Dates: Job starts September 2022
Location: Wandsworth
Contract type: Full Time
Contract term: Permanent
The Chelsea Group of Children is a small Independent specialist school for 35 children with mild to moderate and complex learning needs.
We are expanding our therapy team as we continue to develop best practice in our specialist school using various models and also developing our own eclectic approach.
We wish to appoint an enthusiastic Paediatric occupational therapist to join our team and work in close partnership with our teachers, Speech and Language therapists, learning support assistants and parents.
Key responsibilities: Clinical responsibilities
• To autonomously manage a complex caseload of children with a range of developmental disabilities.
• To assess the sensory, fine motor and self-help skills of the children attending
the school and contribute to regular reports and reviews of progress.
• To contribute to, together with the other key staff and the child’s parent(s), each child’s individual education plan (IEP).
• To work closely with the Teachers, Speech and Language Therapists, and Learning Assistants to ensure the sensory, fine motor and self-help needs of each child are met at in the lessons.
• To ensure that the environment and approaches used at CGC are adapted to take account of children’s sensory and motor needs.
• To keep parents informed and provide advice to them on how to facilitate and develop their child’s sensory, fine motor and self-help skills at home.
• To work with individual or small groups of children to facilitate their sensory and motor development to ensure their needs as outlined in their “statement” are met.
• To attend Annual Reviews and other relevant meetings in order to contribute up-to-date information on the child’s Occupational Therapy needs and intervention.
• To liaise with the Speech and Language therapist and develop a program for oral motor development including feeding.
experience:
1. experience of working with children on the autism spectrum.
2. experience of working closely with parents
3. Proven ability to work collaboratively and constructively as part of a team
4. experience or interest in offering a holistic approach to meeting children’s
special needs and specifically understanding of a range of approaches to teaching children on the autistic spectrum.
5. experience of sensory integration methods of facilitating learning and development.
6. experience of structured teaching approaches
7. experience of working in a multidisciplinary team
8. experience of managing challenging behaviours.
9. experience using various standardized assessments and clinical observations for in paediatric assessment.
10. Ability to work as a team member.