Job summary
- Main area
- Allied Health Professionals
- Grade
- Band 6
- Contract
- Fixed term: 12 months (Can also be a secondment)
- Hours
- Full time - 37.5 hours per week (Maternity cover)
- Job ref
- 430-CC26-823A
- Employer
- Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Inpatient Physiotherapy (Dept)
- Town
- Milton Keynes
- Salary
- £38,682 - £46,580 Per annum pro rata
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 13/04/2026 23:59
- Interview date
- 27/04/2026
Employer heading
Specialist Occupational Therapist
Band 6
At Milton Keynes University Hospital, you will be welcomed into a friendly and supportive environment where teamwork and respect are at the heart of everything we do. We are proud to live our Trust values and behaviours every day, creating a culture where everyone feels heard and valued.
MKUH staff's Motivation and Involvement scores are among the highest in our peer group, showing that our people feel inspired and included in decision-making (Staff Survey, 2024).
Our benefits
We believe in recognising and rewarding the amazing contribution of our staff and that is why we offer a comprehensive benefits package designed to support your wellbeing, work-life balance, and professional growth, including:
- Free on-site parking including EV charging
- Complimentary refreshments
- Flexible working arrangements
- Discounted gym membership
- Salary sacrifice car scheme
- Generous annual leave, with the option to bank holiday entitlement
- Membership of the NHS Pension Scheme
- On-site nursery (charges apply)
- A wide-ranging staff health and wellbeing programme including EAP
- VIVUP products to support your mental, physical, and financial Wellbeing
Job overview
Specialist Occupational Therapists
Department: Therapies
Band 6 Fixed Term contract or secondment opportunity until 20 May 2027
Hours: 37.5 per week as part of a 7-day working pattern. (extended working 8am-8pm once Maple Centre is fully operational)
Join a progressive, friendly, and forward thinking frailty service
Our Frailty Same Day emergency care team ( FSDEC) ) is excited to welcome a Band 6 Occupational Therapist to join us on a fixed term basis to cover maternity leave. We deliver high quality, holistic assessment and care for older adults living with frailty, and we are looking for someone who shares our enthusiasm for excellent patient-centred practice.
You will work in our purpose built Maple Centre, supporting the expansion of our Same Day Emergency Care (SDEC) Frailty service. This role also contributes to the development of virtual ward pathways for older adults in the community—an opportunity to be part of innovative, system wide work focused on admission avoidance and integrated care.
'We care We communicate We collaborate We contribute'
Please note: We are unable to offer sponsorship for this role.
Interview date: 27 April 2026
Main duties of the job
What you’ll be doing
• Providing specialist frailty assessments and interventions within a dynamic multidisciplinary team.
• Using evidence based practice to assess, plan, implement, and evaluate therapy interventions.
• Contributing to service development within a rapidly evolving clinical environment.
• Supervising and supporting junior colleagues and therapy assistants as part of your leadership responsibilities.
What we’re looking for
We are seeking a motivated, flexible, and forward thinking therapist with experience in complex medical, elderly care, or frailty settings. Strong communication, excellent time management, and the ability to work both autonomously and collaboratively are essential.
HCPC registration and a recognised Occupational Therapy qualification are required.
This role is also available as a Band 5–6 development opportunity, with structured training and competency support to help you progress confidently into a Band 6 position.
Professional growth and development
You will have the opportunity to attend our established MSc Frailty module, developed in partnership with Northampton University, as well as ongoing support from our dedicated Therapy Practice Development team.
Working for our organisation
Milton Keynes University Hospital, in proud partnership with the University of Buckingham, is a University Teaching Hospital committed to advancing patient care through cutting-edge research and education. With a “Good” rating from the CQC and significant investment underway, this is an exciting time to join our team and grow your career.
As a medium sized general hospital, we provide a full range of general medical and surgical services, including a busy Emergency Department, Maternity, and Paediatrics. As the population of our city and surrounding areas continues to grow rapidly, we are expanding and enhancing our facilities to meet rising demand and improve access to care for all our communities.
We are also proud to offer a growing portfolio of specialist services. In January 2025 we opened our state-of-the-art Radiotherapy Centre, bringing advanced cancer treatment closer to home. Our services also include neonatology, specialist surgical care, and a wide range of diagnostics, supported by the new Community Diagnostic Centre at Whitehouse Health Centre.
Further investment is underway, including the construction of Oak Wards – a new ward block featuring two 24-bed wards – and the recently approved Women and Children’s Centre, set to open by 2030.
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Detailed job description and main responsibilities
NHS Staff Survey: Motivation and Involvement scores are among the highest in our peer group, showing that our people feel inspired and included in decision-making.
Clinical
To be professional and legally accountable for all aspects of your own work including the management of patients in your care.
Professional
To comply with the Royal College of Occupational Therapist’s Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct.
Organisational
To be responsible for the supervision and co-ordination of junior staff, assistants and student on a daily bases in conjunction with the team leader.
Please refer to attached Job description for further information.
We believe success lies in the diversity of our employees and are committed to promoting equality, encouraging diversity, and embracing inclusion. We welcome applications from everyone interested in working for us.
MKUH is committed to equal opportunities and improving the working lives of our staff and as such we offer a range of flexible working practices.
We reserve the right to expire vacancies prior to the advertised closing date once enough applications have been received.
MKUH uses identification scanning technology to confirm the authenticity of documents; all prospective employees of MKUH will have their original documents verified using this technology.
By applying for this role, you accept if successful, that information from your application will be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Record (ESR) system. Your personal data may be transferred from the Trust to another NHS organisation where your employment transfers within the NHS. This is in accordance with the streamlining programme which aims at saving you time and improving efficiencies within the NHS when your employment transfers.
Upon commencing employment with the Trust, all employees (except Medical & Dental Staff on national terms and conditions) are subject to a probationary period lasting a period of six months with an option to extend for a further six months to a total of 12 months.
Person specification
Qualifications and knowledge
Essential criteria
- Occupational Therapy Degree
- Registered with UK Health Care Professions Council
- Evidence of post registration CPD
- Sound therapeutic and clinical knowledge
- Awareness of NHS and Trust systems, policies, procedures and current changes
- Knowledge of Occupational Therapy best practise for a range of conditions.
Desirable criteria
- Membership of RCOT
- Membership of Specialist Interest Groups
Experience
Essential criteria
- Relevant experience in hospital setting
- Completed core rotations in Outpatients/ Orthopaedics/Neurology/Respiratory/ Medicine and Surgery
- Active member of multi-disciplinary team
- Experience of working with Older People
- Experience in a community setting and or Acute Assessment Unit
- Supervision and training of assistants, junior members of staff and students
- Able to independently manage caseload to include complex patients
Desirable criteria
- Undertaken project within area e.g. best practice project, guidelines, benchmarking, audit
Skills
Essential criteria
- Proven time management skills
- Ability to organise and prioritise own case load
- Written and verbal communication skills
- Practise evidence based therapy
- High level of IST including presentation of IST, with the ability to teach other staff including juniors, assistants and students
- Ability to do 1:1 sessions and appraisals with juniors, assistants and students
- Ability to keep accurate and legible patient notes
- Able to appropriately apply a range of treatment approaches
Personal and people development
Essential criteria
- Evidence of Continuous Professional Development
Desirable criteria
- Experience of managing and developing colleagues
Communication
Essential criteria
- Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to influence others
- Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written
- Demonstrate a high level of confidence in interactions with senior medical and nursing staff, delivering respectful professional challenge when necessary
Employer certification / accreditation badges
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
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Hannah Jones
- Job title
- Lead Occupational Therapist in Frailty
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Additional information
Want to know more?
For further information or to arrange an informal discussion, please contact:
Hannah Jones, Lead Occupational Therapist in Frailty – [email protected]
or
Laura Sturgeon, Inpatient Therapy Service Lead – [email protected]
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