Occupational Therapy Technician

Transformationunitgm; Walsall; On-site; GBP 24,000 - 27,000; Full time

Job summary

A National Health Service Provider is seeking an Occupational Therapy Technician for its expanding community mental health team in Walsall. The position involves supporting patients through their recovery in collaboration with a multi-disciplinary team. Ideal candidates will have an understanding of mental health, a relevant educational background, and a passion for improving others' lives. This role offers competitive pay and opportunities for professional development.

Benefits

Flexible working

Access to staff wellbeing services

Professional development opportunities

Qualifications

• Passion for mental health and supporting recovery.
• Willingness to develop skills and knowledge in community mental health.

Responsibilities

• Support patients through their recovery process.
• Work collaboratively with a multi-disciplinary team.
• Assist with daily living tasks and therapeutic activities.

Skills

Understanding of mental health issues

Experience of working with mental illness

Education

Good general education to GCSE level or equivalent

Job description

Employer Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site Mossley Day Unit Town Walsall Salary £24,937 - £26,598 per annum Salary period Yearly Closing 01/01/2026 23:59

Occupational Therapy Technician

NHS AfC: Band 3

Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust is growing and changing. We provide specialist mental health, learning disability and community services across Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall and Wolverhampton, and we’re hiring people who want to shape what comes next.

Formed on 1 April 2020 through the merger of Black Country Partnership NHS Foundation Trust and Dudley and Walsall Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust, we’re now focused on the future with a new Trust Strategy and our Best for the Black Country programme.

What we do

• Adult and older adult mental health
• Children and young people’s mental health
• Specialist learning disability services
• Community healthcare for children, young people and families in Dudley
• We’ve got real momentum right now. New strategy, clear priorities and our Best for the Black Country work mean things are moving in the right way, fast.
• Our values aren’t just posters. People are genuinely compassionate, take responsibility, treat you with respect and help you feel confident and empowered.
• You’ll be looked after. Flexible working, family-friendly policies, supportive teams, proper wellbeing support and chances to learn with coaching and development.
• There’s room to grow. Loads of services to explore and real space to try ideas and be heard.
• It’s a good place to live. Friendly diverse communities, easy transport, good schools and colleges, shopping, food, lots to do, plenty of green space and a lower cost of living than many other city regions.

What it’s like to work here

You’ll join friendly, skilled teams who look out for each other. We plan together, share caseload pressures, and celebrate wins. New starters get a warm welcome and clear induction; early careers colleagues have preceptorship and buddying; experienced staff can lead, teach and innovate. You’ll have space to do good work, speak up, and see the difference you make.

Who we are

We’re 4,000+ colleagues from many backgrounds, committed to improving health and wellbeing for our communities and for each other. If you’re excited about the role but don’t tick every box, please apply. We value potential and transferable experience.

Job overview

We have an exciting opportunity for a motivated and enthusiastic individual to join our community mental health team. We are looking someone who has a passion for mental health and supporting people to achieve their goals and work towards their recovery. We are looking for someone who wishes to develop their skills and knowledge to support others. You will be part of a dynamic, supportive and diverse multi-disciplinary team.

This is a great opportunity to join a team of highly skilled staff working to make a difference in our community.

This is an exciting time to join our Black Country Healthcare Foundation Trust to be part of the Community Mental Health Transformation. We are looking for enthusiastic and committed individuals to join our Walsall North Community Mental Health Team.

Main duties of the job

• You will be a caring and considerate person who has an enthusiasm for working in mental health. You will have an allocated caseload of patients who you will support through their recovery process. This will be through a combination of one to one and group work as part of your role. You will support them to learn new skills and how to manage day to day tasks through a number of interventions within the community.
• You will be supported to develop your skills and knowledge in of mental health and the role of the Occupational Therapy Technician within the community mental health team. We currently have two Occupational Therapists within the team who you will directly be working with.
• Within the team we have a robust Occupational Therapy leadership. You will have regular caseload supervision from an Occupational Therapist. We have regular opportunities to develop clinical and professional practice in line with service user needs and organisational values. We have a peer support group which you are encouraged to attend to develop your skills.
• The team is committed to providing safe, sound and supportive services.

Working for our organisation

As a trust we are committed to ensuring staff wellbeing, providing access to various networks, trust wide mindfulness groups, self-referral physio services, staff counselling. In addition to this you will have access to the Vivup services, Car lease schemes and other benefits.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• To assist the support and recovery of service users within the Community Mental Health Team in order to provide a range of psychosocial interventions with service users which aim to improve a person’s mental health in three main areas of self-care, productivity and leisure and also reduce their emotional distress.
• The post holder will work predominantly with service users presenting highly complex mental health needs, and often displaying challenging behaviour including verbal aggression, that requires a high degree of sensitivity, tact and effective communication skills.
• The post holder is generally guided by the CMHT operating Procedures however, qualified staff will be available for reference and advice.
• To undertake any other duties of a similar nature consistent with the responsibilities of this post in order to provide a quality service.
• Under supervision and guidance of the Occupational Therapist the post holder will take responsibility for supporting a pre directed care plan for the service user, contributing to the implementation of clinical care and providing feedback on progress of the service user.
• The post holder will take responsibility for safe use of all equipment and will be expected to support the service user in practical activities which may include domestic work, relaxation and daily living tasks. These may be one off sessions or ongoing programmes, sometimes requiring the post holder to exert light physical effort.
• Undertaking individual therapeutic activities with clients to promote independence and wellbeing, sometimes requiring tact and persuasion or where there may be barriers to understanding. Assessing client’s responses to activities and amending programmes of activity where necessary, making judgements on when to elevate clinical issues to the Occupational Therapist.
• To work collaboratively with multidisciplinary team members/service provider in the provision of supporting the service user. To effectively communicate and highlight any clinical risks and report this to the multidisciplinary team in a proficient and timely fashion and if necessary contribute to ongoing risk reduction and management.
• To gather information from the service user/carer as part of the care plan process and activities identified within it, communicating effectively with clients where there are barriers to understanding and where clients are highly emotive or distresses and often presenting challenging behaviour.
• To ensure all written and electronic work is accurate and kept up to date e.g. patient notes and contacts on Rio, in accordance with professional and Trust standards.
• To effectively use clinical supervision to discuss and reflect on own practice.
• To maintain and demonstrate up-to-date knowledge of national guidelines, standards, legislation and professional developments in current methods in the treatment of service conditions.
• To ensure all Trust policies and procedures are implemented and adhered to within area of practice and making suggestions for changes to working practices within the CMHT.
• To participate in own Personal Development Conversation by completing preparation documentation and actively participating in the appraisal process.
• To actively engage in and maintain the organisations standards of clinical governance including participation in audits, clinical supervision and research into clinical practice.
• Undertake relevant activities to meet training objectives and maintain up to date mandatory training.
• To undertake own continual professional development by demonstrating an ongoing reflective learning style in the workplace. This should be clearly and regularly documented in a personal portfolio.

Person specification

• Good general education to GCSE level or equivalent
• Understanding of mental health issues
• Experience of working with mental illness

Applying and timelines
We may close this advert early if we receive a high volume of applications, so please apply soon. We shortlist after the closing date and will contact shortlisted candidates usually within two weeks. If you haven’t heard by then, you haven’t been shortlisted. Please check your email for updates and contact Recruitment for feedback.

Pay and contracts

Most NHS roles are paid under NHS Agenda for Change. With us - your starting point is set against the advertised band and your relevant NHS service, with progression through annual increments.

Medical and Very Senior Manager roles follow separate national pay frameworks, not Agenda for Change. Details are provided in each advert and during recruitment.

Standards and checks

· Clinical posts up to and including Band 4 are expected to hold the Care Certificate. If you don’t have it yet, we’ll support you to complete it in post.

· Some roles require a Standard or Enhanced DBS check under part V of the Police Act 1997. Having a criminal record won’t automatically prevent employment. We consider the role and individual circumstances.

· We are an equal opportunities employer, offer flexible working, and are a smoke free Trust.

Inclusion, equality and adjustments

· We are an equal opportunities employer and offer flexible working.

· We are an anti-racist, disability-inclusive and LGBTQ+-inclusive Trust.

· We welcome applications from under-represented groups and people with lived experience relevant to our services, including Black and Asian colleagues, Disabled people (including non-visible disabilities such as neurodiversity and mental health) and LGBTQ+ people.

· Disabled applicants can request consideration under our Guaranteed Interview Scheme where essential criteria are met. You can ask for reasonable adjustments at every stage of the process.

Our culture and values
Best for the Black Country is our improvement journey. We share a clear vision and values, lead with compassion and visibility, listen to every voice, keep improving what we do and take ownership for delivery. You’ll feel it in how teams support each other and in the impact your work has on local people. If you want to contribute, learn and progress, this is a great time to join us.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

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.