Yearly
Closing
30/06/2026 23:59

Employer heading

Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust logo

Team Lead - Acute Occupational Therapy

NHS AfC: Band 7

Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is a unique organisation, serving as the sole integrated provider in the Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon, and Wiltshire system. Our scope extends beyond boundaries as we oversee adult community services in Swindon and provide acute care from the Great Western Hospital. 

Our 5,500 staff have 1.2m patient contacts a year, with 13,000 operations carried out in our Theatres, around 4,000 babies born, and our emergency attendances are now well over 100,000 per year. Those numbers only tell part of our story about what an exciting time it is to join Great Western Hospitals.

We are cultivating a culture that fosters our ambitions, prioritising equality, diversion, inclusion, wellbeing, and leadership. We aim to create an environment where every member of our team can truly thrive.

Applications for this role should be written by the applicant. If artificial intelligence (AI) programmes are used, then the application may be rejected due to this document being an important part of the assessment process. This does not prevent applicants seeking appropriate support with applications should they need to for the purposes of any declared disability.

If we receive a high volume of applications, we may close adverts prior to the published closing date. Therefore, we advise you to complete and submit your application as soon as possible.

Job overview

The Great Western Hospital is seeking a Band 7 Team Lead Occupational Therapist to come and join our Acute Occupational Therapy  Team.

The Great Western Hospital is seeking an enthusiastic and motivated Band 7 Team Lead Occupational Therapist to join our Acute Occupational Therapy Team.

This is a fantastic opportunity to step into a senior leadership role within a busy acute setting, working collaboratively with our existing Band 7 Team Lead to ensure smooth service delivery, shared leadership responsibilities and consistent support for the wider OT team. Together, you will provide operational oversight, clinical leadership and day-to-day coordination across a range of medical and surgical wards.

You will also work closely with our Band 7 Clinical Specialists, whose expertise supports quality patient care across areas such as Palliative Care, Frailty, Cardiology and Respiratory. Through strong partnership and shared decision-making, you’ll help align leadership, specialist input and service priorities to ensure the team delivers safe, effective and patient-centred care.

Acute Therapies - A day in the life: Acute Occupational Therapy

If you’d like to learn more about this opportunity or arrange a visit to meet the team, please contact:

Michaela Kirby[email protected]
Briony Howard[email protected]
☎️ 01793 646371

Previous applicants need not apply

Main duties of the job

You’ll be part of a vibrant OT service of 22 qualified OTs, assistants and apprentices, offering a friendly, collaborative and supportive working environment. Through our Improving Together methodology, you’ll have the opportunity to lead and implement quality improvement initiatives and influence service developments.

At Great Western, we invest in our people. Through the Great Western Academy, you’ll have access to a wide range of training, leadership programmes and higher-education opportunities to support your growth in this senior role.

To oversee, coordinate, and further develop the Acute Occupational Therapy service at the Great Western Hospital site. To work collaboratively with the existing Acute Occupational Therapy Team Lead to ensure consistent, high-quality service delivery. To provide specialist clinical expertise and professional leadership to both qualified and unqualified staff, as well as to the wider multidisciplinary team. To act as the representative for Acute Occupational Therapy, delivering service updates and contributing to senior leadership across the Great Western site, while deputising for the Acute Therapies Lead when required.

Working for our organisation

We are proud to be part of BSW Hospitals Group – a formal partnership between Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust and Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust. With a combined workforce of over 17, 600 colleagues, and budget of 1.6 billion the Group is united by a common purpose to deliver the best possible care to over 1 million people. We are creating a heath and care system that works with the people we care for, reducing the differences people currently face in access, experience and outcomes, improving the experience of our colleagues and tackling shared challenges like sustainability and finances. Every improvement we make across our Group will be guided by what creates the greatest benefit for our colleagues, our patients, 

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

This job description is not intended to be exhaustive and it is likely that duties may be altered from time to time in the light of changing circumstances, in discussion with the post holder. This role profile is intended to 
provide a broad outline of the main responsibilities only. The post holder will need to be flexible in developing 
the role with initial and on-going discussions with the designated manager.

Person specification

Qualifications

Essential criteria
  • BSc (Hons) Occupational Therapy or equivalent training and experience
  • Registration with HCPC
  • Professional knowledge acquired through degree supplemented by further training, short specialist courses, to master’s equivalent level Willingness to undertake further training
Desirable criteria
  • Leadership training courses
  • Practice Educator training/qualification
  • RCOT membership

Experience

Essential criteria
  • Specialist clinical experience in complex caseload management and discharge planning within an Acute setting.
  • Ability to assess and identify complex equipment to facilitate safe discharges
  • Sound working knowledge of legislation and clinical governance relevant to the clinical area.
  • Leading within a multi professional team, sharing specialist skills and coordinating complex discharges.
  • Understanding and experience of working with Partner Organisations and Community Teams.
  • Managing conflict/difficult conversations
  • Experience of and involvement in service development.
  • Ability to reprioritise own workload in order to support your colleagues.
  • Staff development through supervision and appraisal
  • Experience of and involvement in service development
Desirable criteria
  • Service review and change management
  • Participation in recruitment process
  • Experience of budget management and workforce planning
  • Experience of performance and/or absence management
  • Experience of incident and complaint management

Employer certification / accreditation badges

NHS Pastoral Care Quality AwardVeteran AwareApprenticeships logoNo smoking policyPositive about disabled peopleAge positiveDisability confident leaderInvestors in People: GoldCare Leaver CovenantStonewall equality policy. Equality and justice for lesbians, gay men, bisexual and trans people.Step into healthArmed Forces Covenant

Applicant requirements

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.

Documents to download

Apply online now

Further details / informal visits contact

Name
Michaela Kirby
Job title
Acute Occupational Therapy Team Lead
Email address
[email protected]
Telephone number
01793 646371
Additional information

Briony Howard

Acute Therapies Lead 

[email protected]

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