Job overview

We are looking for a Senior Occupational Therapist to help develop the Daycare team in HMP Norwich. We are a small and friendly multi-professional team consisting of a Lead Therapist and a Psychotherapist who work alongside two Assistant Practitioners and a Senior Mental Health Nurse providing therapeutic input to prisoners at HMP Norwich.

We work with prisoners who self-harm, have suicidal thoughts, or may have attempted suicide. Many of these people experience high levels of anxiety and have a history of trauma or PTSD diagnosis. Many of the people accessing the service have an Assessment Care in Custody and Teamwork (ACCT) document in place to support them. We offer therapeutic approaches in DBT and CBT as well as having an established trauma pathway, which includes emotional regulation work. 

Main duties of the job

The team are looking for a Senior Occupational Therapist to support with the development of the Daycare pathways. 

As a Senior Occupational Therapist, you will be expected to take on line management responsibilities for the assistants within the team, to lead on the running of therapeutic groups with a range of disciplines, to carry out joint assessments and to assist with writing formulations and discharge reports.

You will also be expected to work 1:1 with prisoners in delivering interventions. You will be invited to attend and contribute to ongoing referral meetings and to engage in regular clinical supervision to access support and continue developing your expertise.

We work closely with the NSFT Mental Health In Reach team, the IAPT/Wellbeing team and the wider and Secure and Forensic services. An important part of this role is to build links with the prison as well as ongoing support services. Some of this work will involve training the prison staff on therapeutic interventions as well as mental health conditions. 

The Prison has an established educational service for prisoners, including access to vocational opportunities. However, Daycare staff need to also have an awareness of what community and/or third sector organisations are available to support either by in reaching into the Prison, and/or to support those coming towards the end of their sentences.

Working for our organisation

Here at NSFT we pride ourselves on being a welcoming, talented, friendly and supportive team who like nothing better than sharing experiences and learning from each other. In addition to ongoing training and development opportunities, we are committed to providing an environment in which you can thrive.

Why work for us? We have ambitious aspirations, pushing ahead with exciting transformation work and we need dedicated individuals to support us on our journey. We have strong, established professional networks coupled with an exceptional leadership team who will ensure you are truly cared for and cared about.

Why Norfolk and Suffolk? The people here are warm and welcoming, you’ll never be far from the beautiful coastline or Broads National Park. We’re an hour and a half away from London and have an international airport in Norwich too. Our villages, towns and cities are packed full of history, independent cafes, shops and theatres. We have excellent shopping, eating out, top ranking schooling and affordable house prices too.